Burn The Floor **** TNT

Fresh from Broadway, the latest incarnation of this high-octane, non-stop spectacular, put together by Aussie dance champion Jason Gilkinson, definitely lives up to its name. Even with a readymade audience among the millions of television’s “Strictly” ballroom fans, Burn The Floor takes no chances. Energy levels never flag from a saucy opening entrance through the aisles to the vibrant “Proud Mary” finale.

There’s the occasional waltz interlude for contrast, but compared to the overtly sexual, primarily Latin American influenced choreography, the sedate, romantic glide pales to elegant insignificance. The talented, limber-limbed, international young cast rumba, cha cha, samba, tango and jive their way through two hours of plotless dance. Sexy, skin-tight costumes are changed with lightning speed and the slinky girls faultlessly execute their quickfire moves on spindly, gravity-defying stilettos.

Leave your brain in the bar and just immerse yourself in the sheer visceral pleasure of this polished production which, wisely, has no pretensions other than to entertain.

Shaftesbury Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2H 8DP (020 7379 5399)Tube: Holborn/Covent Garden/Tottenham Court RoadUntil 4th September £20 - £62.50

Danton's Death*** TNT

Set in 1794 during the lead up to Danton’s public execution, Georg Buchner’s 1835 play (in an interval-free version by Howard Brenton) paints a young man’s angry picture of political unrest and infighting during which former allies become foes and old friends are sent to the guillotine.

In stark contrast to Elliot Levey’s priggish but “Incorruptible” Robespierre, finding virtue in violence, the married, whoring Danton (a swaggering Toby Stephens) is tired of bloodshed, his combative spirit only rekindled in an impassioned courtroom rebuttal of the accusations of Alec Newman’s rousing Saint-Just.

There’s not much room for dramatic action in Michael Grandage's fluent, but wordy, production - but it looks wonderful with the light piercing the windows of Christopher Oram’s high, wood-panelled set to create images worthy of an old master.

Olivier at the National Theatre, South Bank, SE1 9PX (020 7452 3000) Tube: Waterloo nationaltheatre.org.uk
Currently in rep until 14th October £10 - £30 as part of the Travelex season

The Prince Of Homburg *** TNT

German playwright Heinrich von Kleist took his life in a suicide pact at the age of 34, and this, written in 1811, the year of his death, was to be his final finished play.

Dennis Kelly’s sprightly new version opens with the eponymous Prince sleepwalking in the garden where his somnambulist reveries are intruded upon by the Prussian Elector and his attractive niece, Princess Natalia. The consequences prove catastrophic.

Preoccupied with waking remnants of a vision of the lovely Natalia, the Prince fails to note the strict battle orders issued by her uncle. As a result, he uses his own initiative to win the battle against the Swedes – and finds himself facing a court-martial for his impetuous behaviour.

Kleist questions whether the punishment doled out for his misdemeanour should fit the “crime” of flouting the rules of military discipline or be tempered by the positive results of a precipitous action, and whether the greater good really is served by sacrificing individual autonomy to strict state authority.

Charlie Cox’s naive Prince has a youthfully exuberant quality as he veers from an unshakeable belief that the man he viewed as a father figure would not sanction the death sentence, to cravenly begging for his life, to the final conviction that his unauthorised behaviour does indeed warrant the ultimate penalty. But, in an attractively staged production directed by Jonathan Munby, it is Ian McDiarmid’s Elector who commands attention – an experienced manipulator who plays the young lovers with a precise, icy intensity to achieve his own ends.

Donmar, Earlham Street WC2H 9LX (0844 871 7624) Tube: Covent Garden
donmarwarehouse.com Until 4th September £15 - £26

La Boheme *** TNT

If you’ve always wanted to test out the appeal of opera but have been scared off by the prospect of a hefty dent to your wallet and an evening of serious singing in a language you don’t understand, head for Dean Street where OperaUpClose’s bang up to date production of Puccini’s classic 1896 tale of love among impoverished Parisian artists in the 1830’s is packing in the crowds.

Robin Norton-Hale’s contemporary, colloquial, new version began life above a 50-seater pub in Kilburn, but this relocation to Soho fits nicely into the larger theatre’s amenities – with the audience transferring to the bar along with the cast (and a scattered chorus) when struggling writer Rodolfo takes Ukrainian cleaner Mimi (she makes fabric flowers in her spare time) to join his flatmates – aspiring artist Marcello, penniless musician Schaunard and philosophy post grad Colline - for a Christmas Eve drink.

Outside in the street, passersby stare curiously through the windows as Musetta (Marcello’s on-off girlfriend) takes her elderly admirer, lawyer Alcindoro, for a financial ride, flouncing provocatively along the tables as she sings. Despite Mimi’s ominous cough, there’s more laughter than tragedy in a lively production which really does make opera accessible to the masses.

There’s more than one cast (to keep up with the strains of delivering these demanding operatic roles) but just a busy Andrew Charity accompanying them all on the piano, and although, on the night I went, there was the occasional struggle to hit and sustain the notes, this is a fun, accessible evening, enthusiastically applauded by an appreciative audience.

Soho Theatre, Dean Street, W1D 3NE (020 7478 0100) Tube: Tottenham Court Road tube
www.sohotheatre.com Until 4th Sept £15-£25

The Prisoner Of Second Avenue *** TNT

Prolific American playwright Neil Simon is a clever, often very funny writer, but he doesn’t always know when enough is enough and a joke wears thin.

This sprightly revival of his angst-ridden 1971 Broadway hit could profitably ditch a redundant scene involving a quartet of assorted siblings and focus solely on unravelling advertising exec Mel and his wife Edna when New York city life and the economic downturn push him over the edge.

Jeff Goldblum maintains the gags and the momentum as troubled 47 year old Mel, unable to cope with noisy neighbours and broken air-conditioning in their high-rise apartment, whilst Mercedes Ruehl provides the affectionate voice of reason as his devoted spouse, forced to become the breadwinner in a social comedy which sacrifices truthfulness for an onslaught of one-liners.

Vaudeville, Strand WC2R 0NH (0844 412 4663) Tube: Charing Cross tube secondavenuetheplay.com
Extended to 25th September £25 - £49.50

Aspects of Love TNT *** (unedited version)

The score is as lush as ever, but Trevor Nunn has successfully stripped back the trappings – both orchestral and scenic - in this revisit to the through-sung Andrew Lloyd Webber musical he first directed in 1989. The songs are allowed to speak for themselves in a bohemian tale of love across generations and nationalities based on Bloomsburyite David Garnett’s novel tracing the ups and downs of an enduring post-war attraction between struggling French actress Rose (Katherine Kingsley - no relation) and younger English Alex (a pure voiced Michael Arden).
Covering 17 years and encompassing, in various computations, assorted relatives (including his sophisticated art-forger uncle) and lovers (Rosalie Craig’s zesty sculptress), it makes for a very enjoyable evening but one which, despite the soaring melodies, tugs only fitfully at the heartstrings.

Menier Chocolate Factory , 53 Southwark Street, SE1 1RU ( 020 7907 7060) tube London Bridge www.menierchocolatefactory.com Until 26th September (£32.00 & Meal Deals available £39.50)

The Great British Country Fete TNT

He comes up with some pretty good lines, but stand-up Russell Kane hasn’t mastered the art of creating a satisfying story.

Even at just 70 minutes long, this playfully executed mini-musical feels overstretched and repetitive. But its heart is definitely in the right place as Graham Lappin’s rustic Farmer Joe stages a fete in protest over Tesco’s plans to take over the Suffolk village of Upham and swallow everything that gives it its character – not, perhaps, that that would be a totally bad thing given the selection of eccentrics who’ve set up their stalls.

There’s a little old lady with fascist leanings who will only make jam out of perfect, pale fruit; a pair of posh townies who’ve been vigorously milking an exhausted billy goat (cue a mimed demonstration which leaves no room for doubt as to the exact source of the unique ingredient of their yoghurt-style product), plus a female vicar who’s far too focussed on the local teenage boys and a simple young lad clutching a vicious-looking stuffed ferret. One can’t help but sympathise with Joe’s gay son who wants to escape from this social backwater to the techno throb of Brighton clubs.

Completing the versatile cast of three (and sharing keyboard and guitar duties) Gabriel Vick and Katie Brayben bring the population to caricatured life and deliver Michael Bruce’s songs with gusto.

If only structure and material were just that bit stronger, their likeable enthusiasm would probably succeed in glossing over the cracks. Still, with a glass or two of wine beforehand and a lashings of friendly summer indulgence, this jokey portrayal of the little man’s fight against the takeover of global corporations offers a few laughs, some strong singing and, if you’re lucky, a taste of homemade jam.

Bush Theatre, Shepherds Bush Green, W12 8QD (020 8743 5050) Tube: Shepherds Bush bushtheatre.co.uk
Until 14th August £20

The House Of Bilquis Bibi ** TNT

Mutter mutter, mumble mumble …..there’s something going on here, but for much of the time I wasn’t at all sure what.

I’ve seen The House of Bernarda Alba (Lorca’s classic on which Sudha Bhuchar has based her new play for Tamasha) more than once, but lazy diction meant that neither I nor my companion could make out a significant proportion of what was being said.

Matters weren’t helped by the decision to speak portions of the dialogue in the local language - not necessarily a problem in itself, but definitely an issue when the words are so indistinct that one can’t always be sure when dialect blends into English.

Bhuchar has relocated this Andalusian drama (written in 1936 but first performed posthumously almost a decade later) from Spain to present day Pakistan where tyrannical, twice widowed Bilquis Bibi rules her household of two servants and five unmarried daughters with a harsh impatience. Her spinster brood may have mobiles, but they’re still frustrated by a society in which brides must be virgins and come with a dowry.

Bilquis has already turned away more than one possible suitor – no one’s good enough - and only her eldest, Abida, is currently courting. Or at least, that’s the situation on the surface. But she’s not the only sister craving (or, in the case of Aroosa, actually getting) the attention of this unseen suitor and tragedy looms in this restless hotbed of stifled emotions.

When you can hear them, the lines often impress, but why Kristine Landon-Smith, co-founder and artistic director of this 21 year old British Asian company, has chosen to have many of them spoken from behind a muffling wall is a mystery. And although the move to the Punjab is potentially fruitful, an already static play needs performances of far greater clarity and calibre to make this updated tale of female repression worth a visit.

Hampstead, Eton Avenue, NW3 3EU (020 7722 9301) Tube: Swiss Cottage tube hampsteadtheatre.com
Until 14th August £15-£25 (Under 26s - £10)

The Railway Children **** TNT

Unlike my more knowledgeable companion, I’d neither seen the 1970 film nor read E. Nesbit’s classic 1906 children’s book, but we were equally entranced by Mike Kenny’s adaptation for York Theatre Royal which steams into the disused Eurostar terminal at Waterloo Station.

Seated on either side of the tracks, we follow the fortunes of a wealthy Edwardian family, forced to downsize to rural Yorkshire when the head of the family is falsely imprisoned. It’s a heart-warming tale of adventures, rescues and good Samaritans aplenty, endearingly enacted by Sarah Quintrell, Louisa Clein and Nicholas Bishop as the three plucky children.

And a special mention, too, for the hard-working stagehands, shunting the sets smoothly along between the platforms to make way for the glorious arrival of the impressively puffing 1870 Stirling Single locomotive.

Waterloo Station (0871 297 0740) Tube: Waterloo www.railwaychildrenwaterloo.com Till 2 Jan 2011

£20.50 -£45.50

The Beauty Queen of Leenane **** TNT

No wonder this black comedy propelled Martin McDonagh into the limelight when it premiered in 1996.

The perfectly drawn characters, daring comic touches – not to mention the deceptively lilting rhythms of the dialogue and a quartet of spot-on performances - make this a must see summer treat. Unless, that is, you’ve just had a row with your mother.

Forty year old Connemara virgin Maureen is locked in a battle of resentful hatred with her septuagenarian widowed parent, a malevolent termagant who empties her chamber pot down the kitchen sink and treats her daughter like an unpaid skivvy with constant complaints about lumps in her Complan and incessant demands for porridge.

Her spitefulness is boundless and she’ll stop at nothing to prevent Maureen from grabbing an unexpected last chance of happiness when David Ganly’s excellent Pato (an awkward, kind- hearted bear of a man) temporarily returns from England.

It’s a cruel, no holds barred criticism of village life in rural Ireland – tantalising in its glimpse of a new start and directed with a sure hand by Joe Hill-Gibbins on Ultz’s damp, dreary kitchen set. Cast against type, Susan Lynch captures Maureen’s lonely, deep-seated frustration as well as her sudden, fragile blossoming, and, lording it in her rocking chair, Rosaleen Linehan’s sly old Mag makes every gesture, every facial movement count in this gloriously funny revival in extremely bad taste.

Young Vic, The Cut, SE1 8LZ Tube: Southwark / Waterloo (0207 922 2922) youngvic.org
Until: 21st August £19.50 (Limited number of £10 tickets for under 26’s

Spur of the Moment **** TNT

Once the home of the Angry Young Men of the 50’s, the Royal Court now seems to have entered a new era of discovering even younger female talent. Only 17 when she wrote this, her first play, last year, schoolgirl Anya Reiss becomes, apparently, the youngest playwright ever to have her work staged in a prime London theatre.

It’s a remarkably accomplished piece - quick-witted, funny and with a rueful understanding of dysfunctional family life.

Twelve year old middleclass Delilah’s sliced open Surrey home (meticulously designed by Max Jones) looks substantial enough, but inside everything is imploding. Her father has not only shagged his boss, but has since been sacked by her. And hot 21 year old student lodger, James McArdle’s Daniel (taken in to help ease the depleted family finances) is attracting far too much attention from the aptly named pre-teen and her High School Musical fan friends.

Jeremy Herrin’s swift production guides the action expertly round the house – recrimination-fuelled exchanges between Sharon Small’s hurting Vicky and her errant husband Nick (Kevin Doyle) in the kitchen, a sullen sofa-sharing evening watching a DVD in the living room, and increasingly fraught and farcical encounters in (and between) Daniel’s and Delilah’s facing bedrooms upstairs.

And Shannon Tarbet (making her professional debut as Delilah) perfectly embodies the contradictions of being, simultaneously, part child and part adult as she gets an early life lesson that acting on impulse inevitably leads to all sorts of unwanted repercussions.

Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, SW1W 8AS Tube: Sloane Square tube (020 7565 5000) royalcourttheatre.com Until 21st August £10-£15