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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 9:38:20 GMT
I was in the same theatre as Parsley! Where were you sitting? Coincidentally I went home and vomited as well, but mine was due to the sort of headache you get when you have a really bad day at work and you've spent eight hours trying not to cry.
So my reaction was rather different to Mr P's (and if your main response to a play is 'meals usually last longer than that' I'm not sure theatre is for you...)
I really enjoyed it and found the family dynamics very well-written and relatable. I liked the fact that all the characters were (for me) likeable but certainly flawed, which is basically what humans are like. I liked the fact that it was a basically loving family that had the capacity to rub each other up the wrong way by making jokes or saying things that didn't go down well/pushed buttons, etc. I liked the relationship between the dad and the boyfriend, which was realistically mixed whereas less subtle writing would create drama and blow-ups that rarely happen in real life.
The ending wasn't great but it's hard to end this sort of slice of life play well because life tends not to have big dramatic endings, it just rumbles on.
Overall a good use of an evening for me.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 10:25:28 GMT
I haven't seen the play over here, but I did see it in NYC twice - the first time off-Broadway and the second time on Broadway, I loved it both times, actually much more the second time and I was so pleased to see they were bringing over the great entire original cast. I haven't booked in to see it at Hampstead yet, but I'm wondering if this is one of those times where a very American play simply doesn't translate for British audiences. In the same way there are lots of British plays which Americans don't "get". In reference to some of the comments here about Thanksgiving dinner (i.e. Hours to prepare and minutes to consume) that's always been the case. The day is all about the preparation and the aftermath - that's the family time. I'm not saying that in The Humans that this is a realistic depiction of that Yank ritual but it's closer to realism than you think. And as for going out to eat on Thanksgiving, that isn't an option for this family. The point of all of them gathering in the new not yet ready house, is that they couple want to welcome them into their home, not go out to eat. It's not about the meal, it's about taking care of one's family in one's own home. I'm sorry that it seems the play hasn't transferred here successfully. The meal sits on the table for about 30-40mins getting cold About 99% of it is untouched before being cleared way after 5 mins This is a apparently a frugal family sh*t their pants at 25 dollars for a candle I refuse to believe this is how they would dine I have been to Many thanksgiving meals They are not like this nonsense |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 10:26:33 GMT
like NeilVHughes, I go more Downstairs and for similar reasons (happy to meet another Pine fan!) Haven't seen anything upstairs for a while - either the Moderate Soprano or Wild were the most recent, I think. Chariots of Fire probably the last one I really enjoyed. Loved Pine - I actually looked online recently to see what that playwright was doing now (it didn't seem like much considering lesser writers having piles of commissions - but you can't always tell by what's online.) Parsley - are you going to see Dance Nation at the Almeida? I am dying for your reaction to it (I could be wrong, but I think you will hate it with an intensity which will be both beautiful and apocalyptic.) not seeing dance nation for a couple of weeks |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 10:27:16 GMT
Very early days to be making that assumption! I was gonna say, if you write off plays based purely on Parsley not liking them, you would have a fairly small number of things you could see each year... At least I don’t flake out on people after asking them for a theatre ticket!! |
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Post by andrew on Sept 1, 2018 10:37:50 GMT
I was gonna say, if you write off plays based purely on Parsley not liking them, you would have a fairly small number of things you could see each year... At least I don’t flake out on people after asking them for a theatre ticket!! Honey, let's not fight in front of the kids |
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Post by theatreliker on Sept 1, 2018 10:40:45 GMT
I enjoyed reading the play: quite traditional and naturalistic and all that but there's a spectral quality to it that is only slightly hinted at. What it's like in performance, I don't know.
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Post by NeilVHughes on Sept 1, 2018 11:38:19 GMT
Personally appreciate the candour of @parsley.
His strong opinions are an indication of his passion for great Theatre, he may post more negative reviews but when he likes a show (Nine Nights) his appreciation is equally positive.
Most of us on this site see significantly more plays than the average Theatregoer and are most probably indifferent to bad / average plays as we know it comes with the passion, for me the expectation is one good play in 10 and a great one in 25 and on the whole do not comment unless particular poor Obsession and Nightfall come to mind.
Maybe we all need to become a bit more @parsley as the National, Royal Court, Donmar, Almeida etc don’t have to try too hard to get us to open our wallets and we (I) do put up with some dross.
On the hypothetical bus trip to @emicardiff opening night @parsley could be an entertaining person to sit next to.
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Post by Phantom of London on Sept 1, 2018 13:03:23 GMT
So the play finished at 2105 I got home at 2120 I have just vomited Thrice That’s how bad it is That teach you to go on stage and eat the food, as you pointed out it had been left standing for over 30 minutes and as you said ‘the turkey didn’t look tasty and wasn’t moist.’ Being a doctor I expected you to know that!!! |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 14:13:49 GMT
It’s concerning if anyone, who likes maybe a quarter or less of what they see, doesn’t think about whether the fault lies in themselves and their choices rather than what they watch.
There’s a wider movement in our society to place blame for anything that they think is ‘wrong’ on others (as seen in our debased politics) but that sort of self examination rather than lashing out at others would make people happier, society more constructive and the world a less angry place. Not going to happen I know but change happens one person at a time.
Failing that, see less, make better choices. That, rather than blindly seeing everything, would focus minds in our producing theatres as to whether they are serving their various audiences.
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Post by sf on Sept 1, 2018 14:58:46 GMT
Failing that, see less, make better choices. That, rather than blindly seeing everything, would focus minds in our producing theatres as to whether they are serving their various audiences. Or maybe the individual in question could simply try not going to the theatre EXPECTING to sneer at everything he sees. |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 16:02:35 GMT
It’s concerning if anyone, who likes maybe a quarter or less of what they see, doesn’t think about whether the fault lies in themselves and their choices rather than what they watch. There’s a wider movement in our society to place blame for anything that they think is ‘wrong’ on others (as seen in our debased politics) but that sort of self examination rather than lashing out at others would make people happier, society more constructive and the world a less angry place. Not going to happen I know but change happens one person at a time. Failing that, see less, make better choices. That, rather than blindly seeing everything, would focus minds in our producing theatres as to whether they are serving their various audiences. It’s concerning to me People buy and wear utter sh*t from the high street And rent a property instead of buying one And eat in places I wouldn’t take a dog As I have said before It depends on how low you are willing to drop your standards And just reassure yourself This is as good as it gets |
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Post by Phantom of London on Sept 1, 2018 16:10:34 GMT
And wear do you do your cloths shopping Paisley, if not the High Street. QVC or Littlewoods catalogue?
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Post by dlevi on Sept 1, 2018 16:37:37 GMT
I was gonna say, if you write off plays based purely on Parsley not liking them, you would have a fairly small number of things you could see each year... Andrew I don't write off plays that quickly, but frankly of my theatre savvy friends in the states and the number of awards the play has received, as well as the fairly healthy Broadway run and the rare national tour for a straight play(in the states) I was simply surprised at how much some of the folks on here hated the evening. To each his own. Hopefully this cast is simply getting used to a different audience response than what they are used to and have been calibrating their performances to this foreign environment. |
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Post by Phantom of London on Sept 1, 2018 17:08:45 GMT
It didn’t deserve the Tony for best play, King Charles III and The Father are far superior - but the two leads do.
This played was the one that got caught up in Isherwoodgate with Scott Rudin, so how genuine the review is, so who knows?
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 17:52:04 GMT
It’s concerning if anyone, who likes maybe a quarter or less of what they see, doesn’t think about whether the fault lies in themselves and their choices rather than what they watch. There’s a wider movement in our society to place blame for anything that they think is ‘wrong’ on others (as seen in our debased politics) but that sort of self examination rather than lashing out at others would make people happier, society more constructive and the world a less angry place. Not going to happen I know but change happens one person at a time. Failing that, see less, make better choices. That, rather than blindly seeing everything, would focus minds in our producing theatres as to whether they are serving their various audiences. It’s concerning to me People buy and wear utter sh*t from the high street And rent a property instead of buying one And eat in places I wouldn’t take a dog As I have said before It depends on how low you are willing to drop your standards And just reassure yourself This is as good as it gets Many people don’t have the money to spend on such luxuries. I would never criticise someone for only appreciating what they can afford to. |
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Post by mrbarnaby on Sept 1, 2018 18:02:40 GMT
I have to say that I felt the same after seeing this in NYC. I couldn’t believe the hype around it, and that it (I think ) won the Tony. It is such a mediocre play.cant believe they have gone to the expense of bringing the American cast over. This ain’t the next August Osage County.
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Post by foxa on Sept 1, 2018 18:46:11 GMT
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 19:28:15 GMT
It’s concerning to me People buy and wear utter sh*t from the high street And rent a property instead of buying one And eat in places I wouldn’t take a dog As I have said before It depends on how low you are willing to drop your standards And just reassure yourself This is as good as it gets Many people don’t have the money to spend on such luxuries. I would never criticise someone for only appreciating what they can afford to. And equally if someone does attend many plays Or have lots of things It’s not acceptable to criticise them either For having an excess It comes across as sour grapes There is no rule that just because you see many shows You are going to like them all |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 19:42:06 GMT
It’s concerning if anyone, who likes maybe a quarter or less of what they see, doesn’t think about whether the fault lies in themselves and their choices rather than what they watch. There’s a wider movement in our society to place blame for anything that they think is ‘wrong’ on others (as seen in our debased politics) but that sort of self examination rather than lashing out at others would make people happier, society more constructive and the world a less angry place. Not going to happen I know but change happens one person at a time. Failing that, see less, make better choices. That, rather than blindly seeing everything, would focus minds in our producing theatres as to whether they are serving their various audiences. It’s concerning to me People buy and wear utter sh*t from the high street And rent a property instead of buying one And eat in places I wouldn’t take a dog As I have said before It depends on how low you are willing to drop your standards And just reassure yourself This is as good as it gets I'm pleased to hear that you are concerned about people who perhaps have less than you and can only afford high street sh*t or have to rent a property because they are priced out of the market so that they aren't able to buy so I'd be interested to hear what you are doing about that concern P? Are you perhaps campaigning for more affordable housing or to force everyone to pay the national living wage? Are you the bane of your MPs life? |
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Post by Deleted on Sept 1, 2018 20:04:24 GMT
Many people don’t have the money to spend on such luxuries. I would never criticise someone for only appreciating what they can afford to. And equally if someone does attend many plays Or have lots of things It’s not acceptable to criticise them either For having an excess It comes across as sour grapes There is no rule that just because you see many shows You are going to like them all Not having much makes you weigh up your choices more though. |
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Post by nash16 on Sept 1, 2018 23:29:08 GMT
I was gonna say, if you write off plays based purely on Parsley not liking them, you would have a fairly small number of things you could see each year... Andrew I don't write off plays that quickly, but frankly of my theatre savvy friends in the states and the number of awards the play has received, as well as the fairly healthy Broadway run and the rare national tour for a straight play(in the states) I was simply surprised at how much some of the folks on here hated the evening. To each his own. Hopefully this cast is simply getting used to a different audience response than what they are used to and have been calibrating their performances to this foreign environment. I genuinely think the American audiences got a lot more out of this than British audiences are going to. I may be wrong of course, but it just felt so hollow after going in with the rave notices etc etc. |
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Post by andrew on Sept 2, 2018 11:59:38 GMT
Anyway.
I saw the play last night as promised and it was actually alright. Not perfect, but good. I really enjoyed the performances, I enjoyed the sound of the cast talking with each other, over each other, I enjoyed how 'lived in' their performances felt. Real people, a real family, with all their weirdnesses and problems.
I won't say too much, but I didn't have any problem with, and quite liked the concept and development regarding the 'noises'.
The problem for me with the play was just that there wasn't enough in it to elevate it to the Tony award heights that were advertised, which is essentially what most people on here are saying. If this hadn't been hyped up from it's initial US run, I wonder if the immediate British reception to it would have been slightly more favourable.
Even if it isn't the greatest play of the decade, it's a solid bit of modern american writing that I'm quite happy to have wandering into one of our smaller theatres with a great cast for a few months. I'm glad I went.
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Post by Deleted on Sept 2, 2018 14:49:57 GMT
Anyway. I saw the play last night as promised and it was actually alright. Not perfect, but good. I really enjoyed the performances, I enjoyed the sound of the cast talking with each other, over each other, I enjoyed how 'lived in' their performances felt. Real people, a real family, with all their weirdnesses and problems. I won't say too much, but I didn't have any problem with, and quite liked the concept and development regarding the 'noises'. The problem for me with the play was just that there wasn't enough in it to elevate it to the Tony award heights that were advertised, which is essentially what most people on here are saying. If this hadn't been hyped up from it's initial US run, I wonder if the immediate British reception to it would have been slightly more favourable. Even if it isn't the greatest play of the decade, it's a solid bit of modern american writing that I'm quite happy to have wandering into one of our smaller theatres with a great cast for a few months. I'm glad I went. And hence my point Some people want more from life Than “It was alright” |
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Post by Jan on Sept 2, 2018 15:46:34 GMT
It’s concerning to me People buy and wear utter sh*t from the high street And rent a property instead of buying one And eat in places I wouldn’t take a dog As I have said before It depends on how low you are willing to drop your standards And just reassure yourself This is as good as it gets I'm pleased to hear that you are concerned about people who perhaps have less than you and can only afford high street sh*t or have to rent a property because they are priced out of the market so that they aren't able to buy so I'd be interested to hear what you are doing about that concern P? Are you perhaps campaigning for more affordable housing or to force everyone to pay the national living wage? Are you the bane of your MPs life? Supply-side only policies for affordable housing in London will not work. You need to address the demand side too. Cheap one-bedroom new build flats where I live are predominantly bought by foreign buyers off-plan to rent - if you build more they’ll buy more. Also if you make more cheap housing available in London then more people will move to live here, both from elsewhere in the UK and from overseas, thus quickly returning to the original problem. |
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Post by theatrelover123 on Sept 2, 2018 16:32:44 GMT
I'm pleased to hear that you are concerned about people who perhaps have less than you and can only afford high street sh*t or have to rent a property because they are priced out of the market so that they aren't able to buy so I'd be interested to hear what you are doing about that concern P? Are you perhaps campaigning for more affordable housing or to force everyone to pay the national living wage? Are you the bane of your MPs life? Supply-side only policies for affordable housing in London will not work. You need to address the demand side too. Cheap one-bedroom new build flats where I live are predominantly bought by foreign buyers off-plan to rent - if you build more they’ll buy more. Also if you make more cheap housing available in London then more people will move to live here, both from elsewhere in the UK and from overseas, thus quickly returning to the original problem. Blimey. Let’s all just keep it light, shall we? Can’t we just go back to talking about jazz hands, tits and teeth and glitz?  |
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