Judged and reviewed by Imogen Sarre and Liv Edwards
The New Writing Festival was one hell of an experience. Chloe Courtney has done fantastic things this year, helping to transform a little known event into something prestigious, established, and utterly exciting. There was the most extraordinary amount of talent in the Burton Taylor on Saturday of 7th week and I felt extremely privileged to be there, rubbing shoulders with people who will most probably end up calling the dramatic big shots in years to come. Judging the Best Production was a fascinating …

St John’s College Auditorium
Friday 5th – Saturday 6th March; 7.30pm
“Acted with verve and dynamism, however, this is a generally excellent production. Thoughtfully staged and skilfully orchestrated, Tess Ellison’s direction draws out the pathos of the narratives, without sacrificing pace and energy.” Vicky Pearce
Click here to find out more about the play

Oxford Playhouse
Thursday 4th March; 7.30pm
“Unfortunately, most of the music was plodding and pedestrian, the singing at times painful and the lyrics twee , with some notable exceptions (the first and last time you’ll hear ‘fluorescence’ rhymed with ‘tumescence’).” Henry Donati
Click here for more information about the play

Burton Taylor
Wednesday 3rd March, Friday 5th March, 9.30p.m., Saturday 6th March 4.30p.m.
“at times it was reminiscent of American Pie, albeit with slightly more intelligent characters, at other times it proved to be interesting and affecting.” Robert Holtom
“O’Brien missed a trick; had he written four inter-locking monologues to the strength of those already present he would have carried the competition.” Paul Hardwick

Oxford Playhouse
Wednesday 3rd March; 7.30pm
“I think that Hughes tried to include the audience to a fault.  If he had not poked fun and had stuck more to the overall plot of his show, I would have found it to be more interesting.” Sarah Groneck
“To begin with, Hughes not only greeted his audience, but made us greet each other, which met with mixed success. Generally, however, the audience were on good form all evening, and many of the most comic moments came from them” Claire Morley
Click here to find …