A Mirror - Almeida / Trafalgar Theatre

What with the Almeida's original production, watching her stoop to conquer recently at the Orange Tree and now this transfer, it's been a bit of a stagey year for wild-eyed Tanya Reynolds

Opens tonight, Today Tix have rush tickets (on the app only).

Another irritating example of me buying early (£60) instead of waiting for the inevitable discount (£15) a month later.

I should probably x-post this to the bad behaviour thread but I’m not sure if the audience were plants so I’ll keep it here until someone who saw it at the Almeida can chime in. All credit to the production’s ability to create a heightened sense of alienation. I still don’t know if a bunch of people in the circle had never been to the theatre before, or if they were poorly behaved teenagers. There was a lot of cat-calling during the ‘sex scene’, raucous laughter in a lot of odd places and gasping when anyone swore. And then cries of ‘free Adem’ at the end. Do they always abort the sex scene? We’ve often found the audience at the Trafaglar to be a bit younger than the typical west end theatre and it was very noticeable this time. But maybe Tania Reynolds being in Sex Education skewed it? Maybe Jonny Lee Miller is far more popular than I would expect with the under-thirties?

I suspect this is going to struggle to find an audience for the duration of the run. I’d be hard-pushed to recommend it to anyone who isn’t a very regular theatre-goer. That said, I found it enjoyable, albeit in a cerebral, rather than emotional way. It’s wonderfully acted; Tania Reynolds is note perfect and I am now even more annoyed with myself for not going to see ‘She Stoops to Conquer.’ But my highlight was a single moment, when Čelik does a little jig as Bax suggests they act the scene out, and JML shows us in seconds, everything that that final (rather hectoring) speech tells us.

Perhaps one day soon a playwright will realise which side of the political divide in the West is currently most aggressive in its efforts to suppress free speech and truth. That day is yet to come.

The framing device(s) of this play makes very little sense if you actually think it through but fortunately for all involved in this production the people who are clever enough to do that thinking aren't likely to expend their mental energy attending or pondering a play on this meagre intellectual level.

Most of the greatest artists across human history until very recently would have agreed with the artistic ideals expressed by Celik. It is clear that Sam Holcroft does not want to us agree with him. She is not one of the greatest artists in human history.

Caught this tonight and I absolutely agree, it is 30 minutes too long.

A more concise version would have been more impactful towards the end. There is info. in there that may be useful internally but not to us.

Still, worth watching.

I thought this was dull and if there had been an interval I would have left.

There is nowhere for anyone to go performance wise. It all feels one note. The ending, which is the most interesting part still fails to be very interesting. The premise doesn't work in this space, either there is a sense of danger or there isn't? I am reluctant to spoil but equally don't think there is much to spoil. I suspect the perceived star power of JLM saw this transfer but it is star that is fading.

It seems to be selling quite poorly. We were upgraded to some rows near the front of the circle.

I thought this was really excellent. Loved the plays within plays and was surprised by how funny it was too, which I wasn't expecting in a satire about a totalitarian state. If I wanted to be supercritical, might argue it's around 10-15 mins too long, but would very definitely recommend.

I’m here this afternoon and got a front row seat with an order of service leaflet. Is this an audience participation thing?

My first trip back to the Trafalgar theatre since it’s refurb and I am really impressed with what the team has done with it. I liked the original 1939s design that they have reinstated in the auditorium. With this particular production I thought decking out the foyer and bar areas as part of the wedding venue setting was a nice idea along with having some posters about state security scattered around the building (I spotted 2 in the gents which was a bit of a shock). I got a front row stalls seat via a ATG sale and whilst I missed cast members feet from my seat, I would certainly sit here again for future productions. My seat also gave me the chance to interact with JLM during one scene which was a nice bonus.

As for the play itself, this was my first viewing so didn’t know really what to expect from this show and after the 2 hr run time which for me flew by this afternoon, I had a really good time watching this one. I certainly wasn’t expecting it to be as funny as it was despite the final few scenes that turned the play on its head and was far more darker in tone. I loved the plays within a play concept which certainly got plenty of laughs as the plays were staged. Whilst providing plenty of comical moments, I think the main idea of a dystopia media / society didn't come across as well as say 1984 did.

In respect to the cast, I thought JLM was a joy to watch and Tanya Reynolds the standout with the rest of the cast. 

I have heard good things about this one! I don't think I will be going myself because I have sat through a few too many 2 hr 30 min plays recently but it seems like Trafalgar Theatre is moving in a better direction following their very long Jersey Boys run. Hoping to catch People Places and Things there next as I have heard raving reviews!