Three stars for Twelfth Night

There are almost-excellent performances in Gregory Doran's production but it sometimes succumbs to RSC vices

Four stars for Dick Whittington and his Cat

A glance around at the rows of children, their eyes truly shining, illustrates the delight that pantomime still provides

Cinderella

Phil Porter’s jubilantly dotty creation delicately dips the toe of its sparkling slipper into murky emotional waters

The decade in theatre

“The Decade From Hell” proclaimed a recent Time magazine. Not for the British theatre

Swan Lake and Royal Ballet’s Ashton bill

This season sees Les Patiners and The Tales of Beatrix Potter and the latest return of Matthew Bourne's famous production

The decade in dance

Almost every dance company was obsessed with either building a new home or capitalising on one that had recently been rebuilt

Swan Lake

As the Swan who dares to love a Prince and his alter-ego the lecherous Stranger Richard Winsor exudes a charismatic narcissism

Nutcracker proves a timeless success

Scottish Ballet and the Royal Ballet give rousing, albeit very different, versions of Tchaikovsky’s miraculous music

Tristan and Isolde and The Mastersingers of Nuremberg

Simon Rattle played a blinder in his Vienna even if the singing left something to be desired; Graz’s Mastersingers was amazing

La Bohème

Teodor Ilincai, Covent Garden’s second Rodolfo in line, was in the audience when Piotr Beczala, was unable to continue

Piotr Beczala fires up for La bohème

A Polish tenor with the talent and the confidence to speak out against the avant-garde at Covent Garden's Royal Opera House

The Enchanted Pig

The magic of The Enchanted Pig is that it can, like all the best legends and fairytales, be enjoyed on different levels

Where Frankie Boyle got his shot at fame

And he’s not the only one to get his break at the Stand Comedy Club in Edinburgh, which is about to mark its 15th year

My crash course in mic gags and putdowns

I was invited back after my five minutes – but if I’d wanted to perform journalism live, I’d have gone into telly

Comedy clubs to reopen after ditching £100m debt

Jongleurs, the chain of comedy clubs that went bust, is to re-open under a different name after its owners ditched £100m of debts

Lee Mack

If Mack picks on you and you cannot talk back to him, you’re toast. If you do talk back to him, you’re also toast