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Post by Steve on Jun 19, 2016 23:24:10 GMT
Saw this Saturday matinee, and adored this show! It's pure unadulterated love! I haven't seen that many Kneehigh shows, 3 previous ones I think, "Brief Encounter," "Umbrellas of Cherbourg" and the revival of "The Red Shoes." I liked all those shows, but this one is better, by far, for me. In "Brief Encounter," there was a mock certification that stated it was "certified suitable for incurable romantics," or something cutesy like that, and if I have any qualms about recommending this show, it is that if you are completely burned out on romance, bear in mind that that certification applies to this show in spades. It the story of Marc Chagall and Bella Rosenfeld, of the romance between a painter and a writer, who became husband and wife, lived through the Russian revolution, and who escaped the pogroms and Nazis that decimated the lives of almost everyone in their idyllic shtetl in Vitebsk in the Russian Empire, where they came from. But this show is unique, to my experience of shows that touch on such horrific subject matter, in it's focus and reflection of the optimistic and loving worldview of it's characters. Chagall was known for painting himself and his love flying in the air over Vitebsk, of paintings in which he and his wife would simply lift off from the ground and float through the air in their kitchen on a cushion of love. Chagall resembles his contemporary Charlie Chaplin, Rosenfeld resembles Louise Brooks, but their love for each other and everything around them is more fantastical and romantic than anything their doppelgangers ever commited to celluloid. The use of buoyant Yiddish-inflected music, singing and dancing, is so judicious that I feel these are the most loving and loveable characters I have ever seen on stage. Marc Antolin and Audrey Brisson are divine as the Chagalls. Emma Rice includes in their story just enough of the horrors these two lived through to nail two points: (1) Life can be terrible, but (2) it is love that makes it so special and worthwhile. Absolutely terrific, but bear in mind that "certification." 5 stars  NB: If you can't see this show, there's a beautiful 4 minute youtube video that gives a flavour of the love the Chagalls had for one another: |
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Post by QueerTheatre on Jun 20, 2016 10:43:49 GMT
I'm desperate to see this as im a HUGE kneehigh fan - but these prices arent fun - especially when the website makes it seems like every seat is restricted in some way!
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Post by Deleted on Jun 20, 2016 10:49:22 GMT
I'm desperate to see this as im a HUGE kneehigh fan - but these prices arent fun - especially when the website makes it seems like every seat is restricted in some way! The various view restrictions are quite different - anything in the Upper Gallery isn't messing around and you're going to see very little of the stage, but the Lower Gallery restrictions tend to just be a pillar, which isn't very wide and shouldn't really be much of an issue if you're prepared to wiggle a little. The £26 Lower Gallery seats are probably the closest thing to a bargain you're going to get in that theatre, but if you really don't like the idea of view restrictions AT ALL, take a £32 seat in the Pit. |
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Post by QueerTheatre on Jun 20, 2016 10:56:18 GMT
I kind of resent paying more than £25 for ANYTHING usually... i go to the theatre so often (and as a theatre maker myself, i earn so little) that i cant really justify spending £50=£100 on theatre a week, but those sound like some pretty good suggestions Baemax, as i think i'd regret missing this. Thanks |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 20, 2016 11:32:18 GMT
Yeah, £25 is a borderline for me too, I can only convince myself to book for the Sam Wanamaker by reminding myself I'm only paying £5 for everything at the Globe. It balances out over the year, but it doesn't make it any easier to watch the £32s disappearing from my bank account.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 20, 2016 13:13:54 GMT
OK Steve, I've booked for this today based upon your message.
If it's rubbish I'll be hunting you down like a dateless Taylor Swift.
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Post by Steve on Jun 20, 2016 16:55:33 GMT
OK Steve, I've booked for this today based upon your message. If it's rubbish I'll be hunting you down like a dateless Taylor Swift. I'm terrified. When Taylor Swift had a fiancee, she still had time to corner La Hiddleston (that's me trying to be young like you, and failing) at a ball, so dateless, I can't even imagine. . ! Hope you enjoy the play, and that you took Baemax's seating advice (above), but that if you didn't, you try to focus on the play and not whatever seventh level of hell seat you are sitting/standing in. Until I know the result, I'm in hiding. |
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Post by Deleted on Jun 20, 2016 22:23:09 GMT
OK Steve, you're off the hook. I loved it!
It's delightful. Clever, funny, inventive, sweet, gorgeous, thrilling and heartbreakingly sad. And all gloriously performed by Marc Antolin and Audrey Brisson. And by that I mean absolutely sensationally performed by Marc Antolin and Audrey Brisson. I refuse to believe that they aren't deliriously in love with each other in real life and are just acting because it's a thing to behold on that stage.
It's such an uncomfortable theatre though. My bum feels like Katie Price has spent two hours with the whole England football squad. Plus coaches.
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Post by zahidf on Oct 5, 2017 14:14:22 GMT
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Post by jek on Jan 19, 2018 22:10:39 GMT
Just back from seeing this at Wilton's. Very lovely. If you are used to seeing things at Wilton's you might be taken aback, as we were, by just how many seats they have managed to cram in. It seemed like a pretty full house too. I do hope that such success means that they follow this up by staging Romantics Anonymous there at some point in the future..
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Post by Mr Snow on Jan 22, 2018 9:34:14 GMT
Shouldn’t this be in Musicals? Jek we were there Friday night as well. First time up in the balcony, where of course the lovers were flying round our heads. It is a delight and beautifully performed. I did think there were a few longueurs and was undecided if they didn’t show the hardships they went through strongly enough(i.e. realistically) or was it the strength of their love that minimised the effect the Russian revolution and had on them. Best not to analyse to hard as it was a celebration of love and most refreshing. Can anyone help? At the end they played Ella singing the beautiful Paper Moon which has been a delightful earworm for me all weekend. But the song they sang at the beginning was reprised near the end by either The Mills Brothers or The Inkspots (I’m guessing) and its driving me mad trying to recall what the song was? These popular songs fitted so well with the Jewish music they sang because as Rogers and Porter said the minor keys came from the Cantor’s. Now it’s off round the country and I would recommend a visit. www.kneehigh.co.uk/show/flying-lovers-vitebsk.php |
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Post by jek on Jan 22, 2018 9:54:05 GMT
Sorry Mr Snow I don't know what the song is. But I can tell you that the 'theme' they sing ( which features in the trailer) has proved to be a proper earworm in this house. I thought a trip to see Amadeus on Saturday would knock it out but it hasn't! Really surprised to find, on looking it up, that Chagall lived until 1985. We are now planning a trip to Tudeley in Kent to see his stained glass windows in the church there. |
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 28, 2018 18:00:20 GMT
At HOME MCR next week and on tour presumably?
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19,797 posts
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Mar 28, 2018 19:15:49 GMT
Tue 27 March 2018 - Sat 31 March 2018 Salisbury Playhouse Book Now
Tue 03 April 2018 - Sat 07 April 2018 HOME, Manchester Book Now
Tue 10 April 2018 - Sat 14 April 2018 Exeter Northcott Book Now
Tue 17 April 2018 - Sat 21 April 2018 Oxford Playhouse Book Now
Tue 24 April 2018 - Sat 28 April 2018 Northampton Royal & Derngate Book Now
Tue 01 May 2018 - Sat 05 May 2018 Cheltenham Everyman Book Now
Wed 09 May 2018 - Sat 12 May 2018 Brighton Festival Book Now
Thu 24 May 2018 - Sun 10 June 2018 Spoleto Festival Book Now
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Post by showgirl on Mar 29, 2018 3:51:55 GMT
OH and I are seeing this on tour as I loathe Wiltons so didn't want to see it in London, and though OH suggested Brighton Festival, the performances start at ridiculously unhelpful times. So we're going to Oxford, meaning we can also take in America's Cool Modernism at the Ashmolean, and I'm hoping to visit the relatively new 5-screen Curzon cinema.
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Post by Latecomer on Mar 30, 2018 12:17:30 GMT
OH and I are seeing this on tour as I loathe Wiltons so didn't want to see it in London, and though OH suggested Brighton Festival, the performances start at ridiculously unhelpful times. So we're going to Oxford, meaning we can also take in America's Cool Modernism at the Ashmolean, and I'm hoping to visit the relatively new 5-screen Curzon cinema. Can heartily recommend Kupp at the back of John Lewis for either coffee or lunch....go to back of the store, top floor behind childrens clothes and up stairs (RHS of loos). Lovely atmosphere, great views! |
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Post by Mr Snow on Mar 30, 2018 14:48:55 GMT
OH and I are seeing this on tour as I loathe Wiltons so didn't want to see it in London, and though OH suggested Brighton Festival, the performances start at ridiculously unhelpful times. So we're going to Oxford, meaning we can also take in America's Cool Modernism at the Ashmolean, and I'm hoping to visit the relatively new 5-screen Curzon cinema. Enjoy and you can earn my eternal gratitude* if you can make a note of the other song played near the end? *Note the values of currencies can go up or down, but gratitude karma will always be worth more than Bitcoin. Particularly the eternal kind. |
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Post by showgirl on Apr 20, 2018 17:19:56 GMT
OH and I enjoyed this at yesterday's matinee though I've nothing profound to add; just very touching and hard to categorise. It certainly made me want to know more about Bella and Marc Chagall and though (unusually) I bought the programme, that wasn't very illuminating, though OH, being more into art than I am, knew much more than anyone would learn from the production. Not having been to Oxford Playhouse for years, I was interested in seeing the interior revamp and quite liked the colourful seats. And btw, Latecomer, I did look for Kupp but the shutter was down and there was no indication of what was going on or why. |
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Post by Latecomer on Apr 20, 2018 18:29:39 GMT
OH and I enjoyed this at yesterday's matinee though I've nothing profound to add; just very touching and hard to categorise. It certainly made me want to know more about Bella and Marc Chagall and though (unusually) I bought the programme, that wasn't very illuminating, though OH, being more into art than I am, knew much more than anyone would learn from the production. Not having been to Oxford Playhouse for years, I was interested in seeing the interior revamp and quite liked the colourful seats. And btw, Latecomer , I did look for Kupp but the shutter was down and there was no indication of what was going on or why. I think they may have been doing a private function...they tweeted a picture of a runway arrangement and lots of nibbles...sorry! |
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Post by fossil on Oct 27, 2020 16:55:38 GMT
Excellent news from Wise Children:
This message comes with a loud whoop of gratitude for all of you who tuned in to our live broadcasts of Romantics Anonymous last month! When we first cooked up the idea, we genuinely had no idea whether we could actually achieve what we set out to do. We knew it would be risky, we knew it would be trailblazing - but we didn’t know how much fun it would be, or what a success!............Ever impatient for the next adventure, we feel there is no time to waste and we are excited to announce that we are planning a second broadcast. This time, we’ll be teaming up with our beloved friends at Kneehigh to broadcast The Flying Lovers of Vitebsk live from Bristol Old Vic.
No dates yet.
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Post by ThereWillBeSun on Oct 27, 2020 18:44:23 GMT
It is a stunning production, I saw it at Wilton's Music Hall. Found it very moving and got quite choked up. In the Q&A with Emma Rice they did allude this would be a possibility!
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Post by stevej678 on Oct 28, 2020 16:59:56 GMT
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Post by fossil on Nov 5, 2020 18:05:38 GMT
Dates announced: 3rd to 5th December. Booking opens Monday for on-line and in-theatre tickets for all four performances.
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Post by MrBunbury on Nov 6, 2020 12:54:17 GMT
On what website will the tickets be sold?
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Post by TallPaul on Nov 6, 2020 14:11:26 GMT
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