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The Latest Breaking News from Arifa Akbar

Friday briefing: Is theatre in a Misérables state, or is the industry just adapting to tough times?

In today’s newsletter: From soaring costs to celebrity casting, theatre is under immense pressure. But some players are still managing to take bold, creative risks

The Guardian - UK · Apr 17

My mother’s best advice: wear bold, bright colours

I used to hide away in all-black sport-core until I allowed myself to wear space-age silver dresses or a large-collared, lemony faux-fur coat

The Guardian - UK · Mar 11

The curious incident of the dog, the Hanover ballet and the everyday sexism we face as female arts critics

There are more women in cultural criticism now in Germany and Britain, but we also face more aggression. Is this progress?, says Guardian theatre critic Arifa Akbar

The Guardian - UK · Aug 18, 2025

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Wolf Moon review: An unsettling companion for a sleepless night

In medieval Europe, a wolf moon is the first full moon of the year. A winter night when lupine predators were at their hungriest and their howls rang out. For Akbar, an insomniac theatre critic who is afraid of the dark, the night is an uneasy place. Wolf Moon is…

Evening Standard · Aug 8, 2025

The one change that worked: I was a serious coffee addict. Now, on one cup a day, I feel so much better

I kicked my habit on a retreat. Now I savour my daily coffee dose, which clears my thoughts and gives me a sense of wellbeing

The Guardian - UK · Jul 28, 2025

Wolf Moon by Arifa Akbar review – night terrors

The Guardian theatre critic’s imaginative exploration of life in the shadows

The Guardian - UK · Jul 8, 2025

‘I’ve stumbled deep into alien territory’: our sportswriters and arts critics swap jobs

What would happen if our arts critics and sports writers swapped roles for a day? How does the English National Opera compare to the Premier League … or the NFL to a West End musical? Our experts found out last week

The Guardian - UK · Nov 4, 2024

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Theatre can be a force for change – I went looking for it on the Italy/Slovenia border

In a city belonging to two nations, I hoped for art that could heal suspicion and bridge political divides. Instead I found timidity, says the Guardian’s chief theatre critic, Arifa Akbar

The Guardian - UK · Jul 24, 2024

If you want to know how free a society is, look at what’s happening in its theatres

Political art helps to debate and confront the challenges in our lives. It is also a record we must return to again and again, says Guardian theatre critic Arifa Akbar

The Guardian - UK · Jun 28, 2024

Sunak’s sabre-rattling is pure cynicism – Black Out nights are a small, vital corrective to theatre’s lack of diversity

No one is banned from these shows – and for Slave Play’s run on the West End, they take up only two nights out of almost 100, says Arifa Akbar, the Guardian’s chief theatre critic

The Guardian - UK · Mar 4, 2024

We go to the theatre to feel something – and people do. Trigger warnings don’t stop that

This recurring debate is a pointless skirmish in a culture war, says Arifa Akbar, chief theatre critic for the Guardian

The Guardian - UK · Feb 22, 2024

A Shakespeare play slashed to 80 minutes? Bring it on – theatre can be far too stressful

The play’s the thing. But what’s so wrong with the RSC’s plan to also let people have dinner, or catch the last train home? asks Arifa Akbar

The Guardian - UK · Jan 19, 2024

Don’t flake, don’t dump friends and don’t hold grudges: experts on what not to do in 2024

Guardian writers including Marina Hyde, John Crace (and a few other successful types) reveal what they won’t be doing in the coming year

The Guardian - UK · Dec 30, 2023

Stranger Things: The First Shadow Premiered In London West End. Critics Are Calling The Stage Adaptation ‘Flawless’ And ‘Visually Spectacular’

Critics have shared their takeaways from the stage production of Stranger Things: The First Shadow. See what they're saying about the prequel.

Cinemablend · Dec 17, 2023

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The Guardian - UK · Oct 26, 2023

After 60 years, when will the biggest job in UK theatre go to a woman? Why not now?

Only male artistic directors have run the National Theatre. It’s time to address that, says the Guardian’s chief theatre critic Arifa Akbar

The Guardian - UK · Oct 8, 2023

Music, history and courageous journalism: Baillie Gifford prize shortlist announced

Judges praise the final six ‘exquisite and ambitious’ works in contention for the £50,000 award for nonfiction

The Guardian - UK · Nov 25, 2022

What we’re reading: writers and readers on the books they enjoyed in November

Authors, critics and Guardian readers discuss the titles they have read over the last month. Join the conversation in the comments

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