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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 28, 2016 18:41:35 GMT
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 27, 2016 10:19:30 GMT
I think the only other thing I've seen him in was the James Plays, where I guess I was expecting the accent! Glaswegian is particularly good for bringing pompous people down a peg or two. ;-) Out of interest, does the school blackboard have a different word/drawing each show, or is it always a rabbit (krolik)?
I saw him in some things on TV and you can always bet there's Scottish accent on the menu
Seems to me it's always the same (judging on both our experiences & official pictures) and also half erased "съешь этих французских булок да выпей чаю" which got me in stitches 'cause it's a classic pangram for Russian version of Microsoft! ))) And the alphabet - it's not even complete lol...
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 26, 2016 18:16:37 GMT
Haha jean - made me smile! I do love the way Scottish accents sound Funnily enough I remember one critic said reviwing this in Chichester that "what a great idea to do Platonov with a strong scottish accent!" (or smth along similiar lines) and I thought, judging on other things I saw Mr mcArdle in "Well.. he doesn't seem to be able to hide it anyway" - he wasn't trying too hard here, was he? )) But I do like it that way as I said )
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 26, 2016 13:56:26 GMT
Platonov certainly is a charmer but it doesn't give him a right to act like a dick (that's the problem since everybody's ready to forgive him anything). I liked this play less than other two because I think it's unfinished, a bit clumsy, chaotic and too hysterical towards the end. But Act 1 is a total delight!
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 25, 2016 21:10:53 GMT
Alas, Jean! So glad to hear that! I was front stalls for all three and it started smelling even in early August.. I fear for the those who'll be front row at the final performance in October...
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 25, 2016 21:04:37 GMT
I've been doing it for 4,5 years now - rather surprised it's not widely known. TBH recording's quility (especially pre 2005) is very poor (not unlike V&A archive which has plenty of fab close-ups & 3 cam stuff), but it's better than nothing I suppose
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 23, 2016 19:22:14 GMT
Ha ha, I'm not sure I'd need to load a gun - I think my pulse might just stop from the overdose of boredom! Yes you're right, of course, these days Ivanov would be diagnosed with some type of depressive disorder. And I did try to care about him on that level. When Streatfeild addressed the audience directly I felt a better connection with what Ivanov might be experiencing. But the sense of dramatic inertia was just too strong in the many repetitive conversations with other characters. Maybe I should take Jan Brock's advice and see an original Chekhov. Mind you, I'll need a year or two to boost my Russian skills first! ;-)
No, you really shouldn't. You won't believe how gloomy it is staged here.. I mean no humour WHATSOEVER - just 'drama-drama can't you see it's high DRAMA'. But people here tend to like it for the reason I cannot explain. And if you will hear a person laughing during it you'd be told to shut up. Happened to me once (is wasn't Chekhov, 1900 in fact which is a tragic comedy for god's sake and it WAS funny!)
I love British productions of Russian classics (same with Three Days in The Country last year) that they try to bring up all the humour and at least give a bit of comic relief. As intentse as Ivanov is some scenes there are pure farce and I like it better that way.
I agree that Hamlet-like monologue Geoffrey gives front stage really benefits from him making eye contact with audience members. One line also is stuck in my head and just wouldn’t go away. Remember, in the heat of argument with an uninvited guest when he’s being accused of a race for the money and considering Anna’s fail to provide it he’s said to be in pursue of Sasha and her *possibly* generous dowry.. the look of disbelief on Ivanov’s face when he turns around and almost with the chuckle he replies: do you REALLY think human beings are THAT simple? I just wanted to say back to him: Oh, my poor dear Nikolay Alekseevich. Some people really are so simple you would not believe... Point is I can relate to a lot of things Chekhovian charaters are saying but I agree it's sometimes repetetive especially across Ivanov & Platonov.
Good luck with boosting your Russian! I admire you - must be hell (I do realise it's a very diffucult language to learn). Do you mind me asking is it for business purposes or just sport?
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 23, 2016 14:02:41 GMT
Jean, I wonder what would happen if you decided to do three play day lol) They might have driven you to the point that you'd rather get your gun loaded than continue ))
I understand what you are talking about.. Sometimes I think Chekhovian charaters kill themselves just out of boredom.. It could seem they do not know the REAL suffering. As for Ivanov I do believe in this days and age he would be diagnosed with mild (or majoy) depressive disodrer.. and Streadfeild's performance made me feel sympathy towards him. Anna obviously is a victim, a cusualty, and I thought Sasha was less likable than in the book but I enjoyed Olivia playing her with dominant tone as she drugged Nikolay into the relationship he never intended to have.
Yes, "superfluous man" was more related to the middle 19th century literature.
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 22, 2016 23:16:03 GMT
Sorry to hear that, jean.. I guess you either relate to it or you don't.. I felt so strongly and emotionally about all three (esp Seagull and Ivanov), but I can't explain exactly what you are missing - it's just there waiting to be discovered. Or not.
Gonna give Platonov a try?
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 19, 2016 17:03:20 GMT
I've sat in the arcade (Row L) which overheads the Stalls nicely and curves which will get you a closer view than from the back of the Stalls. Also single seats on both sides of stairs coming down to the stage (sometimes not sold though) are good but I don't remember whether they are sold for the top price or lower.
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 19, 2016 11:47:26 GMT
Went past the Theatre in early August 2 hours before matinee (11 a.m., show strats at 1 p.m. on Sunday), saw returns Q formed of approx 15 people already in line.
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 18, 2016 10:47:13 GMT
This is where the things go terribly wrong.. when the acclaimed star of an actor utters a WISH to play big part like Hamlet and directors/producers start fighting about getting him on board of their ship. Or worse - when he chooses one himself and the rest is just built around this "wish". asn't it the case with Benedict's Hamlet? And we ended up with a disaster.
What heppened to the good old times when director together with casting director or whatever decided on the best actor to fulfill the part?
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 15, 2016 19:16:13 GMT
How was it different please? To be honest, from the text, the way t's written it's unclear whether Konstantin doing it as a hasty decision or is it rational. I loved how it this production it's obvious that his suicide is not an act of mementum madness - he is both preparing for it and prepared.
I was prepared for it practically the minute he walked on stage. It was the two hours of utter tedium in between that almost made me weep. And no, unfortunately I missed SRB's take on it. I think it's possible Chekhov just isn't for me. Uncle Vanya has never really grabbed me either. (Though I did like Amanda Hale very much in the otherwise weak St James' version.) I'll see how I fare with Ivanov and Platonov though. Got the tickets, might as well give it a chance!
Well.. Chekhov is like that. There's always a gunshot to look forward to and it's easy to calculate the victum. For me it's more about the smaller things in the relationships that really get under my skin and make me think. Or feel. Or both if production is good.
Just out of curiousity - have you seen the recent Days & Night film as a sort of re-imagined The Seagull with Mark Rylance and Ben Whishaw? I fell in love with it at instant even though I know I migh be in the minority as it was a big BO flop..
Anyway, hope you'll enjoy the other two! Looking forward to your feedback
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 15, 2016 18:07:10 GMT
Oh dear, whereas I positively welcomed it, I'm afraid. I was so bored at this, I actually found myself wishing I'd taken the bullet for the seabird in part 1. Did you see Simon Russell Beale do the ending, Jean? A while back, never to be forgotten, heartbreaking stuff.
How was it different please? To be honest, from the text, the way t's written it's unclear whether Konstantin doing it as a hasty decision or is it rational. I loved how it this production it's obvious that his suicide is not an act of mementum madness - he is both preparing for it and prepared.
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 15, 2016 14:49:19 GMT
George, great news, thanks for sharing!
Does anyone of you guys know if the original Mischief gang will be returning with PPGW in October or it will be different cast?
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 15, 2016 11:15:27 GMT
Theatremonkey, yes, it certainly was on the matinee I attended. {Spoiler - click to view} But not as loud as reaction on "dirty Jew!" line in Chekhov's Ivanov the day after.
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 14, 2016 18:09:09 GMT
I like what Tom Hardy said once asked on method and other types of acting and which he prefers to use. His answer was: "There's only two types of acting - convincing and non-convincing." I can't agree more - it is *that* simple. I don't really care how an actor gets to the state when he makes his performance believable for me as a member of the audience as long as I can feel it.
Thanks for the articles - would be interesting to read.
And I can't say I see actors cry at curtain calls a lot. Just special occasions - last nights, standing ovation for understudy, etc.
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 13, 2016 15:15:04 GMT
I'm doing the three in a day soon..any recommendations on eating, pacing, jelly baby quota?
I'd say be prepared that entire downstairs space (Kitchen) is busy since everyone hang out there (including actors, which is a nice bonus) so if you'd like a place to eat there - be quick. I image House is also pretty much full but not sure - not for fancy food myself. 15min Queue to ice-cream/ pizza van outside too.
I'd recommend to get as much fresh air as possible - times really does fly in between shows. As I found Ivanov emotionally draining first 40 mins after I just wanted to get me a gun.. but I managed to recover before The Seagull which I most happy about as it's glorious.
Have fun!
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 13, 2016 14:32:33 GMT
And if there's still ANY award with The Best Ensemble Cast nod, Young Chekhov season most certainly should have one.
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 13, 2016 14:29:19 GMT
Ryan, probably by the end of it all you will be glad for an early start. We really NEED this 1,5 break between each )
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 11, 2016 7:18:58 GMT
Lots of familiar faces during Chekhov press night, most memorably John Heffernan (who - I was pleased to know - was enjoying the journey!) and Bill Nighy (though he probably was there to see another show - Deep Blue Sea).
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Post by rumbledoll on Aug 10, 2016 22:17:32 GMT
Saw it as a threee-play-day on August, 3 (front row, dead center - how lucky is that?) Didn't feel nothing like a press night - such warm welcomes, stading ovation and the entire cast and crew at the curtain call after Seagull!
I found this experience fascinating - a bit tiring and overwhelming as it is but a great idea as these plays explore the similar topics and shared cast (which could not be better!) is a gem as you see them change in redically different characters in course of 1,5 hours.
Platonov (especially Act 1) is a joy, getting a bit more melodramatic as you wish for towards the end - a lot cut out from the original text and rightfully so - nobody needs these extra 12 unnecessary characters. It gets clumsy at times as Chekhov is only finding his voice as this point but still very strong piece of writing. James McArdle found a perfect pitch for his part which is likable and unlikable at the same time. Female support is all good.
Ivanov was probably my favourite. Geoffrey Streatfeild. Blimey. What a powerful performsnce! I felt absolutely exhasted by the end of it so i can't even begin to imagine the effort put into fleshing this charater out 'cause it might be the most difficult and controversial of the bunch. Tatally compelling and disturbingly beautiful. Loved how physical (body language spot on) and nuanced it was. Some funny bits too, ever briefly elevated to farce. You can see how the writing has grown over the years with The Seagull full of meaty interesting charaters. Anna Chancellor is hilarious to say the least and they form a great comedy couple with Geoffrey Streatfeild who became the different person altogether since we last saw him. Amazing delivery by Olivia Vinall at the end - never saw it played that fierce. The other standout for me was Nina Sosanya (who was in the first two shows).
Set is gorgeous an evocative of the quiet countryside at home. I don't know it if have to be fully-blood Russian to tuly appreciate these productions (not the biggest fan of Chekhov and it is hardly done with so much humour here which is a shame) but I felt in love with them. When it's staged as it is - not a dusty period Eastern drama but a study in tortured youth and human banality which is ever relavant it shines.
And yes, agree that Chekhov is a bot like Shakespeare in a way you can interpret his characters in a million various ways and make them extremely personal still stay truthful to the text.
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 29, 2016 7:09:09 GMT
I have tickets for Ivanov and Platonov too. Should I just cut my losses now, I wonder? How did this get raves at Chichester? The dialogue is clunky, a lot of the acting is clunky. I had to smile at Kostya bemoaning how overwrought his writing was. This whole darn play is overwrought, love.
If you have this sort of reaction to Seagull, the other two (from the writing point if view) are more uncooked if you let me put in that way. Platonov is Chekhov's first play (written at the age of 18) and is a bit wordy and he gets carried away (I dunno probably David Hare did wonders with the text). And Ivanov is basically about a "whiny Russian chap" as Ryan said - spot on. Though I see some interesting psycological portrait (if played well) and would go for Geoffrey Streatfeild alone. But you might want to skip this one.
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 28, 2016 21:01:19 GMT
Watching The Seagull tonight. Annoying people being annoying and annoying each other. Can't decide whether to grab the gun from Kostya and put myself out of my misery, or borrow a line from a chap down the road and yell it out loud: 'there are children in Africa starving to death and you don't hear them whinging.' That's Chekhov for you, Jean! I hope they at least preserved some humour of the original text.. There was humour. Promise!
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 28, 2016 20:58:52 GMT
Snapped a front row seat for the press-night next week. There were more avail. Some critics might have read posts here and decided against attending
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 28, 2016 14:04:21 GMT
Haha thanks for the tip, Ryan! Should work just fine!
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 28, 2016 12:45:37 GMT
If they could release the announcement in the morning of the performance day it could work too. Or they could simply schedule the alternations so that Richard has evening perf every other day, Fox - matinees and some evenings, etc. I mean I know productions are not about actors (only) and I know I'm in the minority here (who have to squeeze a number of shows in a week - every night is precious and choices are plenty), still it's a bit disappointing.. I could watch it at home in the cinema (with Madden).. I do understand why they can't state very long in advance who'll be on. But are they really not saying until you arrive at the theatre who you'll see that night? Even as late as lunchtime, if I was keeping an eye out for an announcement I could book a seat for the same night if the actor I wanted to see was on... I haven't tried this yet but I might call BO on Aug 2 'cause this is the only chance to see it for me. I'll report back if I manage to get any info. Will enter the lottery too - who knows how lucky one could get And if anyone going before Aug 2 pls keep us posted.
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 28, 2016 11:57:11 GMT
Sorry it it was asked before (can't find the strenght to scroll this overwhelming amount of pages) but how Friday Forty work exactly? Is there a button BOOK appear when countdown reaches 0 on this page? www.harrypottertheplay.com/ticket-information/Then what - you click and wait if the system considers you lucky today and let you proceed to actual choice of the date and buying process? Many thanks!
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 28, 2016 11:39:13 GMT
I believe in a sitiation as unusual as this it's wrong of the company not to issue some sort of schedule for Madden/ Fox performances. It only increases the amount of unhappy public (they once who booked many months in advance to see the original chap and the ones who now would love to catch Freddie and coulnd not care less for Madden - like me ) I see your personal issue, but isn't the problem that it's impossible to schedule Richard Madden in advance because he's indisposed with his ankle and his performances depend on the strength of his recovery, day by day? If they could release the announcement in the morning of the performance day it could work too. Or they could simply schedule the alternations so that Richard has evening perf every other day, Fox - matinees and some evenings, etc. I mean I know productions are not about actors (only) and I know I'm in the minority here (who have to squeeze a number of shows in a week - every night is precious and choices are plenty), still it's a bit disappointing.. I could watch it at home in the cinema (with Madden)..
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Post by rumbledoll on Jul 28, 2016 8:55:38 GMT
I believe in a sitiation as unusual as this it's wrong of the company not to issue some sort of schedule for Madden/ Fox performances. It only increases the amount of unhappy public (they once who booked many months in advance to see the original chap and the ones who now would love to catch Freddie and coulnd not care less for Madden - like me )
Tried twitting - to no aval. Anyone tried calling up the BO and simply ask?
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