102 posts
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Post by pws on Sept 1, 2023 9:49:15 GMT
I was there Tuesday.
Some of the things people had complained before about did not seem to happen, or rather, if they did I did not notice.
No silly giggling. In fact, a very full audience, very respectful, mostly a standing ovation at the end. The only annoyance was phones going off, but that is everywhere.
Some parts of it were quite wonderful, but it seemed to drag a bit in the middle. The last ten minutes or so were quite magical.
The programme was excessively expensive for what it is.
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Post by thistimetomorrow on Sept 1, 2023 10:28:04 GMT
I'm glad I finally saw Andrew Scott on stage, but wish I had seen him in something else.
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Post by teamyali on Sept 1, 2023 13:36:31 GMT
Awards buzz is growing with the glowing reviews of Andrew’s film, All of Us Strangers, which is currently screening at Telluride Film Festival (which is one of the most important venues of Oscar-bait films this autumn season, the other two being Venice and Toronto). All of Us Strangers is directed by Andrew Haigh and also starring Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell, and Claire Foy.
Andrew Scott’s Uncle Vanya is getting divisive reviews so far, and I don’t know if it’s even a good idea to act out all characters of an entire play/book (I’m curious how Sarah Snook will pull this off with Dorian Gray) all on your own (well, there was Ben Daniels who played all the men in Medea earlier this year, but he was opposite Sophie Okonedo, while Jodie Comer’s Prima Facie was a new work in the UK and Broadway and not based on classics). Regardless on Uncle Vanya’s reception, I hope Andrew’s latest film success will do wonders too. If he’s lucky, he could be nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars, a rare feat for openly gay actors.
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Post by rumtom on Sept 1, 2023 15:57:06 GMT
Awards buzz is growing with the glowing reviews of Andrew’s film, All of Us Strangers, which is currently screening at Telluride Film Festival (which is one of the most important venues of Oscar-bait films this autumn season, the other two being Venice and Toronto). All of Us Strangers is directed by Andrew Haigh and also starring Paul Mescal, Jamie Bell, and Claire Foy. Andrew Scott’s Uncle Vanya is getting divisive reviews so far, and I don’t know if it’s even a good idea to act out all characters of an entire play/book (I’m curious how Sarah Snook will pull this off with Dorian Gray) all on your own (well, there was Ben Daniels who played all the men in Medea earlier this year, but he was opposite Sophie Okonedo, while Jodie Comer’s Prima Facie was a new work in the UK and Broadway and not based on classics). Regardless on Uncle Vanya’s reception, I hope Andrew’s latest film success will do wonders too. If he’s lucky, he could be nominated for Best Actor at the Oscars, a rare feat for openly gay actors. Medea has been a favourite this year. Ben Daniels was excellent - although he only had to worry about being 3 characters and he had a nice slow motion walk to contemplate, and then transition into the next one. I hadn't heard of All Of Us Strangers, so thanks for bringing it to my attention. I've just been reading about it - a rave review in The Guardian - and lots of other positive feedback around too. I'll add it to my list of films I one day hope to watch! |
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Post by mattnyc on Sept 1, 2023 22:30:39 GMT
I was there Tuesday. Some of the things people had complained before about did not seem to happen, or rather, if they did I did not notice. No silly giggling. In fact, a very full audience, very respectful, mostly a standing ovation at the end. The only annoyance was phones going off, but that is everywhere. Some parts of it were quite wonderful, but it seemed to drag a bit in the middle. The last ten minutes or so were quite magical. The programme was excessively expensive for what it is. How much are programmes? |
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1,470 posts
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Post by mkb on Sept 1, 2023 22:48:10 GMT
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Post by mattnyc on Sept 1, 2023 22:55:20 GMT
Thanks. That’s about “normal” for one of them, now. Sadly. |
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Post by rumtom on Sept 2, 2023 3:22:29 GMT
Thanks. That’s about “normal” for one of them, now. Sadly. I don't mind paying £5 or £6 for a programme with interesting and thoughtful content in but half the programmes these days are a few photos of the rehearsals with a list of the actor's previous work. If there's some original content in a programme they can be really informative and sightly better value for money. Especially if they take the time to actually write about the production, or interviews with actors; thoughts of the production team; relevant historical context if relevant etc . I find the RSC programmes a good example of how to do it properly. |
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Post by mattnyc on Sept 2, 2023 4:35:37 GMT
And I’ve noticed so many are now like 70% ads and, well that REALLY upsets me. I’ll spend £6 on one but give me something that I won’t be finished reading by the time I find my seat.
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Post by solotheatregoer on Sept 2, 2023 11:32:18 GMT
Seeing this next month. Any insight on set design?
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1,254 posts
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Post by theatrelover123 on Sept 2, 2023 13:09:45 GMT
Seeing this next month. Any insight on set design? Yes. I saw it last night. I can confirm that it has a set. |
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5,795 posts
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Post by mrbarnaby on Sept 2, 2023 14:30:26 GMT
Seeing this next month. Any insight on set design? Yes. I saw it last night. I can confirm that it has a set. Helpful reply. Looking at a photo on insta- it looks like a rehearsal room with a curtain at the back? All pale wood and furniture..? And just as uninspiring as that sounds. |
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10 posts
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Post by teenangel on Sept 2, 2023 15:10:22 GMT
Saw this last night, and was sadly thoroughly disappointed.
Simultaneously not much going on, whilst also being cluttered and clumsy.
I think Andrew Scott is a terrific performer, but I was left wondering what the show would be like with a different actor in the role.
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Post by Forrest on Sept 2, 2023 17:11:55 GMT
teenangel , we were part of the same audience. I think Andrew Scott is incredibly talented, and truly wonderful on stage, and he was wonderful in this too, but somehow the thing I kept thinking while watching this was: Why? What exactly is/was the point of this? If it is to show off what a versatile performer he is, then there are hundreds of other ways to do it. If it is something else, I guess I just couldn't see it. I would rather have seen the play from Vanya's perspective, than this. I have great respect for Simon Stephens, and I think he is a really talented author, but this just didn't work for me. It left me baffled.
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Post by alessia on Sept 3, 2023 18:19:38 GMT
I think I'm in agreement with the majority here, this is all about Andrew Scott's talent and it clearly attracted his fans, and I enjoyed watching him for a couple of hours- but I wonder how many in the audience understood what was going on, only based on this and not knowing anything about Uncle Vanya. I've seen the play before and even I found it a bit confusing.I don't regret seeing it but I must say it left me cold. Enraptured audience though!
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Post by justfran on Sept 10, 2023 19:09:31 GMT
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1,502 posts
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Post by foxa on Sept 11, 2023 16:14:56 GMT
It is a good interview (liked the disussion about standing ovations!) and reminded me of another time I saw Andrew Scott onstage: Birdland! Quite a strange piece. He doesn't settle for easy.
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307 posts
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Post by jm25 on Sept 11, 2023 16:26:47 GMT
I’ve just won the U30 £10 lottery for this Friday’s performance. I’d assumed I hadn’t been successful as they’ve left it rather last minute! Based on what others in this thread have said, I’m not quite sure this will be quite my cup of tea - but I’m hoping at the very least I’ll enjoy the performance!
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1,502 posts
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Post by foxa on Sept 11, 2023 20:01:00 GMT
jm25 - for £10 I would not hesitate for even a nanosecond! IMO, it doesn't hurt to know the plot of Uncle Vanya so if you have time, you might read a short synopsis. Enjoy!
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307 posts
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Post by jm25 on Sept 11, 2023 20:44:09 GMT
jm25 - for £10 I would not hesitate for even a nanosecond! IMO, it doesn't hurt to know the plot of Uncle Vanya so if you have time, you might read a short synopsis. Enjoy! Thank you! I absolutely agree. And if anything, I’m going to read as detailed a plot summary as possible - I think I’ll need it! |
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307 posts
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Post by jm25 on Sept 15, 2023 21:03:25 GMT
Well, this was a bit of a mixed bag for me. I read the plot in a lot of detail beforehand and was glad I did because I'd have been hopelessly, hopelessly lost otherwise. Even the name changes took a while to get used to!
It was engaging enough all throughout, which I suppose is an achievement in itself for a one man performance. But, like others, the main question I was left with was just... why? Nothing about the plot or direction suggested any great need to cut out the other actors, so I'm struggling to work out what the motivation was.
Andrew Scott is really good but it's not the kind of one-man performance that brings the house down in the way that Jodie Comer did in Prima Facie or Jack Holden did in Cruise. He plays each role very well but if I have one criticism it's that there's not quite enough of a distinction between some of the characters. So, again, you probably need to be reasonably familiar with the text to follow it.
The script is the other main positive. Even when going into plays blind, I can usually tell if a text has had the language modernised, especially from translation, as it's such a hard thing to do and (in my experience) so rarely done well. In fairness to this, I thought it was modernised extremely well - so full credit to Simon Stephens. Interestingly, although the playtext splits up all the individual roles rather than presenting them as a monologue, it contains very clear instructions that it's meant to be performed by a single actor. I'd be far more interested in seeing this version done with a full ensemble.
All in all, worth seeing - but once is definitely enough. 3 stars.
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Post by theoracle on Sept 16, 2023 12:37:53 GMT
Saw it during the Richmond run and thought I left my thoughts. Hmmm, it’s a little self indulgent but when you’re as charming and talented as Andrew Scott, you can just about get away with it. Stephens captures Chekhov’s humour very well and clearly plenty of laughs throughout the show. The pathos doesn’t transmit as well though but I do think the scene changes and the character switched work well I thought. It’s. 3 stars piece but will give an extra half for Andrew Scott and another half for Andrew Scott taking his shirt off, so a 4.
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Post by sfsusan on Sept 16, 2023 21:01:25 GMT
I have no idea how to rate this. Probably 4 stars for Andrew Scott's performance and 3 stars for the overall production. I really should have read a synopsis of Uncle Vanya before going.
And I have a question.... when Scott enters, he puts a water bottle by the 'doorway' at the rear of the stage.
Then goes to the sink and twinkles at the audience as he plays with the stage and house lights. Is this the actor or a character, and why is he doing this?
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47 posts
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Post by pauln on Sept 17, 2023 0:01:54 GMT
I saw this yesterday evening and I thoroughly enjoyed it. I wasn’t too familiar with Uncle Vanya so I was a little confused at times. To those who have yet to see the show, I’d recommend read the synopsis and remember who the different characters are. This was my first time seeing Andrew Scott perform and his performance was stunning. I’d book another ticket just to watch his acting choices once more.
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Post by theatre22 on Sept 18, 2023 11:40:49 GMT
Is this still running at 1hr 50mins? The website says it is 100mins. Trying to work out if I can see the 7pm show and get to another one round the corner that starts at 9pm!
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