Barcelona - Duke of York's

I am there tomorrow night

Saw this tonight from the front row which as others have said is a real bargain for £25 (plus booking fee even for ATG+ members which ATG refused to refund!). Great view of the stage and legroom is good.

Thought both leads worked very well together and had great chemistry but Lily impressed me the most, she really is perfect casting for the role. The play itself is ok, nothing earth shattering but it’s entertaining enough and enjoyable.

How do I get my hands on one of these £25 front row seats?

I’ve had a similar response from ATG and they won’t budge. They cannot just unilaterally insert an implied term in their T&Cs to this effect. I know it’s a small amount but it’s just poor form from them.

Caught this last night and to be honest, this was a very average show, almost painfully average. I had read up about this play not getting the best write-ups when done in the States about ten years ago (I can see why), so found it odd to put it on in the West End, and with Lynette Linton directing. After watching her production of 'Shifters' (previous show at the Duke's) and was wondering if she could somehow elevate it to something better than what the US saw. Unfortunately, this was not the case.

To start off on some positive notes, the acting from the two leads was supridingly decent, for their West End debuts. As others on this thread have noted, the roles play to each actors' strengths, with Collins playing the ditzy American girl stereotype to a T, and Morte as the suave, yet tortured Spainard which is, yes, stereotypical, but he was engaging to watch. The set itself looked rather nice, as well as the use of shadows and silhouettes. But that's where all the positives end, I'm afraid.

Despite the decent acting and set, the biggest thing that brings this show down is the script. I'm sorry, it's just not very good. To me, it almost felt like it wanted to be a "fun night out" sort of show, but also have more to say with it's themes, which just end up feeling like they're coming out of left field, such as the discussions on Iraq and terrorism. It almost felt like Bess Wohl, the playwright, wanted to write a play that discussed these serious and, even taboo subjects, that could get people talking, before realising she had to write a script that could support these. It's a trend that I've seen with recent new plays (mostly with big names attached, like this), in which they want to be seen as more than they actually are, but still want to attact crowds that don't usually go to the theatre, or are looking for a good night out in London. It's almost the complete opposite of 'Shifters', which didn't try to be anything more than it was and instead it rellied on a well written and relatable script, along with some damn good acting.

The play also felt incredibly dated in places. I am aware that it's supposed to be set in 2009 (as well as written around that time), so there would be some references to things that were popular at the time, but even then all the references to Paris Hilton and Cameron Diaz didn't make the piece feel any less dated. You could definitely tell this was written in the late 2000s/early 2010s and not in a good way.

Overall, this play wasn't awful, but it wasn't very good either. For Linton's first proper foray into directing commercial theatre, it's unfortunately a miss. I hope whatever she directs next is smaller and more intimate, like 'Shifters', as I think that's where her strenghs lie. I know I've already compared this to 'Shifters' about two/three times now, but that show was too good to be followed up with this.

No, when I’ve looked at it before it’s just shown the countdown time until lottery opens… I’d keep the window open and refresh from 11.59am. Best of luck. They’ve not sold crazily fast in previous weeks so sure you’ll be fine.

Doubt it as the regular weekly lottery email was still sent.. this happened a few weeks ago, will probably refresh at 12pm!

Everything is crossed, 3 minutes to go.

Rejoining from the link in the email worked for me and I could access this week’s performances. Hope you got what you wanted phantom!

Oh no! Sorry to hear that 😟