367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Oct 17, 2019 14:23:41 GMT
I feel I am the odd one out but this did not live up to th hype for me. Excellent acting but not revelatory as everyone seems to say. I love Jane Austen and I found the concept of the author and characters facing the open future interesting, but it was not a "wow" production for me. Still happy if it trasnfers since most people likes the play and Laura Wade is a lovely person.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Oct 10, 2019 8:51:21 GMT
Starts previews tomorrow. Anyone booked? I am going on the 29th because I will review it for work.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Oct 7, 2019 11:41:39 GMT
I really liked this! Probably the most interesting work from Churchill I have seen (I haven't seen much of hers though). I would struggle to pick a favourite among the four short plays but they work really well together. As usual Deborah Findlay is amazing.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Sept 20, 2019 18:57:48 GMT
A few people I know have seen this since I have so a bit of chat going on and the general consensus seems to be that there is a good play here buried under the polemic. One thing that has bugged me since is the speech by the Putin character in which he tells us that 20,000,000 Russians died in WWII [ am I remembering that correctly?] Yes, indeed, we know that and without going into a history lecture here, we know that the Russians held the Eastern front while the Allies sorted themselves out to attack the Western..we know, we really do know that [ and wow what they got for that, a big big price, half of Europe] but it doesn’t excuse poisoning someone in such a vile way. So what does Prebble want us to think? That the Russians have their reasons or that we are stupid? I think you are a bit unfair, Lynette. The character making the speech is Lugovoi, not Putin. It is a fact that Russians lost 25 million people during the Great Patriotic War (our World War II) and the real turning point of the war was Stalingrad, and not Normandy. The US got indirectly control over the other half of Europe after the war with much less losses but we don't comment on that because they are "our" kind of allies. Of course what happened in the Second World War does not justify Litvinenko's murder or the murky behaviour of the Russian government, but I don't think that Prebble is saying that. She gives Lugovoi the chance to explain his alleged point on why Russian aggressive behaviour may derive from the trauma of the Second World War; it does not stand scrutiny in the context of Litvinenko's murder but there is some truth in saying that the West has conveniently minimized the Russian contribution to the end of the Second World War. Instead I wonder why polonium-210 was used to poison Litvinenko since it could be traced back to Russia so easily? Was it a demonstration to other secret services or governments that they could do it? I also wonder how many other murders, committed with more skill and appropriate by secret services from Russia and our own countries, have happened under our nose. Maybe it is better not to know!
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Aug 2, 2019 9:48:26 GMT
It seems yesterday that the NT did the last production of Phedre with Helen Mirren and it was instead 2009. Where have those years gone???
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Aug 2, 2019 9:16:58 GMT
My hopes are quite low: something I can sit through this time, unlike the ghastly "An Octoroon", which remains one of my landmark disappointments of recent years. (I do know I am in a minority, hence giving the author another try.) I am in the opposite field because I loved "An Octoroon". Still, maybe you can read the reviews of the US production to get a sense of what is coming. I never do that because I like keeping the surprise element though.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Jul 23, 2019 11:40:31 GMT
Quite intrigued by "The king of Hell's Palace" since I loved "The world of extreme happiness". And I will probably book "Botticelli on fire" because, after metaphorically embracing his mother in "draw me close" at the Young Vic, I want to see one of Jordan Tannahill's plays.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Jul 3, 2019 8:45:30 GMT
The whole thing looks rather depressing and KKA and the YV (a theatre I really love) are really coming out badly. It would be fairly simple to compare the scripts between the old "Tree" and the new "Tree" since there have been workshops with the original work. I find Tori and Sarah' detailed report quite convincing, at least for the point that they should deserve credit. This situation has turned a bit sour my relationship with the Young Vic.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Jun 18, 2019 8:24:25 GMT
I saw it last night. I think it is very good and Andrew Scott, Sophie Thompson and Indira Varma are excellent. It was my first time seeing the play and the friend I went with told me that there is a relevant change in this version. I am just not sure about the housekeeper...
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Jun 17, 2019 16:05:56 GMT
I got my ticket for £25 :-)
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Jun 13, 2019 14:39:08 GMT
Very exciting announcement. Luckily they are not putting everything on sale at the same time or I would need to sell a kidney...
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Jun 12, 2019 12:53:37 GMT
I am afraid I really did not like it. From David Mamet I would expected a much more engaging play whereas it is rather dull and the characters are paper thin. The plausibility of the last scene is minimal in my opinion. It was nice to see John Malkovich on stage and the second act has some funny lines but overall it was a disappointment.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Jun 7, 2019 8:16:24 GMT
I saw it last night from the pit. A very enjoyable, irreverent, and dynamic production. Definitely different from other productions I have seen before. I really liked Gwendolen Christie and Oliver Chris and although the audience in the pit does not need to move around as much as for Julius Caesar, it is still worth to be immersed in the action.
P.S. Next time I need to get one of the free plastic glasses for water from the foyer: they are branded and look very solid…
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on May 29, 2019 11:58:10 GMT
Very excited by each announced work. Isn't it a bit early to announce shows for the autumn of 2020 though?
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on May 24, 2019 8:16:58 GMT
Does the booking work? I tried several times to select a seat but the page refreshes to the original seating plan without my choice.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on May 21, 2019 12:33:41 GMT
Even too good... I was not planning to add another theatre to my long list of venues but A doll's house, Solaris, and Antigone look very interesting.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on May 15, 2019 15:10:41 GMT
I have seen “White pearl” last night. It is rather funny and explores an area (racism in Asia) I did not know very well. Some characters are quite sketchy but overall it is enjoyable and the same actors seem to enjoy the experience.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on May 3, 2019 8:08:10 GMT
Disappointing morning for me. 133 in the queue but slim pickins. Good result for Hansard, Anna sold out, little left in my price range for Translations and Secret River. Boohiss. Hope others did better I was number 256 and I managed to get £15 tickets for everything I wanted (The secret river and Master Harold).
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on May 3, 2019 8:06:23 GMT
I saw it last night. Beautiful production and solid performances that will surely become even more assured as the run goes on (Arinze’ Kene became a bit shrieky in a key scene and I struggled to understand what he was saying). I was out at 10,40 pm.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Apr 16, 2019 8:50:37 GMT
The website crushed once so I lost my tickets but luckily I had Chrome, Firefox and Explorer opened so I managed to book new tickets from another queue...
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Apr 12, 2019 8:30:35 GMT
>>and Patsy Ferran does not have a huge part (and she does not look like the youngest!) Good since Olga is the oldest ! Haha, no they were replying to a comment I'd made as we thought she looked the youngest (she's so slight of frame and tiny) compared to the two others, yet is meant to be the older one, left on the shelf. (Actually we shouldn't talk about shelves...what on earth is the Andrey-then-Natasha shelf all about? Anyone got any ideas?) It's a very odd production... The shelf might represent being emotionally apart from what is happening (which applies for Andrey and later for Natasha, who does not sympathise with the sisters).
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Apr 11, 2019 10:41:01 GMT
Is it still 3 hours 15 please? Yes, I left the theatre at 10,45.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Apr 11, 2019 9:57:36 GMT
I saw the play on Tuesday night. I liked the staging (a little out of time), although as Nash says some choices seem to be more reflective of the director’s aesthetics than the actual play (which is something I already thought of Summer and smoke, to be honest). It is my third Three sisters and it is the first time that Irina feels so central to the story: I wonder if that is because she is the only one among the Sergeyevna sisters who actually makes an active life choice in the end. Ria Zmitrowicz is excellent again (after Dance Nation) and Patsy Ferran does not have a huge part (and she does not look like the youngest!). Overall an excellent production, maybe less revelatory than Summer and smoke because the play is well-known.
P.S. Marianne Elliott and Miriam Margoyles were sitting in front of me.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Mar 28, 2019 13:03:10 GMT
In the autumn there should also be this (announced last year):
Inua Ellams returns to the NT in the autumn with a new play,Three Sisters,after Chekhov, in a co-production with Fuel. Directed by Theatre Royal Stratford East Artistic Director, Nadia Fall, Three Sisters transports the play to 1960s Nigeria, before, during and after the Biafran Civil War. Originally commissioned by Metta Theatre. Hundreds of tickets for every performance available at £15.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Mar 28, 2019 11:53:32 GMT
I am interested in "'Master Harold’… and the boys" and "The secret river" and I will save some money since I saw "Translations" before.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Mar 25, 2019 13:02:37 GMT
I will wait for the £10 stall ticket for a preview because I like to live dangerously :-)
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Feb 26, 2019 10:37:29 GMT
Very straightforward booking. I got three tickets for £15 so I have happy friends too.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Feb 20, 2019 14:10:23 GMT
I saw the play last night. A middle of the road experience for me. The performances are very good and Fisayo Akinade seems to turn everything he does into gold. Some knowledge of Donald Trump and the American politics are essential, otherwise many references are missed (I hardly followed everything). Still, it is quite one-sided (privileged white liberals debating on how Trump could be elected), long and felt more like a debate than a real play. The dystopic Trumpian scenes are intriguing (and the second really reminded me of Mr Burns). Ultimately I feel "Sweat" told me more about who may have voted for Trump, but "Shipwreck" remains an interesting analysis of the post-truth world in which we seem to have plunged.
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Feb 13, 2019 9:57:14 GMT
Just wonderful! I thought I would never see her on stage (well, I have not yet the ticket though...).
|
|
367 posts
|
Post by MrBunbury on Feb 11, 2019 22:39:27 GMT
I was there too tonight (two Italians in the theatre). I agree that the second part became more dynamic but I was not bought by Mortimer and Isobel. And I still have the production at the National in my mind where the connection between Edward II and Gaveston was more convincing. The white hot spear at the end is realistic though!
|
|