The Vault Festival is back, offering Londoners the chance to catch a dazzlingly array of performance types. Bursts of entertainment come in many and varied forms including cabaret, burlesque, comedy, dance, live music, circus, spoken word and theatrical productions - there's literally something for everyone and it really is worth taking the time to rummage through the listings where you're sure to find a performance to suit every taste, mood and pocket.
Juliette Cowan - Vault Festival
This reviewer accepted an invitation to take a jaunt to Waterloo, where many of this years scheduled performances are presented in the atmospheric underground spaces - both intimate and cavernous - creating a expectant communal buzz of excitement in anticipation of the reveal behind each set of doors. Many successful performers have cut their teeth at such festivals in years gone by and despite the hiatus of Covid lockdowns, 2023's programme of events has been typically adventurous with as many as 500 performances scheduled before the festival closes on Sunday 19th March.
Actress and comedienne Juliet Cowan - last seen playing Gloria ("the manipulative, sensitivity-vacuum, book-publisher boss, who would be evil if she weren't so pathetically needy") in Hampstead Theatre's Sons Of The Prophet was trying-out new material on Sunday evening in which she tackles some of the challenges of being a menopausal woman in a patriarchal world. But if her brand of comedy doesn't appeal, then there are plenty of other scheduled offerings to pique your interest.
With half term approaching, it can be hard to know how to fill the week with exciting activities for the whole family.