Review – Page 4 of 7

12Dec

By George WhiteNo Comments

The Strangest Thing about Season Two

*Mild Spoilers ahead* Unless you live your life as a certified hermit crab, you’ve likely heard at least whispers of the latest phenomenon of popular culture, Stranger Things. The greatly anticipated second season of the Netflix Original was released on 27 October, to both critical and commercial acclaim. This season certainly lives up to the formidable legacy left by the first, possibly even surpassing it in terms of quality. And while the narrative of this season feels completely fresh, the lasting effects of last season’s trauma are still very much present. The captivating opening scene to the series broadens the immersive universe of the show, yet there is a lasting impression that this season only scratches the surface of the immense backstory of the ST universe. This scene, acc...

“boys wear their hats backwards so they can kiss other boys” – Review

14Nov

By Rachel McDermottNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

“boys wear their hats backwards so they can kiss other boys” – Review

I did not know what to expect going into “boys wear their hats backwards so they can kiss other boys”. A theatre piece based around the collective ideas and experiences of the LGBTQ+ community; it was so perfectly shown in the selected music and pieces of writing on the strengths and pitfalls of emotional relationships. It was a wonderful and emotional piece and all the more impressive for how quickly it was put together. The slightly scattered quality of the performance only added to the overall feeling, embodying the idea of how no form of love is quite a straight road. The setting, though sparse, took a backseat in comparison to the clear amount of effort from the actors, chosen music, and writing. Intersecting with dance was an interesting way to show different emotions. In particu...

14Nov

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

Overshadowed

In the previous issue of Orbital Magazine, I wrote an article condemning the issues with Netflix’ portrayal of anorexia in To The Bone. I disagreed with how it glorified eating disorders in many ways and acted like a how-to guide for sufferers. Where Netflix failed though, BBC Three seems to have succeeded with showing people the truth about anorexia – that it is a debilitating illness - without glorifying it or using a romantic storyline to further the plot of recovery. Michelle Fox plays Imogene (Imo), a 17-year-old girl living in Leeds who decides to ‘vlog’ her daily life. It is through the perspective of her camera that the audience are seeing Imogene becoming more and more affected by her anorexia. She becomes more and more withdrawn from her family and friends as well as extremely...

31Oct

By Josip MartincicNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

The Nether – Review

Bethany Wilkinson set herself a very difficult challenge – to direct a complicated, dark play in a very limited rehearsal period and present it in the, frankly, bare setting of the rehearsal room in the Drama department. She succeeded in completing this challenge and this can be vouched by the audience members who were lucky enough to witness this show (only 30 tickets per show for 2 performances were available). The Nether by Jennifer Haley is a look at a dystopian not-too-distant future where the internet grew into what is referred to as The Nether, a virtual reality system where users can live a consequence free existence and they can choose to transition into Shadows, living out a fantasy while their actual bodies wither away. The lead character, Detective Morris, is after a specifi...

4Jul

By Beth CarrNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

Losing It: Reshaping Sex Education

CONTENT WARNING: Rape. Beth Carr shines a spotlight on alumna Nina Lemon and her play ‘Losing It’. Watching a musical about sex education isn’t the most usual Friday activity for students, but that is exactly the theme of the latest play by Peer Productions, written and directed by Royal Holloway alumni Nina Lemon. ‘Losing It’ follows a group of school friends as they look back on their seven years at secondary school and the questions they had about sex and relationships, as well as examining what went well and what went wrong in their love lives. The play fits with Peer Productions’ vision “to use theatre to genuinely change young people’s lives” and is being toured around 30 local schools to tell pupils what they really want to know about sex and relationships. It was develop...

6Apr

By Abbie CheesemanNo Comments

Features

PC Gamer Weekender 2017 – Review

The PC Gamer Weekender has appeared once more and was something of a surprise success. The marketing for the event was ever present and something Insanity Radio 103.2FM assisted with. However, the event’s success was due in part to the large amount of games on show, as well how well it was run with different talks and discussions occurring at regular intervals. The organisation of the event was done in way where you could weave in and out of different areas with ease, allowing you to know where certain places were and how to get to them. There were several virtual headset demos on display. I had the chance to try out the 'Killing Floor: Incursion' which is a game taking place in the Killing Floor universe and is a side story of sorts. However, they used the Oculus in way that allowed yo...

28Mar

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

Dreamgirls: A Dream Come True

Dreamgirls, a brilliant musical that opened in October 2016 at The Savoy Theatre on the West End stars Glee’s Amber Riley and tells the story of a group of African American singers in the 1960s trying to make a name for themselves. I had the opportunity to see Dreamgirls last month at the Savoy theatre and, not having seen the original movie that the show is based on, I wasn’t sure what to expect. What I found was an amazing spectacle of bright lights, beautiful costumes and spectacular music, used to tell the story of these young women who struggled to make a name for themselves while having to deal with the societal pressures of beauty and race in the male-dominated world of music. Amber Riley, with her powerful voice, played the role of Effie White, the lead singer of ‘The Dreamet...

23Mar

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Sports & Socs

Raise Up Your Talents

Michele Theil reviews the Raise-And-Give Talent Show, an event raising money for three excellent charities. The Raise-And-Give society’s charity event, aptly named ‘Royal Holloway’s Got Talent’ was hosted in the SU Main Hall and allowed students and parents to see a wide variety of talents and acts. The show aimed to raise money for Action Against Hunger, Meningitis Now and The White Lodge Centre. Action Against Hunger is “a global charity committed to saving the lives of malnourished children in over 40 countries”. Meningitis Now is a global charity that researches for and supports sufferers of Meningitis and The White Lodge Centre is dedicated to “supporting disabled people of all ages”. Each charity supports extremely worthwhile causes that RAG is dedicated to raising money for. T...

13Mar

By Beth CarrNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Music

Coffee House Sessions: April Keen

Beth Carr catches up with April Keen after her Coffee House Session on 6 February. April Keen brought superbly moving music to Tommy’s Kitchen alongside her guitarist Jesse on the first Monday of February, performing a range of original songs and covers. Her cover of Hey Soul Sister blew me away with its stripped back nature and a melancholy feel. The set was incredibly well crafted and there was a real sense of passion in the movement and energy shown by April on stage. She doesn’t always know what genre her music fits into but it is best described as folk, pop and indie. Her Coffee House set is naturally stripped back but in studio recordings there’s more electronic production, although her chilled vibe remains. Her lyrics are more in the style of Gabrielle Aplin but her melodi...

6Mar

By Beth CarrNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Film & TV

The Heartbreak of Molly Hooper

SPOILERS FOR THE LATEST SERIES OF SHERLOCK An opinion on the emotional repercussions of the Sherlock series finale. Sherlock Series Four concluded last month and frankly I wasn’t a fan. One thing that captured my attention was THAT Molly Hooper scene, in which Sherlock is told to make Molly say ‘I love you’ so that the bomb supposedly planted in her kitchen would not blow up and kill her. On the plus side it reflects Sherlock’s emotions: he clearly struggles with the situation. He knows that making Molly say this will hurt her, yet he desperately wants to prevent the irreversible damage of her death. Nevertheless, we have all known about Molly’s love for our protagonist since the show began. Even Sherlock knew that she loved him but never truly confronted this, allowing it to be a...