1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jul 1, 2017 10:23:06 GMT
I saw her in panto once. She was surprisingly good.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 30, 2017 15:12:54 GMT
Literally the best thing I've seen this year.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 30, 2017 15:12:27 GMT
I hate Jerusalem (despite being very English) and loved Ferryman.
My understanding is the Ferryman was created for the West End originally, and Jez intervened to request a short run at the Court as a way to try out the material first, and also to thank the Court for developing his career up to that point. It wasn't a Court commission.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 30, 2017 11:44:38 GMT
David Tennant at the Ferryman last night.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 29, 2017 12:10:07 GMT
I wouldn't leave in a small venue where the cast would notice, but there is no moral superiority in sitting in the Olivier for an extra 45 minutes bored out of your mind.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 28, 2017 21:50:00 GMT
I am involved in new writing and have brought several new plays to production. The new writing industry is pretty buoyant and there are lots of opportunities for new playwrights. However it is also very competitive and it's extremely rare for a playwright to get their first play produced, first plays generally act as calling cards and lead to future opportunities down the road. Historical plays are some of the hardest to sell as most of the new writing theatres are only looking for contemporary or very recent history, and the kinds of theatres that accept or commission historical plays only work with established playwrights. That doesn't mean it's not worth sending your script out!
Do you have an agent? They will be able to get your script read by literary departments.
Otherwise, enter your script into playwriting competitions (the biggie, Bruntwood, closed earlier this month; the Verity Bargate Award is also pretty major and closes on 5th July). Lots of theatres in London and the UK accept unsolicited submissions, so there are plenty of places you can submit it. You could also try to get a rehearsed reading or try to do a segment of it for a scratch night.
Sending it to amateur companies is a good idea but something I have no experience with.
Putting it on yourself at the fringe is always an option, albeit can be expensive. There are a number of theatres that accept show proposals, either as a straight hire or a box office split. In terms of festivals Edinburgh is the big one, and Camden and VAULT are two of the best in London. You would need to self-produce or find a producer willing to do it (plus director and cast). Facebook, Shooting People, and Genesis are all good places to find early career theatre producers and directors.
I have a pretty comprehensive list of places to send plays in a word document. If you want to pm me a contact address I can email it to you?
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 27, 2017 16:46:07 GMT
Just started Brian Cox's memoir of playing Lear. Seems to be leaning more towards the gossipy than the serious actOR, which I appreciate.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 27, 2017 16:38:31 GMT
This is very cool. I don't blame her for wanting her own company, rather than being someone else's hire.
Between her and Marianne's new company it appears women really are the future.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 27, 2017 16:36:08 GMT
Only watched Maxine's so far but it's great. I know she wants to get more into directing, and I'd love to see that.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 27, 2017 16:35:20 GMT
Arts funding makes money. Every pound invested in the arts makes something like £4 back. Arts cuts cost money, they don't save money. Cutting arts funding doesn't mean more funding is freed up to suddenly build hospitals and things like that. Anyway the government fritters literally billions of pounds on waste, mismanagement and cronyism (not to mention unnecessary or dubious big ticket projects) and there's never any suggestion of trying to cut corners there. But a little bit of money to the arts, or a disabled person's extra tenner a week? Snatch that back.
Awfully bad timing.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 27, 2017 10:26:10 GMT
Tennant was in a film my best friend directed recently and the fan stalking was out of control. Some fans had literally quit their jobs to be full-time fans and follow him around and document everything he does online. I swear his best acting work is pretending he doesn't hate them (the stalker fans, not regular fans).
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 26, 2017 11:32:53 GMT
Baz announced casting for some of the readings on Twitter last week, but nothing on the NT site and no info about some of the readings. Great cast for those that have been announced.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 25, 2017 17:38:57 GMT
When I've worked on shows with actors who get booed, no actor has ever minded. It is a loud reaction to a performance and that'll do just fine. Is that villain booing or genuine "the show sucked" booing? I've seen actors extremely upset by the latter, but I can see how the former would be considered a compliment. I'm still shocked people booed at NT Common.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 22, 2017 20:01:59 GMT
The one time I went to the Coliseum they kicked up a huge fuss over my daughter wearing her coat inside the auditorium, even though it was the depths of winter and freezing inside. They didn't want her to put it in the cloakroom (that I would have understood) but insisted she take it off, roll it into a ball, and put it underneath her seat. A cream cashmere coat, not likely.
Wrote a complaint letter and got a very nasty reply. One venue I'll never be visiting again.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 22, 2017 19:58:27 GMT
I went to the NT a couple of days after the Manchester attack. Stood in the bag check queue for about ten minutes then security waved me by without even looking inside my backpack. Wasn't asked to put it in the cloakroom either. Odd.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 21, 2017 14:02:02 GMT
I hear tm still has one clipped to his belt. When it goes off he has to run to the nearest "phone box" and ring up someone. Fortunately this hasn't happened since 1996. But surely all he has to do is wait for someone to pick up the MonkeyPhone and beam out the MonkeySignal into the sky?? Then he can get into the MonkeyMobile and go and fix someone's theatre seating problem.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 20, 2017 18:57:06 GMT
I love John Lithgow an inappropriate amount.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 15, 2017 16:54:53 GMT
I wonder what the thinking was around the costume changes.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 14, 2017 16:27:42 GMT
Very classy statement from David, all about the importance of encouraging the younger generation of theatre-makers. Interesting that he doesn't yet have another job lined up.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 14, 2017 14:01:38 GMT
I'll add Far Away and Yerma. And possibly Pomona.
Productions that I massively enjoyed but wouldn't call objectively best were Nation (the NT kiddie thing on an island) and Tipping the Velvet. Both deeply divisive if not outright unpopular.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 14, 2017 10:06:56 GMT
I always forget every single play I've ever seen in situations like this.
The first thing that jumps to mind is The Play That Goes Wrong.
RSC History cycle was a pretty major personal influence.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 14, 2017 9:47:30 GMT
It's odd structurally. The first and last thirds are pure verbatim (and all that implies) and the whole singing and dancing jazz hands let's take a tour through regional stereotypes party in the middle is just... bizarre. Fun, but out of place. But without it it would just be an hour or whatever of watching the local news interviewing regular people with your eyes shut.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 10, 2017 23:38:41 GMT
Amazing Can't wait Serves all those people voting In Protest Thinking they are "tactical" Damn well right Yes, people who attempt to exercise democracy should definitely be punished for voting the 'wrong' way by having their reproductive rights taken away unelected fringe party, and a Britain run by religious extremist creationists is something we should all be super duper excited about! (I also recommend watching the the DUP's documentary-style party political broadcast which was so good it's being rebroadcast on the BBC1 under the new title of "The Handmaid's Tale".)
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 10, 2017 12:44:40 GMT
Not enough to make a difference?? Oh it is just starting I think.
I was hearing rumours of a majority of 60 from HQ at 9pm. Pretty down really after all that work and not the answer I was getting on the ground. Was going to pack up and have an early night sleep.
Then Bullingdon Boy announces the exit poll at 10pm and it is grab another beer. Strap in here. This is going to be a bumpy ride. A nights sleep missed on adrenaline and plenty of coffee today.
It's a beautiful evening after, I have baby gold finches and baby robins in the garden. And life is good.
Besides, a good election to lose this one...
It's a beautiful evening because Labour lost an election and will be on the opposition benches again? The Conservatives are the Government and with the DUP will be able to go at least another 2-3 years without needing to call another General Election as long as the deal which emerges stands firm. If you think the Conservatives will run a campaign as bad as this one next time around I believe you are deluding yourself. There's almost no chance the coalition will stand for 2-3 years. We have an unelected religious extremist far right wing fringe party who received 1.5% of the votes essentially running the country on the say of an unelected PM who has run what is universally acknowledged to be one of the worst election campaigns in history, in an entirely unnecessary vanity election. The coalition will struggle to get any laws passed against such opposition. There will certainly be massive pressure on May to resign. It's highly unlikely May will remain in power much longer, and the coalition is highly unstable. The most realistic option is May's resignation, a new PM (maybe Boris?) and a strong possibility of another election in October. Will they be able to run a better campaign in a matter of months following such a disastrous pasting, while neck-deep with the loathed and feared DUP and in the middle of constant internal fighting and strife? Yes (they could hardly be worse) but will it be a decent campaign? May has zero chance of winning another election, could Boris? Labour certainly will be able to run a more successful campaign going from their gains and the current momentum and popularity, and by using what they learned from this campaign which after all was thrown at them without warning.
|
|
1,104 posts
|
Post by samuelwhiskers on Jun 10, 2017 12:21:37 GMT
Presumably it's a company that transforms leaks into convenient tanks of water to keep recalcitrant men in?
|
|