Welcome to the next in a series celebrating female colleagues who engage with theatre as critics, reviewers, bloggers or content creators. I am using ‘theatre’ to encompass all live arts performances, and ‘reviewer’ to cover all those who add commentary on what they see.
The master list is at: https://loureviews.blog/spotlight-on-female-theatre-reviewers-bloggers-critics-and-content-creators/
If you would like to be profiled as part of this project, please get in touch.
Today, it’s the turn of Shanine Salmon at View from the Cheap Seat.
Can you tell us a bit about yourself and how you came to be writing or creating content about theatre? If you have your own platform, when did it start and how did you come up with the name? If you write for one or many platforms, which was the first and how did you become involved with it?
I have always had my own platform, I’ve occassionally cross referenced reviews for other ticket-selling sites, but I started View from the Cheap Seat because I was seeing a lot of theatre and then just forgetting about it.
The blog, which I started in April 2016, forced me to engage with theatre and get out more to venues I wouldn’t have previously been aware of.
What kind of shows do you cover, and in which geographical areas?
Post Covid, I cover a lot less sadly, but I mainly focused on the London area, particularly the pub theatre scene. I still love a monologue or duologue in a tiny room. I was always keen to see black-led shows, as I am mixed race of Jamaican heritage.
How would you describe yourself (reviewer, critic, content creator, YouTuber, influencer, other?).
Reviewer and Critic – I was probably harsher than most bloggers when I started. I wrote a review for a Shakespeare Globe show for another outlet. I thought the show was dreadful; the review was not published because the outlet (which I later found out was run by a playwright) didn’t prioritise honesty over relationships.
Why do you continue to engage with theatre?
With reluctance, the pricing structure and the demand for positively reviewed theatre when theatre is excluding everyone, from creatives to audience, makes it hard to engage.
I think the small playhouses that took risks do not have the support or inclination to do that anymore. My tastes have become safer and more mainstream over time. I still think theatre brings a great emotional rush.
What’s the one thing that would make the theatre reviewing/content creating space easier for you personally, and/or for your platform?
The support for reviewers to go to Edinburgh or other non-London spaces is not there. I think PR companies are really supportive of blogs, but the relationship has become so transactional and is still dominated by a belief that people read or care about theatre reviewers in newspapers.
I am more likely to see a review on social media than on a blog or article. The sort of shows I was invited to have such short runs, with short expected turnarounds, that bloggers are more archivists than reviewers.
Do you have a favourite show – and any you particularly dislike(d)?
I do not have a favourite show. There are certain stories I will still give my support to, like Jojo’s African Hair Braiding and A Strange Loop, which are critically acclaimed in the US but end up in much smaller, off-West End venues when they come to London.
I am mostly done with Shakespeare, too; even the big names don’t engage me now.
The theatre commentary space is wide and diverse – is there any other female reviewer/content creator you would recommend, and why?
Debbie at Mind the Blog; she is far more open-minded than me and is also a lovely person. I first met her at the awful Shakespeare Globe show mentioned above and she continues to be the highlight of that evening.
What’s the biggest change you have noticed in the theatre space since you started contributing to it?
Podcasts: I would like to make my reviews more accessible, but podcasting is just not for me. I think attention spans have changed – it is far easier to listen to something than read sometimes. The ticket pricing: in 2011, £5 tickets were so common for young people that they made it genuinely accessible.
The National tries with things like Friday Rush, but the smaller spaces are still recovering from what lockdown did and no longer feel good value. Theatre has always been an expensive night out, but it has gone from being a weekly necessity to a monthly or bi-monthly indulgence (and I still know where the cheapest and best seats are!).
And which social networks are you most active on? If you are not on any, what is your opinion of their place in theatre reviewing/content creation?
I am still on X, apologies. I think spaces with decent search functions are desperately needed. I have come out of shows – I usually go alone – desperate to know what others think. I really rate somewhere like Theatre Board, it is a relatively small space but open to discussing theatre and performance.
Can you pinpoint one of your best reviews, features, or videos?
I like reviewing theatrical, rather than theatre productions, and as someone interested in fashion and Eurotrash, I loved this Jean Paul Gaultier show back in 2022 https://viewfromthecheapseat.com/2022/07/20/jean-paul-gaultier-fashion-freak-show-roundhouse/
Stories that I can personally relate to, like Somebody Jones’ how I learned to swim, which I didn’t see in person due to Covid restrictions, but feel like I did https://viewfromthecheapseat.com/2021/06/11/how-i-learned-to-swim-jermyn-street-at-home/.
How can people contact you who want to promote a show?
After a hiatus, I am slowly reviewing again. I am terrible at responding, but https://viewfromthecheapseat.com/contact/ is the best place to get hold of me.