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Tracy-Ann Oberman in The Assembled Parties [Helen Murray]

EVERY Christmas, Julie (Jennifer Westfeldt), a former movie star, and her affluent husband, Ben Bascov (Daniel Abelson), gather their secular Jewish family for a lavish dinner in their palatial New York apartment. They are joined by Ben’s sister, Faye (Tracy-Ann Oberman), her husband, Mort (David Kennedy) and their daughter Shelley (Julia Kass).

This year, their older son Scotty (Alexander Marks, a striking stage debut) invites his best friend Jeff (Sam Marks) to join the festivities. Jeff, drawn to the warmth of the Bascov household and Julia’s Pollyanna optimism, quickly becomes a confidante to Scotty’s concerned parents, who are worried by his lack of ambition.

Richard Greenberg’s 2013 family dramedy unfolds across two periods. The first half is set in 1980 as Ronald Reagan prepares to enter the White House; the second takes place 20 years later, in 2000, when the assembled party has been diminished by time and loss.

Blanche McIntyre’s slick direction – where scenes cut across one another with the repetition of a single line – together with James Cotterill’s revolving set, vividly conveys the sense of an apartment you can get lost in.

In the final half, the setting is as depleted as the family. Julie, now unwell, gamely produces a festive meal for Faye, Jeff and her younger son Tim – also played by Alexander Marks. Jeff remains transfixed by the family and determined to support Julie, who remains resolutely upbeat.

Although the years have taken a personal toll, we are reminded that their world is as yet untouched by the seismic shift of 9/11 and all that would follow.

There’s much to admire, though Greenberg doesn’t break new ground in the dysfunctional family genre. While a Christmas run might have added resonance, the dual timelines are deftly handled, and McIntyre’s production is well-acted with some laugh-out-loud moments.

Until November 22

‘Wonderful addition to the vibrant arts and cultural scene of the West End’

Cutting the ribbon: head of libraries and archives Leanne Bellot and council cabinet member for climate, ecology, culture, and air quality Ryan Jude

A BUILDING once the home to arguably the greatest scientist of all time is now the centre of a creative renaissance.

The Grade II-listed Westminster Reference Library, where Sir Isaac Newton lived, has reopened as the West End Arts Library.

The specialist archive of art, music and performance was reported to be at risk of closure in 2022. City council officers had considered it was “not cost effective” to continue to run both Charing Cross Library and Westminster Reference Library.

This week Cllr Ryan Jude said: “The West End Arts Library is a wonderful addition to the vibrant arts and cultural scene of the West End. Whether you are looking for rare resources or attending one of the free classical music concerts, there is something for everyone to discover in this library.

“By creating welcoming public spaces and providing free events, the council is committed to improving access to culture for our residents so that everyone can share in the rich cultural heritage of the city.”

City councillors, staff and supporters at the library in Saint Martin’s Street

He added: “The reopening of the library is a powerful step in that direction and I look forward to seeing it grow into a cultural landmark in the heart of the West End.”

The library is the West End’s only arts library and also houses Westminster Music Library, a treasure trove offering extensive loan collections of books, scores, performance parts, and sheet music.

In the wider library visitors will find curated collections in art and design and the performing arts providing valuable res-ources for everyone from thespians and musicians to town planners and interior designers.

A collection of periodicals includes significant runs of Apollo, British Vogue, Tatler and Studio.

A “delighted” Emma De Souza, director of Society of London Theatre & UK Theatre welcomed the relaunch of the library as “a vibrant hub for creativity and learning”, and said: “As proud neighbours of the library at our Official London Theatre ticket booth in Leicester Square, and partners with the council on West End Live, we share a commitment to celebrating and sustaining the West End’s rich culture.”

A multi-purpose exhibition space will host events year-round, including free classical music concerts every week.

The library is opening with an exhibition from the Professional Cartoonists Organisation and an interactive workshop on Afrobeats/Ndombolo organised by CheriCoco.

Christmas walkout on the cards after rejection of below-inflation offer

CASINO staff say their employers are not a safe bet and are set to strike over the festive season.

A Christmas walkout at Grosvenor Casinos is on the cards after union Unite threatened a ballot of its 140 members.

The industrial action could begin next month at the Rialto in Leicester Square, the Victoria in Edgware Road and the Gloucester, Chelsea.

Disrupting the most profitable holiday period, the action follows a rejection of the Rank Group’s below-inflation 2.5 per cent offer of a rise.

The union also says it believes the latest pay offer is part of a campaign to undermine its role representing staff at the three casinos.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham said: “Grosvenor Casinos can more than afford a better pay offer to our members who do a very specialised role, but instead has chosen to prioritise its own greed.

“These workers deserve more than this miserly below-inflationary rise being offered and they will receive Unite’s complete support throughout this dispute.”

The casino staff run the poker rooms and roulette tables and are skilled in dealing cards and calculating odds and fractions.

Unite general secretary Sharon Graham

They are often under intense pressure from customers routinely losing money in high-stakes gambling.

Grosvenor Casinos is a chain of over 50 casinos located in major towns and cities across the country and is owned by the Rank Group.

Unite says the company is making large profits and can afford to pay its workers a more significant pay increase.

It says that historically the company has agreed “good pay offers” with the union but that this year Rank has been “refusing to budge”.

It has responded with the threat of strike action, with a vote on a potential ballot closing on October 30.

Unite regional officer Janet MacLeod said: “Grosvenor Casinos is betting that its workers will not have the strength to take industrial action, but it is taking a massive gamble.

“Any strike action will cause a major hit to its profits given the time of year it is planned to take place.

“It can avoid this. Instead of trying to derecognise and undermine Unite, it must come back to the table with a pay offer that is appropriate for our members.”

The last Grosvenor strike was for three days in 2022.

Earlier this month the Rank Group announced £210.2m in net gaming revenue for the quarter ending September 30 – a 9 per cent year-on-year increase. The company was approached for comment.

A STRANGER-than-fiction tax tactic is giving new meaning to the host of shell companies operating across the West End.

Snail farms have been set up in offices by a company in a bid to be excused from paying business rates. Westminster City Council says it has investigated buildings in Old Marylebone Road with sealed boxes containing snails.

The boxes are used as part of a claim that the property is designated as agricultural use, meaning it is exempt from business rates.

The city council says it is forced to go through a complex procedure of winding up the companies only for new ones to be set up.

Leader Cllr Adam Hug said: “In the last fortnight we have discovered more boxes of snails in empty office buildings in Westminster so there is little sign of this racket slowing up. Rather than unscrupulous traders dropping on one avoidance scheme after another, it would be good to see a general clause on business rates avoidance and evasion which stops these kinds of activities in their tracks.

“As a local authority with limited resources, we enforce wherever we can.”

He added that it was a “ludicrous notion” to suggest the office was in fact used as a snail farm.

The director of the companies involved is facing an investigation on whether he should be barred from holding any future roles with companies, the council said.

The city says it is has wound up four snail companies and two more are in the process of being shut down.

The ruse follows a trusted system where the council is informed that an empty property is occupied by a snail farm.

The building is usually an empty office. When they inspect the property, it is found to be empty, with the exception of a relatively small number of sealed boxes (see picture).

In order to achieve an exemption as a snail farm an application must be made to the Valuation Office (an agency of HM Revenue and Customs).

But no such application is ever made, presumably on the basis that the Valuation Office would inevitably reject it.

The council then approaches the company occupying under the lease from the landlord until the company is wound-up.

No rates are paid in the length of time it takes to go through the bureaucratic process.

The shell company has no assets and therefore the insolvency practitioner or liquidator cannot distribute any funds to creditors.

Another company is set up and the process starts again.

The city council said snail farms are not the only loophole in the tax exemption system that is in need of reform.

Fast and furious dramatisation of neglected composer’s genius explores sibling rivalry, ambition and the cost of social conformity

Charlie Russell in Fanny [David Monteith-Hodge]

WHILE Felix Mendelssohn (Daniel Abbott) was celebrated as a leading composer of the Romantic era, his sister Fanny’s talents remained largely hidden.

Her music was kept private or published under Felix’s name, a consequence of 19th century societal norms that discouraged women from pursuing artistic careers.

Following its acclaimed 2024 premiere at The Watermill Theatre, Calum Finlay’s fast and furious dramatisation of Fanny’s neglected genius arrives at the King’s Head with a new company, led by Mischief’s Charlie Russell, reprising her role as the indomitable heroine.

Now widely accepted as Fanny’s work, the song Italien, a favourite of Queen Victoria’s, was originally attributed to Felix. Taking this injustice as his starting point, Finlay has crafted a boisterous farce – developed in collaboration with the cast – exploring sibling rivalry, ambition and the cost of social conformity.

Their mother Lea (Kim Ismay) wants Fanny to settle down with her fiancé Wilhelm (Riad Ritchie), but she has other ideas. Chaperoned by Wilhelm, Fanny travels to London to meet the Queen with Felix, Lea, sister Rebecka (Danielle Phillips) and brother Paul (Jeremy Lloyd) in hot pursuit.

The first part of Katie-Ann McDonough’s engaging production balances humour with more serious undertones. However, the second half loses its way, leaning too far into slapstick. Multiple bit parts and the general mayhem distract from, rather than enhance, the central story.

Russell is terrific in the lead and the supporting cast perform with gusto, yet the play’s descent into silliness dilutes the emotional impact of Fanny’s struggle for recognition.

Until November 15