I was very pleased find myself amongst the large audience assembled for Dynamic Theatre’s production of Jonathan Larson’s tick, tick… BOOM! in the Unity Theatre on Wednesday evening. Better known for his musical Rent, Larson’s earlier work is an autobiographical one, telling the story of his existence as a struggling composer in New York, working in a diner and living in a squalid apartment as he waits for his big break.

Adapted after Larson’s death from a self performed, rock monologue (how very 90s), into a three hander by David Auburn, the musical covers similar themes to Larson’s other and perhaps better known work, with references made to both homosexuality and AIDs. Joe Taylor, who took the lead role of Jon in this production, brings Larson’s character to life with a strong portrayal of the frustrated composer. With most of the narrative driven forwards by his narration, delivered straight to audience the other two actors, Katie Bernstein and Chris Britton, find themselves playing multiple roles filling the New York existence of the diner waiter / musical composer.

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Liverpool improv group Impropriety took to the stage of the Kazimier last night for the inaugural presentation of their newly formed group. Familiar faces were certainly present on stage and in the audience with the event’s programme highlighting the inclusion of many members of the 2008 minute improv marathon and student improv group Purple Circle into a cast which numbered some 20 performers.

For Liverpool residents who have not been to the Kazimier, it is certainly well worth a visit. Nestled in Wolstenholme Square next to the Nation night club, Jorge Pardo’s colourful sculpture ‘Penelope’ and opposite the Pleasure Rooms strip bar, it is a venue run by The Arts Organisation, a group dedicated to artistic squatting of sorts, “enabling the legal occupation of disused spaces” as they express it on the Property Solutions section of their website. You will know them, probably, as the folk who run the TAO Gallery on Slater Street and the very well known Mello Mello.

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So the Arts Council England has unleashed its plan to save theatre for the under 26′s! Its called A Night Less Ordinary and is the the scheme, as proposed in the McMaster report, to give under 26’s free tickets to the theatre. You can find out information at www.anightlessordinary.org.uk

The first thing which strikes me, and I have to say I went to it pretty quickly once I found out that the site was launched, was that there are no Liverpool theatres included in the scheme!

I am in a city which statistically is far too well served with theatres but where none of them have signed up, or have been selected by the Arts Council to be included in the scheme. I have to say I was thinking of launching a theatre podcast. I’m not sure what I was going to talk about it in but I was probably going to be doing it on a Thursday on the back of The Stage being launched as it would probably give me something to talk about. This is exactly the kind of thing that I would include in it! I might do some digging to find out from Liverpool theatres why they aren’t in the scheme. You will be the first to know.

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