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Post by Oleanna on Apr 5, 2016 0:14:44 GMT
Is Michael Crawford likely to be considered Leading or Supporting for The Go-Between?
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Apr 3, 2016 20:24:41 GMT
Alison Jiear at Mrs. Henderson Presents last night.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 31, 2016 23:47:14 GMT
This is really something else.
A remarkable production of a great and important (hate that word normally but relevant here) masterpiece of 20th century theatre.
Farber has a style that's all her own and uses it to overwhelming effect here. The performances are all absolutely on point too.
The script could easily be preachy but is, instead, questioning. And not just your usual "pause for thought" questioning, but soul-wrenching questioning.
One of the most complete things I've ever seen at the National. Best viewed from the front of the stalls.
One thing that should be noted for future viewers: the production does contain a very sudden and very loud gunshot.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 31, 2016 23:42:01 GMT
I'd recommend Hand to God, although it perhaps doesn't fulfil your request of being "intimate"
It is, however, VERY funny (although, granted, the humour is quite specific)
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 31, 2016 23:39:58 GMT
Andrew Lloyd Webber was at Bar Mitzvah Boy lady night. Does he normally do fringe shows? Likely supporting his friend Don Black.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 29, 2016 16:19:30 GMT
Why are we made to feel nowadays that we SIMPLY MUST BOOK for every show the day it goes onsale or we won't have any chance at seeing it otherwise?
Even in the West End now...
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 28, 2016 16:05:51 GMT
These are just main points and topics on which he we went into bigger details later. I'll share the video if I find it somewhere, if someone's interested. I'm interested! We don't get to hear Prince's view on theatre as often as Sondheim, and I'd be more interested to hear what he has to say now!
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 27, 2016 16:48:48 GMT
I walked past Russell Tovey walking his dog on Holborn. Does that count? Only if he winked at you.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 27, 2016 1:49:11 GMT
I consider Wyndham's to be the West End's best playhouse. It's got everything going for it - perfect size, great seating and comfort thanks to Cam Mack, and that beautiful jewel box auditorium, which is currently looking stunning.
If I had to pick a favourite theatre overall, I would have to say the Novello. I generally love Sprague's theatres, and I find the Novello to be a great house for musicals or plays, and with a beautiful auditorium to boot. One of the only West End theatres with a prominent mirror design too. I find the ridiculously long route you have to take to get to the stalls very charming. I've also seen a lot of shows at the Novello (some many times) so am also able to associate the theatre with those shows. Unfortunately I won't be returning for a while now. Whilst I did visit Mamma Mia when it first transferred, I don't like the show nearly enough to see it again for a long time. Interestingly though, Mamma Mia is the first show I've seen at the Novello to use the pit.
If I had to pick the West End's best mid-size musical house, I would probably say The Palace or Shaftesbury (I'm sure I'd include the Victoria Palace too but I haven't been there) and then just between these and the barns - the wonderful Prince Edward.
I've visited certain theatres which I would gladly not visit again were they not so popular. I've been to the Adelphi more times than any other theatre, and I've never liked it. Having said that, it is currently in the best state its ever been in with recent refurbishments.
I'd also have quite happily seen every successful production at the Savoy in recent years instead play the Shaftesbury. The Savoy is not a bad theatre, but I don't like the way productions are made to look smaller, like they're at the end of a tunnel with that horrible proscenium surround.
And simply to my least favourite theatre, and one which I would have no issues seeing demolished (the only one mind you): The Playhouse.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 27, 2016 1:31:28 GMT
Alison Steadman at today's matinee of Ma Rainey's Black Bottom at the NT.
Russell Tovey in the building too.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 27, 2016 1:20:03 GMT
Saw this last night and absolutely loved it.
Everything I have come to expect from Richard Eyre - classy direction with deep character exploration and detail.
The set is much more remarkable than first appears - a pretty good metaphor for the play as a whole. As the lines become increasingly blurred between realism and dream, so does the set, the areas behind the set increasingly visible. It's also a set which never fully reveals itself, which, in a way, leaves you uncomfortable.
It's pretty much Lesley Manville's show, and she's giving a wonderful performance. At first I was surprised at how close to surface the pains of her character seemed to be, but as the play went on (especially in the third act) it began to make perfect sense - she really was a woman nearing the end of her journey, not just in a generic state of crazy, longing or regret.
Special mention must go to Bristol Old Vic Theatre School graduate Billy Howle as Edmund - he very much stands out in the latter acts and his explosions seem so reluctant but also necessary and earnt - a great actor of the future.
This production really only has one main problem - Jeremy Irons. Struggling to remember his lines (it is still in previews and a very long play, so this is somewhat excusable), and unable to do a convincing accent of any kind, his performance is something of a black hole for the enormous amounts of energy his fellow actors are committing to the production. Frequently seeming passive (a result of trying to keep one mental eye on the script, one assumes), and with little truthful or honest reaction, his casting is the obvious weak link.
Could have done without the silly swooshy sound effects (which seem to be featured in every play production nowadays) and the BOV's horrible Pit seating, but overall a brilliant production of one of the great masterpieces of the American theatre.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 25, 2016 2:09:56 GMT
Love her, but she always seems to angle her head upwards when singing resulting in a strained sound/look...
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 25, 2016 1:54:26 GMT
Baz Bamigboye has revealed on Twitter that Josie Rourke will direct Cush Jumbo in Shaw's Saint Joan at the Donmar, beginning December.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 25, 2016 1:31:48 GMT
- The playground song from Blood Brothers (atonal, incredibly difficult to listen to) Technically speaking, it's not actually atonal.
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 25, 2016 1:31:15 GMT
Everybody Say Yeah from Kinky Boots Ball of Wax from Ghost (though I have grown to like it more over time)
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637 posts
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Post by Oleanna on Mar 25, 2016 1:08:39 GMT
It's definitely open on Saturday - I'm seeing two plays!
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