The Hills of California - Harold Pinter Theatre

I’m hardly surprised. The RC programming in recent years has been woeful. And clearly it’s not just Jez who feels this given their nearly non-existent box office takings and terrible current financial position as recently reported.

The word on the grapevine is that the new AD has recently made the whole literary department redundant which seems an odd move for a theatre whose mission statement is all about new writing. But maybe he has some clever plan to woo back good writers like Jez…

Specifically on this play and its journey, I think Sonia Friedman used The Ferryman as a test for audience appetite for a new Jez Butterworth play after Jerusalem regardless of casting. When Jerusalem was previewing at the Royal Court they literally couldn’t give tickets away - a 3+ hr show about a lout in a caravan with an actor whose name meant nothing at the time to Joe Public. Even after its huge West End (x2) and Broadway success they couldn’t know if it was Mark Rylance who had become a star, and Jez Butterworth had remained relatively more niche.

Of course it turned out Jerusalem had indeed made a star of Jez too and The Ferryman became the fastest ever selling show at the Royal Court with the transfer announced almost immediately. So this time around they knew Jez was enough (Sam Mendes’ name doesn’t hurt either!) to launch it without a run at a subsidised theatre to build the appetite and get the reviews first.

Oh do f*** off. Sorry, sph . I don’t mean it. But really.

Don't suppose someone could gift the Times article could they please?

Not sure if this works. www.thetimes.co.uk/article/9382a2d0-54fc-442b-93d0-762514a16652?shareToken=eea4b9da4b1fd2e955b20baa7e53281f

When are the press in for this?

Another one of the SatMat crowd here, mid stalls did not notice a helicopter but did spot the enormous protest happening one street over whilst entering the theatre, bit of drama before you've even started.

It's a fantastic play, really enjoyed it. Acts 1 and 2 are stronger than Act 3 in terms of impact, I think I was expecting a bit more plot to occur towards the end than what we got, but I'm not complaining too hard. Laura Donnelly was terrific, and as others have pointed out it's great to see a play centring around women, sisters, mothers. I wondered if it actually fails the reverse Bechdel test, to make a nice change. Definitely one to see.

A very good play but I think it falls short of being great. Jez Butterworth is not a writer blessed with real intellectual depth, and yet he can make that feel irrelevant with his big strengths of energy and atmosphere. The Hills of California isn't as vital as Mojo, Jerusalem or The Ferryman.

Partially that's because this feels like a mish-mash of things we've seen before, and sometimes seen before once or twice too often.

It takes a little too long to get going and then when Laura Donnelly shows up again towards the end you feel it should kick into top gear and it doesn't quite get there.

I would have liked the grown-up Joan to appear earlier and to be more reflective, she was the character who had the potential to give the play oomph.

It's amusing but not hilarious, touching but not emotive, inventive but not inspired.

It's still going to be one of the best new plays of the year and a must-see for any serious playgoer. At 54, and without being prolific, maybe Jez Butterworth will have one more big play in him, maybe not. It's a young man's game.

Slightly disappointed in this. I think we've seen the family dynamics and characters before but the overall quality of performances was excellent. I also felt Act 3 lacked pace and I questioned the behaviour of one sister which seemed inconsistent with previous acts. Partisan audience who seemed to find laughter in many of the lines.

I had been avoiding this thread until I was in myself, glad I can finally read the discussion. Definitely agree with the consensus so far, really enjoyed this (actually preferred it to Jerusalem) and thought the acting was terrific.

amp.theguardian.com/stage/2024/feb/08/the-hills-of-california-review-jerusalem-jez-butterworth-harold-pinter-theatre-london

3-star Arifa back at it. Surely this is becoming a joke now?

3 stars in the Independent too. 4 and 5 stars elsewhere 

Oh, please. I'm 73 and perfectly capable of putting my phone on silent, or DND, or airplane mode or even turning the darn thing off to prevent it from bothering people (including myself). And I'm not unique among my friends.
(My pet peeve is smart watches that spring to life with every movement of someone's arm.)