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Post by thistimetomorrow on May 23, 2022 21:36:53 GMT
Could anyone advise of what time this ends please? Just looking at trains. It ended at pretty much just after 9 for me |
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4,804 posts
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Post by Mark on May 26, 2022 21:03:44 GMT
I liked it but certainly not as much as I did Beginning. I guess it’s partly the subject matter having advanced and we have lost that “hope” and spark we see in Beginning. I was at the back of the stalls section and it’s a very quiet play, occasionally difficult to hear.
Mark Middleton was on as Gary and was excellent, as was Claire Rushbrook as Maggie. I believe Dan Ryan was also off last night.
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1,485 posts
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Post by mkb on Jun 14, 2022 17:35:40 GMT
Not quite as good as Beginning, Middle does manage to capture brilliantly that moment in a relationship we all dread, and many -- me included -- have experienced, where your partner reveals it's no longer working for them. But therein lies its problem. Because of the familiarity, the play is unable to offer any new insight.
The writing is spot on; the acting is faultless; but it's not actually that interesting, because it's nothing we don't already know. Some of the lines are probably meant to be funny, but because they are delivered amid a heart-rending tragedy, they register painfully rather than with humour. That didn't stop some from tittering, and that added annoyance to the mix of emotions felt.
The set design is unnecessarily deep (taking out a few rows of Pit seating in the process) and with perpendicular rather than trapezoid side walls that are not kind to side-seat viewers. I was lucky I had plumped for £45 seats in the centre. These are worth the extra cost.
The whole show is a little too intense emotionally to run uninterrupted for twelve minutes shy of two hours. I would have liked a break to take stock after an incident that occurs mid-way through. This would have allowed the comedic lines of the second half to hit their mark better.
On balance, the superlative performances and realistic dialogue trump my concerns over the narrative content.
Four stars.
One act: 14:37-16:18
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369 posts
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Post by Jonnyboy on Jun 15, 2022 22:05:19 GMT
I enjoyed this! Tense throughout and utterly believable. Fine fine acting.
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