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Post by showgirl on Feb 2, 2024 15:54:31 GMT
I think it's true as I checked the performance for which I'd booked a £30 stalls ticket & the remaining handful had risen to £45 each.
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Post by darvsplanet on Feb 2, 2024 16:12:23 GMT
Got a Friday rush up in the Gallery - as it's in the round (it seems) I just wanted if anyone could let me know how the view will be (it always says restricted view from up there but thought I'd check!) I did Friday Rush in the gallery (R69) and the view was fine (for £10) you will need to lean forward if you want to see more than half the stage but I didn’t feel like I missed anything. The main problem I had was the sound wasn’t great from up there when I went. That was the 2nd preview so they may well have improved it since but I missed quite a bit of dialogue.
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Post by Latecomer on Feb 3, 2024 20:59:49 GMT
Well, yes, it’s as good as they said…..thanks for the recommend Parsley and Steve (and any others!). As Miranda would say “such fun”! All the actors at the top of their games, enjoying a cracking script and plenty to get their teeth into. You could almost feel their enjoyment from the off and the comic timing and some of the one liners were splendid! As other have said, it’s a bit predictable and not that deep, except that maybe it is at the end there…..as there was definitely a tear in my eye! Excellent staging too…proper in the round with a revolving table for one scene making sure no-one misses out on faces!
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Post by stevemar on Feb 5, 2024 13:40:09 GMT
As with Parsley, Steve and others.. I really enjoyed this. The cast are wonderful - timing, rapport and comedy.
I don’t think it is as deep as it could be, but that fine. In a way, the comedy takes over from the deeper messages, and the very cliched plot points. But the energy is magnificent.
Part EastEnders, part Gavin and Stacey, and everything in between. Lorraine Ashbourne was superb - every time she was on stage, you knew Aunty Carol would deliver one of her superb one liners. Were we laughing with her or at her “type” - maybe a bit of both?
4.5/5 (rounded up to 5 for the poll).
Note: Noticed James Graham in the foyer afterwards. I see he’s from Mansfield where the play is probably set and Lorraine Ashbourne was in his BBC series, Sherwood set in that town scarred by division, lack of hope and the Miners’ Strike.
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Post by Latecomer on Feb 5, 2024 14:44:17 GMT
I think maybe we’ve all see a bit of Aunty Carol in a relative…my dad was forever embarrassing us by complaining at restaurants! And I felt the laughter was “with” most of the time, hence why it was such a warm piece.
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Post by aspieandy on Feb 6, 2024 23:26:10 GMT
Most of us will wryly identify with this EveryFamily. As we can with the classic wedding day centrepiece. The three sisters are so well drawn, with the orbiting men, community, town and world each impacting on their last/only chance lives. These are not 20-something women working Singles apps. Much is hinted at, but not spoken of.
It felt like a little like a modern BBC Play for Today, though with a non-BBC budget. Much resonated. Time flew. Hugely invested cast did a great job of taking us on their journey. National's got game.
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Post by drmaplewood on Feb 7, 2024 9:39:44 GMT
Given the good reviews, I'm tempted to book this, but I saw The House of Shades at the Almeida and thought it was rubbish--so melodramatic that many scenes played as unintentional comedy and with such hamfisted politics that I often found myself rooting for the Tory characters. Even when reading Arifa's 5-star rave, I get the sense that I'd have the same problems with Till the Stars Come Down. Is there anyone who's seen both and can compare the two plays? Now seen both and can confirm this is far superior, so fear not. I enjoyed this a lot, give or take a couple of elements (I thought the portrayal of the Polish groom was quite ropey and the accent, eeek) and as mentioned before, some strands aren't dealt with properly (the end of act 1 leads us to a more sci-fi element that never returns again). But the performances are really strong, especially Sinéad Matthews who is tremendous.
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Post by matildaswinton on Feb 7, 2024 10:06:23 GMT
Just scored P1&2 in the circle for later this week, which must have been returns… Can anyone comment on the view from the extreme corners / second row?
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Post by drmaplewood on Feb 7, 2024 10:15:25 GMT
Just scored P1&2 in the circle for later this week, which must have been returns… Can anyone comment on the view from the extreme corners / second row? The show is in the round so the view will be fine, you may need to lean forward once or twice.
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Post by zahidf on Feb 10, 2024 17:23:01 GMT
I thought this was fantastic. Funny and well acted, with a political undertone
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Post by mrbarnaby on Feb 10, 2024 22:48:30 GMT
This was terrific. Laugh out loud funny and brilliant performances, but mainly from the 3 sisters and Lorraine Ashbourne.
Not the best play I’ve ever seen- but brilliantly entertaining.
5 stars from me.
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Post by andrew on Feb 11, 2024 10:07:33 GMT
I think I'm settling on 4 stars. The setting of a very normal family preparing for and partying around a wedding as a crucible for some of the ideas it plays with is great, and the different characters are all quite well constructed (particularly the females). What stops me raving about it is just the sense that each time a theme came up and was being explored it felt like the writer held back from getting somewhere really interesting with it. I'm not suggesting the author needs to solve tensions over the miners strikes or immigrant communities but I never felt like any problem brought up really found a conclusion. I'm also not sure I completely supported the magical moments that pepper the play, some of them felt earned and proportionate (Uncle Pete's moment about the mines) and some felt a little misplaced (Leanne's commentary that concludes the first act).
What makes up for this is a cast doing a terrific job with material that feels real and authentic, funny, and continuously engaging. I also never felt like it was making fun of a certain class of people, just like Gavin and Stacey it treads the right line of celebrating a 'normal' British family and avoids a sense of upper-middle-class Londonite judgement. Looking forward to more from the playwright and more work of this quality from an institution that had been struggling to pick the right things to programme for a good few years.
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Post by NeilVHughes on Feb 11, 2024 10:27:08 GMT
Was there last night on the love this had garnered here and was not disappointed.
Was also intrigued by the fleeting conflicts in the family, on the whole I think most families have these, how many of us bite our tongues in family gatherings.
These gave an indication of what was to come, on the surface all was jollity and amiability and due to these insights and the fragility of the foundations when the comet struck it did not come as a surprise.
Would I like to be in the company of these sisters again, most definitely, would love to be a fly on the wall in their first Christmas after the wedding.
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Post by foxa on Feb 11, 2024 13:06:11 GMT
I like Beth Steel's work, but was hesitating about this. However based on all the positive comments have booked a single matinee seat in March (when they are filming) First row, pit - hope that will be okay. There are still some tix available but not a lot.
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Post by aspieandy on Feb 11, 2024 13:13:25 GMT
I like Beth Steel's work, but was hesitating about this. However based on all the positive comments have booked a single matinee seat in March (when they are filming) First row, pit - hope that will be okay. There are still some tix available but not a lot.
I sat there (without understanding the staging). It's perfect.
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Post by foxa on Feb 11, 2024 14:19:24 GMT
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Post by parsley1 on Feb 12, 2024 2:21:58 GMT
Wow
99% sold out now
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Post by kit66 on Feb 12, 2024 11:27:40 GMT
Great fun.Not original but very well written with some laugh out loud lines and superb acting by the sisters.The ending is quite shattering.Loved the intimate staging too which is well suited to the Dorfman and might be lost if it moves.
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Post by aspieandy on Feb 12, 2024 13:21:06 GMT
I was pondering the location of the revolve. New to me ..
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Post by aspieandy on Feb 12, 2024 14:18:09 GMT
Sorry kit66, I should have been clearer; I didn't know there was a revolve there until this production.
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Post by aspieandy on Feb 12, 2024 17:46:23 GMT
How about that! Ultimate flexibility. You can see why Rufus only spent £20 on Gumtree for the rest of the set.
Dorfman revolve being built:
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Post by alessia on Feb 12, 2024 22:24:32 GMT
I am the lone voice here but I really did not like this- I felt like I was sitting through 2 hours of Eastenders (fine if you are a fan, I can’t stand soap operas) I am truly baffled by the reviews. I feel like I’ve seen a different show to everyone else. The acting was fine but the script is so basic that it doesn’t matter almost. Not for me
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Post by parsley1 on Feb 12, 2024 22:57:58 GMT
I am the lone voice here but I really did not like this- I felt like I was sitting through 2 hours of Eastenders (fine if you are a fan, I can’t stand soap operas) I am truly baffled by the reviews. I feel like I’ve seen a different show to everyone else. The acting was fine but the script is so basic that it doesn’t matter almost. Not for me For 99.9% of people Life is basic This play and indeed Eastenders Reflect the predictable nature of life And the basic errors people make And have made since year dot
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Post by aspieandy on Feb 12, 2024 23:24:47 GMT
Full disclose: I have never seen an episode of Eastenders (though I once watched half a Christmas special with Dirty Den, under threat of a barrage of Brussels sprouts). This is not the same. This is an entirely different format in a completely different environment. Also, you don't even need a special license to watch this (nor are you threatened with prosecution if you don't have a special license). There are plenty of people who don't watch serial TV. Or licenced tv. Or even tv. Ergo: there is no crossover. For many this will be fresh, different, heart-warming.
I don't know: why do people who go to Stranger Things or the Harry Potter production? Much more of the same available on streaming.
Final point: I haven't had time to reflect on other substantive difference (maybe there are, maybe not). Is every episode a three act mini drama, story and character arcs carry over, how many of those are they juggling. I don't know.
/aspie out
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Post by showgirl on Feb 13, 2024 3:51:18 GMT
There are plenty of people who don't watch serial TV. Or licenced tv. Or even tv. Ergo: there is no crossover. For many this will be fresh, different, heart-warming.
Hear hear! And whilst I find it hard to know how familiar others are with theatre actors or venues, I do find the opposite frustrating and puzzling at times, eg when members assume that performers, whom they know from tv (terrestrial or otherwise), and their work, will be familiar to all.
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Post by alessia on Feb 13, 2024 6:51:06 GMT
When I said it’s like watching a soap opera I didn’t mean any particular actor on stage- I meant the storyline - and how it is so predictable, and on your face, everything that happened was hinted at minutes before it did actually happen. It felt like I was hand held throughout rather than letting me see between the lines. I respect that most people loved this and so did the critics but I just didn’t. There is always one isn’t there 😆
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Post by bryan99 on Feb 13, 2024 8:36:56 GMT
Saw this last night. Enjoyed the first half more than the second. At best - a v strong comedy (reminded me of Jonathan Harvey, back in the day) with some messages (about everything from family to class to the environment) nicely stitched into things. But the 'descent' into chaos and collapse (especially the very end) didn't work for me. All of a sudden we were in surreal/Greek territory. Also - the Polish accent/stereotyping etc has gotten a bit of a free pass which is weird. But - as ever - great to have new writing getting a great production and loads of attention.
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Post by mrbarnaby on Feb 13, 2024 8:51:10 GMT
Saw this last night. Enjoyed the first half more than the second. At best - a v strong comedy (reminded me of Jonathan Harvey, back in the day) with some messages (about everything from family to class to the environment) nicely stitched into things. But the 'descent' into chaos and collapse (especially the very end) didn't work for me. All of a sudden we were in surreal/Greek territory. Also - the Polish accent/stereotyping etc has gotten a bit of a free pass which is weird. But - as ever - great to have new writing getting a great production and loads of attention. I agree re the Polish aspect. It’s a bit icky
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Post by aspieandy on Feb 13, 2024 12:24:19 GMT
There isn't a Polish accent, anymore than there is an English accent - there are 50 English accents, from Highland Scottish to Etonian, from South African to Geordie, from Scouce to Essex. And each of those starts from that place when speaking another language.
"Vocal/dialect coach: Charmian Hoare, Cathleen McCarron, Tamsin Newlands" - it's possible they needed 3 women to teach the cast to 'speak East Midlands' (whatever) though I'd guess not all 3.
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Post by clarefh on Feb 13, 2024 13:32:07 GMT
I have a ticket for this evening on the notice board if anyone is interested ( note it’s a 6.30 start!).
Happy to accept an offer as it so late in the day.
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