1,187 posts
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Post by theatrelover123 on Feb 5, 2019 15:14:47 GMT
I reckon it will lose about 15 mins over the next week or so.
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4,458 posts
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Post by poster J on Feb 5, 2019 18:11:01 GMT
I'm going to be very dehydrated this weekend given I'm seeing All About Eve on Friday and then this on Saturday - that's a crazy long Act 1!
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482 posts
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Post by drmaplewood on Feb 5, 2019 18:41:28 GMT
I’m glad I’m on the aisle
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Post by Deleted on Feb 5, 2019 21:15:16 GMT
God it's long. I'm not a celebrity, get me out of here!
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Post by partytentdown on Feb 5, 2019 23:24:48 GMT
But is it any good?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 6, 2019 0:02:43 GMT
Well. For those of you who loved 'The Lehman Trilogy' you'll probably love this. For those of you who love a lot of exposition with their theatre, you'll probably love this. For those of you looking for an entertaining night out, you probably won't love this. Or at least you shouldn't.
It's long for a start but feels longer. Now, normally I like that in other areas but not when I'm shoehorned into a particularly uncomfortable Old Vic seat. It's clearly ambitious and tries to fit a lot in, so much so that I felt like I'd lived through the depression and beyond, and it rambles on and on without actually going anywhere. I don't know whether it was boredom or not but it seems that three lots of different actors play the three main characters and quite frankly I don't think I cared a jot about any of them, they were so one dimensional. I can't believe the same person who directed this laborious yawnfest also directed the thrilling 'Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812'.
On the plus side there's a revolve (hoorah!) and a bit of tap dancing from Ewan Wardrop for those having '42nd Street' withdrawal and Fred Haig is like a little bucket of charm singing and dancing up a storm. You also get some fairly dreadful southern accents from James Garnon and Francesca Mills to give you a couple of giggles and there's plenty of jazz and booze from the band knocking out classics like 'Sweet Georgia Brown' if that's your cup of tea.
Oh and they need to sort out the sound, the microphones weren't picking everything up and the sound kept coming and going. Or perhaps it was just my concentration.
I did like Fred Haig's bike though. That was nice.
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28 posts
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Post by barbra99 on Feb 6, 2019 0:16:15 GMT
Was there tonight also. Loved this, didn’t feel long at all in my opinion. The Lehman Trilogy is a good comparison.
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1,936 posts
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Post by wickedgrin on Feb 6, 2019 9:21:38 GMT
I did like Fred Haig's bike though. That was nice. I trust this is not a synonym @ryan
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227 posts
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Post by barelyathletic on Feb 6, 2019 12:18:53 GMT
Also there last night and thoroughly enjoyed it. Didn't know the play at all going in, having never read or seen it. But, as a guide to the history of the American depression it worked really well. Yes, it's not great drama, but it does tell a fascinating and scarily relevant story of a wealthy country's drastic financial collapse and how nobody is protected from it.
Sounds depressing but it isn't. The cast are very good, though the doubling up is a director's theatrical trick rather than necessary. It's interesting visually but doesn't really add much to the characters. Generally however the staging is terrific, with a live band, great period songs from Golda Rosheuvel, and a 'Chicago' style tap routine from Ewan Wardrop. What's not to like?
It's pretty much a mishmash of bits of several other plays, including They Shoot Horses Don't They, The Grapes of Wrath, Girl From the North Country and (as Ryan's already said) The Lehman Trilogy. Oh! And Clarke Peters makes a great Morgan Freeman. But somehow it all works.
I was captivated throughout. It generally flew by and, as a production at the Old Vic, it's streets ahead of the mawkish A Monster Calls and the travesty that was Wise Children. Looking forward to The Price, All My Sons and Death of a Salesman even more now this is under my belt. Four stars.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 6, 2019 12:24:32 GMT
Honestly just liking your post for the "Clarke Peters makes a great Morgan Freeman" line.
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Post by partytentdown on Feb 6, 2019 17:08:42 GMT
How well sold is this? Just realised I've booked in the circle which I have previously hated. Not sure how I did that. I wondered if I might get a sneaky upgrade if it's half empty. Does that ever happen at the OV?
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Post by Deleted on Feb 6, 2019 17:28:47 GMT
Weirdly, I got an upgrade from the Lilian Baylis circle to the on-stage seats for High Society. I say "weirdly", because they didn't actually close the Lilian Baylis circle, they just... spontaneously decided that although I paid £12 for a bench seat, I apparently deserved a £90 stage seat? It is the only time I've ever been upgraded there though, so I don't know that it's worth holding out much hope for.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 6, 2019 21:15:07 GMT
Honestly just liking your post for the "Clarke Peters makes a great Morgan Freeman" line. Gosh I hope not. Especially with some of the allegations about MF going around.
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482 posts
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Post by drmaplewood on Feb 6, 2019 23:26:06 GMT
Just under 3 hours tonight so they are trimming, could easily still do more though. Found this an odd one, nothing strictly bad about it but something always kept me at arms length. Did however make me even more terrified about Brexit!
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13 posts
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Post by chrissie on Feb 7, 2019 22:06:31 GMT
This was truly awful, tedious and dull. Is nowhere in the same league as the Lehman trilogy at all. It can’t decide whether to be a musical, a serious drama or a bit of both. Once again the Old Vic has staged this in the round for no apparent reason, it could have easily fitted on the vast Old Vic stage. It featured an enormous cast which added to the overall confusion as they seemed to be duplicating the main characters. I can’t see this selling out or even filling the theatre during its run.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 7, 2019 22:45:11 GMT
This was truly awful, tedious and dull. Is nowhere in the same league as the Lehman trilogy at all. It can’t decide whether to be a musical, a serious drama or a bit of both. Once again the Old Vic has staged this in the round for no apparent reason, it could have easily fitted on the vast Old Vic stage. It featured an enormous cast which added to the overall confusion as they seemed to be duplicating the main characters. I can’t see this selling out or even filling the theatre during its run. Another one here for who this didn't work and is the weakest Miller play I have ever seen: though this isn't to detract from the cast who work incredibly well with the material. As for why it is in the round, I believe it has been forced upon the Old Vic because of the renovation works which have left them with a choice of reduced capacity or in the round. 2 1/2 stars for me.
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4,559 posts
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Post by Mark on Feb 8, 2019 23:18:25 GMT
I did quite like this one this evening. It clocked in at three hours but didn’t feel overly long. I particularly liked the tap dance sequence. I imagine Chavkin’s vision for this is vastly different from what the original play was like, but it is very visually effective. I did struggle with some of the doubling ups of the characters and the seemingly “triple” casting of some roles. I didn’t know who was who at some points. I was side row M “restricted view” and found it fine to be honest. And toilet watch: those port-a-loos are better than the facilities in some west end theatres!
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Post by Boob on Feb 9, 2019 18:13:49 GMT
This was truly awful, tedious and dull. Is nowhere in the same league as the Lehman trilogy at all. It can’t decide whether to be a musical, a serious drama or a bit of both. Once again the Old Vic has staged this in the round for no apparent reason, it could have easily fitted on the vast Old Vic stage. It featured an enormous cast which added to the overall confusion as they seemed to be duplicating the main characters. I can’t see this selling out or even filling the theatre during its run. Another one here for who this didn't work and is the weakest Miller play I have ever seen: though this isn't to detract from the cast who work incredibly well with the material. As for why it is in the round, I believe it has been forced upon the Old Vic because of the renovation works which have left them with a choice of reduced capacity or in the round. 2 1/2 stars for me. Did you see Ressurection Blues at the same venue? That counts as one of my worst nights in the theatre ever.
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923 posts
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Post by Snciole on Feb 9, 2019 18:47:03 GMT
I got called by the Old Vic last week letting me know that my seat was now restricted view and I could either keep it or move. They moved me very easily and I am seeing it on Monday.
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Post by partytentdown on Feb 9, 2019 19:12:21 GMT
Can't decide whether to call out on this. Can I deal with 3 hours in the circle after reading these mediocre reviews or shall I go home and get a pizza
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4,458 posts
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Post by poster J on Feb 9, 2019 19:30:28 GMT
Can't decide whether to call out on this. Can I deal with 3 hours in the circle after reading these mediocre reviews or shall I go home and get a pizza I had a similar dilemma and decided on home (though I haven't actually left it today) and pizza, not feeling well enough to sit through 3 hours tonight.
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367 posts
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Post by MrBunbury on Feb 9, 2019 20:19:14 GMT
I saw it this afternoon and the three hours passed quickly. I liked it a lot, especially Golda Rosheuvel (always sublime), Ewan Wardrop and that adorable Fred Haig (may I order a copy on Amazon?). The musician are great too. My seat was unexpectedly in the front row after the change to a staging in the round.
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3,074 posts
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Post by david on Feb 9, 2019 22:40:38 GMT
I was also there this afternoon. I was sat in the Baylis Circle and for 3hrs wasn’t the most pleasant of experiences. By the end of Act 1, I was glad just to get out of there and stretch my legs and get some fresh air It didn’t help that it seemed very warm up there as well. If All my Sons is of a similar running time, I’m glad I’ve booked a stalls seat as I wouldn’t want to go through that again any time soon.
As for the play itself, I thought it was well done and an interesting examination of the impact of the Depression on people’s lives. The use of song and dance at different points during the show were the highlight for me. The band playing preshow was a nice touch to the proceeedings. Fred Haig dancing was a big plus. I was enjoy seeing a revolve in action on a stage and this certainly didn’t disappoint here.
As someone who also saw the Lehman Trilogy, I can definitely see the similarities between the two plays in terms of its staging Though I didn’t get as lost as to who was playing who with this one as I did with the LT so that’s another plus for this play for me.
The outside toilets weren’t an issue, though why FOH had buckets of sweets outside of them is a bit baffling. Though I must admit, I did take one or two.i mean it would of been rude not to as they are being offered.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 10, 2019 10:55:58 GMT
The outside toilets weren’t an issue, though why FOH had buckets of sweets outside of them is a bit baffling. Though I must admit, I did take one or two.i mean it would of been rude not to as they are being offered. I'm not sure I would take any sweets that were offered outside of toilets, seeing as many people don't wash their hands after going . . .
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Post by Deleted on Feb 10, 2019 21:59:32 GMT
I am never watching another Rachel Chavkin production. The double bassist in the band spent much of the play with his head hung down or fiddling with his bow. When the people on stage look so bored, what hope is there for the audience?
She fills the stage with too many people, it’s too busy. She has dance, but it’s really sloppily executed. Either cast people who can dance, or choreograph something simpler. She favours this old-timey aesthetic that I find very chintzy and dull. She does a ticker tape drop in the first ten minutes which makes the stage a mess for the rest of the play.
Did she double up solely so that the main characters could form the numbers on the clock at the end of the first act?
My ticket was £10 and I resented paying it. Left at the interval.
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587 posts
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Post by Polly1 on Feb 11, 2019 10:30:34 GMT
My first cold of the winter has made the decision for me about going tonight or not. I'm not. Ticket is on my phone so if anyone wants a free ticket in the stalls, drop me a PM and I'll send it over.
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1,465 posts
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Post by foxa on Feb 11, 2019 12:14:27 GMT
Oh dear. I'm there tonight. Great £10 tix in row J Stalls and I've never seen the play....I'm dragging Mr Foxa (pray for him.) Come say 'hi' at the interval, if you are there - you'll probably recognise me as the bespectacled woman trying to talk down an outraged husband.
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614 posts
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Post by jamb0r on Feb 11, 2019 13:56:47 GMT
I'm there tonight too - my £10 front stalls seat turned out to be restricted view so they've moved me to the stage seats. Based on these reports I'm now terrified I'm going to be in full view of hundreds of people being able to see me nodding off.
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Post by MrsCondomine on Feb 11, 2019 15:19:01 GMT
You also get some fairly dreadful southern accents from James Garnon Oh THAT'S where he's gone. He gets about, doesn't he, old Garnon. Last time I saw him in the Old Vic was in the EXCREBLE Much Ado.
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Post by raiseitup on Feb 11, 2019 16:24:54 GMT
Not well, and also gonna give this a miss today. 2 freebies in row C centre of the dress circle available if anyone wants them.
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