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Post by iamian on Aug 8, 2018 8:41:54 GMT
Reminder Theatre And particularly the WE Is not a charitable institution Designed to respond to the personal tastes and fantasies and whims of the forum Thriller is presumably still running at a very good profit Which is why it is still there The two shows you mentioned Will likely not be a guaranteed success in the WE anyway And it doesn’t make sense to close a profitable show For an unknown risk So I’m not allowed to object to it? I’m not allowed a personal preference? I didn’t ask to see it’s accounts, merely stated that I think it’s clogging up a valuable site. (But thanks ever so for the lecture...) It's not 'clogging up a vaulable site' it is delivering what west end theatres need, which is a popular show with people buying tickets. That is the purpose of theatres, thats why shows that dont sell close. Thriller is a valuable show that is keeping a valuable site running. It's also keeping lots of performers, tech people, musicians and theatre staff employed.
Just because its not for you doesnt mean it isnt for anyone and the elitism and snobbery that this show brings out in some people is rather unpleasant.
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Post by iamian on Jul 10, 2018 8:53:56 GMT
Suggesting The Play That Goes Wrong as something that is 'funny but not farce' is as opposite as you can get. TPTGW is an unfunny farce!
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Post by iamian on Jun 19, 2018 13:38:56 GMT
'Lance Armstrong: The Musical' won it that year
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Post by iamian on Feb 20, 2018 10:06:12 GMT
Saw the show last night from row D of the Grand Circle and whilst the view was fine the leg room for a refurbished theatre was criminal. My wife is 5'5" and really struggled and I am 6'2"...
I went in totally cold having deliberately not read reviews or listened to the soundtrack and I was slightly underwhelmed. The show is a lot less elaborate than I expected with fairly simple staging. Lighting is simple but effective and the costumes are great. My problem with it was that I had zero emotional connection to the characters so when the sad stuff happens I just didnt buy in. The only part that touched me was Dear Theodosia but I think that is mainly because have a 5 month old baby.
The audience were very 'fan girly' with lots of squealing and laughing too quickly and loudly at the jokes. The 'Immingrants, we get the job done' line was met with a massive whoop and cheer which felt really unnatural. People clearly were waiting for the line and, as it's not a big moment within the show, it feels like it doesnt warrant that reaction.
Is the show good, yes, it's fresh, energetic and different but I wouldn't sell the family silver for a ticket.
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Post by iamian on Nov 9, 2017 11:29:35 GMT
Possibly - traditionally producers have had to pay a "no interval fee" to the theatre owner, to make up for the lost revenue. Knowing Bill Kenwright, it wouldn't surprise me if he opted to put the interval in to avoid paying this. Could equally be due to disturbance from people re-entering the auditorium after going to the toilet, or perhaps not even being re-admitted full stop. Basically, I don't know I guarantee you that it is ATG having a no interval penalty clause and BKL not wanting to pay it
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Post by iamian on Sept 6, 2017 13:01:14 GMT
I absolutely understand that Punchdrunk (and immersive theatre in general) isn't for everyone. You have to be up for it otherwise you won't enjoy that kind of performance. Personally, Punchdrunk shows are like being in another world for a few hours. I allow myself to completely dive into the experience. I know none of the performers wil ever force me to do anything I find embarrassing. The beauty in Punchdrunk shows is they won't force anyone to do anything at all - if you want to so nothing but watch then that is what you can do. Obviously in this new show a certain element pf participation will be required. It's different than shows like Sleep No More or The Drowned Man. There was talk about an idea called Punchdrunk Travel a few years ago which sounded fascinating. This actually feels like it might be a first incarnation of that idea. I think this sounds like it will be a similar format to their Silverpoint thing that happened last year. That took place over a week or so and involved getting phone calls, texts and going to certain places in London to have have "experiences" relating to the story and ended up with a 15/20 minute fully immersive experience (an initiation ceremony for a cult with hooded robes and naked dancing). I think it will be that kind of thing but much more intense as it is over 6 hours rather than a week.
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Post by iamian on Aug 18, 2017 12:02:47 GMT
I saw both parts last week and the oddest thing was that for a 5 1/2 hour play the ending seemed rushed and not thought out. It leaves huge questions (and not in a good way) and ignores what I felt was the central concept in the whole play. the entire last half hour could be cut as it feels irrelevant to the rest of the story.
Its an interseting premise with a huge and obvious debt to The Handmaids Tale and there are some impresive performances, especially Erin Doherty. I wouldnt rush to see it at the Old Vic but if you're passing and have 5 1/2 hours to kill then drop in.
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Post by iamian on Jul 21, 2017 11:42:43 GMT
After his adaptation of Woyzeck I assume he will take out all the ghosts and Scrooge will be bad tempered because of a childhood trauma.
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Post by iamian on Jul 11, 2017 9:58:52 GMT
Will Merrick is wasted (not in the Skins sense). He definitely isn't going to be wasted (in either sense) in the play he is doing at Theatre503 in August: boom
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Post by iamian on May 22, 2017 8:04:12 GMT
I'm pretty sure the Berlin Wall wasn't made of wood and insulation. It would have been a more interesting set if they had been Berlin Wall-like panels. and it is not 'fairly faithful to the original'
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Post by iamian on May 19, 2017 16:11:44 GMT
It doesn't (but go and see it for a tenner!)
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Post by iamian on May 16, 2017 11:03:00 GMT
My issue with it is that Thorne's filling in of the many blanks contained in Buchner's original unfinished play - basically just short scenes and scene fragments - actually reduces the universality of the piece, stripping it of much of its primal power. We almost know too much about this Woyzeck - he's no longer the downtrodden Everyman, he's too specific for that. The play now feels like a strong and affecting domestic tragedy - not the elemental portrait of society's permanent underclass that emerges from Buchner. Very well put and my other issue is {Spoiler - click to view}by removing the Drum Major character, the scene where he sees Marie & the drum major dancing together and all suggestions of Marie's infidelity, it changes his fear that she will leave him from something that's real and that he is powerless to prevent to something that's just in his head (and the pills just make it worse)
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Post by iamian on May 16, 2017 9:58:36 GMT
I have to disagree, I think it is a terrible adaptation of the play and the second half in particular is a mess. I went in there knowing the story and think that some of the central ideas of the play and has been removed/ignored. The sex scene and language don't really need to be as strong as they are. The set starts to get interesting and then doesn't do what I thought it was going to do which was disappointing. Performances are all fine, John Boyega is good (though his madness did stray a little towards Gollum territory) and it was in pretty good shape for a first performance. Most of the audience did seem very enthused by it at the end though and it was a young and diverse audience which is great. I imagine this will be a dividing play. The people behind me were confused as to what they were watching for 2.5 hours and didn't seem to enjoy much of the direction either. Personally, I would happily go again. I agree, I was confused watching it because I was expecting to see certain scenes and characters that are central to the original but that were missing from this version.
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Post by iamian on May 16, 2017 9:37:53 GMT
Running time is 2 1/2 hours including interval (we were out just before 10)
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Post by iamian on May 16, 2017 9:37:01 GMT
I have to disagree, I think it is a terrible adaptation of the play and the second half in particular is a mess. I went in there knowing the story and think that some of the central ideas of the play and has been removed/ignored. The sex scene and language don't really need to be as strong as they are. The set starts to get interesting and then doesn't do what I thought it was going to do which was disappointing. Performances are all fine, John Boyega is good (though his madness did stray a little towards Gollum territory) and it was in pretty good shape for a first performance.
Most of the audience did seem very enthused by it at the end though and it was a young and diverse audience which is great.
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Post by iamian on May 2, 2017 15:36:01 GMT
Considering what happens to him and his subsequent actions, it could be said that the reason behind what he does is PTSD (though there are more obvious reasons for it in his wife's behaviour)
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Post by iamian on Apr 28, 2017 16:22:17 GMT
OMG you totally would have tried to get the Sex Pistols banned! and calling him 'low life' is starting to stray into some rather unpleasant territory... I don't know about you but women haters and homophobic people are low-life in my opinion... I'm not sure that your opinion of him is based on the most in depth knowledge of him as an artist or a person. I only know a few of his songs but in the last 10 minutes I've struggled to find homophobic or misogynistic lyrics on his Mercury Prize winning album
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Post by iamian on Apr 28, 2017 16:04:42 GMT
As the kids say "Mic drop" As a teacher do you think we should be encouraging children to listen to people like Skepta? OMG you totally would have tried to get the Sex Pistols banned! and calling him 'low life' is starting to stray into some rather unpleasant territory...
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Post by iamian on Apr 28, 2017 15:40:47 GMT
I don't think anyone is seriously saying that Shakespeare shouldn't be reinterpreted and reworked but, when you have spent years(and millions of pounds) recreating an authentic Elizabethan theatre maybe that isn't the place for radical reworking of the plays. London is not short of venues where that type of production would fit. There is the Young Vic, the Barbican, the Almeida and the West End for those kind of productions and if a new production attracts a younger audience then that will lead to them seeking out more traditional productions. The Globe was built as a traditional space and people went to a huge amount of effort and expense to give people an authentic experience.
Also, don't sneer at a younger generations music, it makes you sound like someone from the local council talking about the Sex Pistols in the 70's. I am not Skepta's audience but lyrically I think he is interesting and is speaking for a group of kids that I have no direct contact with but I'd be more interested in his take on Romeo & Juliet than this one
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Post by iamian on Mar 1, 2017 14:04:39 GMT
I'm amazed that they got the rights to do it. This looks very 'grand rights-y' to me and I would have thought the official show would have had the rights all tied up.
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Post by iamian on Feb 3, 2017 9:52:08 GMT
Morgana Robinson could do the rest of the run
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Post by iamian on Jul 22, 2016 11:09:16 GMT
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