581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Mar 10, 2018 1:09:14 GMT
I suspect people are slightly put off because it's in two parts which means twice the commitment and twice the price. £76 (top price post preview period) feels like a lot of money for a new play by a virtually unknown playwright, especially with a cast which isn't that well know outside of theatre circles.
If it receives rave reviews I'm sure that tickets will fly out of the door. Though anything which bills itself as a "hilarious and profound heart-breaker" and "a major world premiere" has got quite a lot to live up to.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Mar 7, 2018 13:13:53 GMT
It looks as though The Public Theater is reviving this as part of this year's Shakespeare in the Park season publictheater.org/Tickets/Calendar/PlayDetailsCollection/SITP/Twelfth-Night-2018/Clearly not a small piece - as the Delacorte Theatre seats 1,800 people. The blurb on this version mentions lots of community participants so I'm guessing this will be the case at the Young Vic too. If it is his opening production it does seem a bit odd to do something that he's directed in New York only a few weeks earlier. And equally odd that he'd be out of the country for several weeks immediately before his first season - though as Oskar Eustis is credited as co-director for the Central Park production - maybe Kwame is more hands off this time round.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Mar 3, 2018 1:14:28 GMT
Brilliant news as far as I'm concerned Me too - this has the potential to be something really special. I've long hoped that the Crucible would commission a musical about Sheffield from Alex Turner or Jarvis Cocker or Richard Hawley - so I get a third of my wish.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Mar 3, 2018 1:06:29 GMT
Of the three Floras I saw in the original production Maria Aitken was by far my favourite - seemed to have the best bits of Diana Rigg and Felicity Kendall - and much more authentic then either. Very much in the Patricia Hodge mode.
In fairness to Belinda Lang - nothing at all was good about that revival of The Secret Rapture and there was only one good thing about the Theatre Royal Haymarket Hay Fever - neither production had any directorial vision. Lang actually played Judith Bliss a couple of years later at the Royal Exchange and was rather good. She may be someone who needs a very strong director - though she seems to have taken to direct herself of late!
Speaking of directors - interesting to note the comment about Paul Miller and 'his trademark quirks'. I've always found him to be quite straightforward as a director - eschewing trickery. What have I missed?
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Mar 1, 2018 18:27:46 GMT
John Lahr was theatre critic for the New Yorker magazine for more than 20 years but was based in London. He used to go to NYC to binge on theatre and then eke out his reviews over a few weeks, I suspect that's what will happen with Shenton. He'll no doubt review UK theatre for other outlets.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Mar 1, 2018 12:43:32 GMT
Daniel Evans has made such smart casting choices in the past that part of me wants to say - let's wait and see. However, the other part is disappointed with this announcement.
I'm very glad that it isn't a very youthful 'smiley' song and dance man. However, having seen the original London production many times with every cast variation, the versions which which worked best were when actor playing Bill had an effortless charm, the comedy was unforced and there was a natural rapport between Bill and Sally. My favourite pairings were Robert Lindsay and Emma Thompson, and Karl Howman and Louise English. I didn't managed to see Gary Wilmot and Jessica Martin together - one of them was always off whenever I visited - but I heard good things about them.
I don't find Matt Lucas particularly charming and he seems a bit self-indulgent as a performer - his comedy has often felt rather leaden and laboured. But people change, and he loves musicals - in past interviews has said that one of his favourite is Me and My Girl - and Evans is a good director. I'm hoping that my concerns are completely misplaced.
I'm still looking forward to seeing this - and interested to hear who else is in the cast (and fingers crossed that Sally is in the Joanna Riding rather than Su Pollard vein - the latter being a performance I have tried my hardest to forget).
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 23, 2018 0:00:57 GMT
She did Relight My Fire with Take That in 1993 (and then again and again and again!), was in Ab Fab including the very bad movie (playing herself), and was a contestant on Strictly (for a few weeks) in 2011.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 22, 2018 23:22:43 GMT
31 years ago (Baz doesn't worry too much about detail) she was in short-lived The Mystery of Edwin Drood at the Savoy Theatre, prior to that she took over in Song and Dance at the Palace Theatre, and played Adelaide in the tour of the National Theatre's production of Guys and Dolls which then came into the Prince Of Wales. Someone who worked with her on G&D said she was an absolute delight - though it was a long time ago!!
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 22, 2018 14:07:42 GMT
He's also got a name, Wynne Evans, which What's On Stage doesn't seem to think important to mention in its headline. Guess it's all about clickbait these days.
And I'm not sure whether the Shake and Vac woman has ever been in Phantom - but Jenny Logan did play Velma in the original West End production of Chicago.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 22, 2018 11:39:20 GMT
So the replacement, like Sheena, might be Scottish, might have sung a Bond theme and might have some previous musical theatre experience? The 'one name' at the top isn't likely to be Madonna or Cher..........
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 19, 2018 16:17:29 GMT
Geoffrey Streatfeild was very good in The Beaux' Stratagem at the National a few years ago - and also good opposite Justine Mitchell in Wild Honey. I'm rather looking forward to this now.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 19, 2018 13:35:36 GMT
This from londontheatre.co.uk
The Way of the World will also feature Fisayo Akinade (Witwoud), Alex Beckett (Waitwell), Gabrielle Brooks (Mincing), Phoebe Frances Brown (Betty/Pig), Sarah Hadland (Foible), Jenny Jules (Mrs Marwood), Simon Manyonda (Petulant), Caroline Martin (Mrs Fainall), Tom Mison (Fainall), Justine Mitchell (Millalant), Christian Patterson (Sir Wilfull Witwoud), Geoffrey Streatfeild (Mirabel) and Nathan Welsh (Mirabel’s Servant/Wishfort’s Footman).
Perhaps a tad more helpful.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 19, 2018 13:32:54 GMT
Particularly perverse is choosing Drunk Enough to Say I Love You as James Macdonald's credit. In truth - surely the space would be better used to say which part the actors are playing in this production. I'm assuming that Justine Mitchell and Geoffrey Streatfeild are playing Millamant and Mirabel - or perhaps the entire cast, other than Haydn Gwynne, will be tossing coins a la Mary Stuart!
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 15, 2018 23:30:36 GMT
Josefina Gabrielle did several stints as Roxie in the early 00s - so another performer shifting roles.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 15, 2018 23:26:01 GMT
Interesting - the website image for the production (yes - the one which has divided opinion here) features Dylan Mason who is one of Stuart Neal's covers in 42nd Street. Not that this, of course, means he'll be in the show - though he did do Anything Goes for Daniel Evans at Sheffield.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 14, 2018 22:25:37 GMT
it was not done by Evans - it was actually directed by Anna Mackmin Thank you. She did indeed - my memory was playing tricks. Wonder whether she is directing this version too? Guess we'll know very soon.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 14, 2018 21:34:30 GMT
Daniel Evans directed a great production of this at Sheffield in 2010. The cast featured Daniel Crossley as Bill, Jemima Rooper as Sally and Miriam Margolyes as the Duchess. Rumour has it that Damien Lewis had been slated to star as Bill but they couldn't get the dates to work.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Feb 1, 2018 23:46:04 GMT
Interesting - as she was Diane Langton's understudy as Angel in the very short lived production at the Cambridge Theatre in 1998.
Update - a fact which Baz tweeted 10 minutes after I posted this. Do we think he is a lurker?
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Jan 31, 2018 19:14:15 GMT
Was definitely Ash Hunter - playing his own son!
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Jan 31, 2018 13:08:24 GMT
I’ve never seen the play - but I recall that in the novel and the film Molina identifies as a woman. Given that we live in far more enlightened times regarding trans matters than when previous versions were staged - it will be interesting to see what difference this makes to how the play is performed and received - especially given that this is a new adaptation. Interesting that the Menier website says it’s a tale of ‘two strikingly different men’ so perhaps in this version the character isn’t a trans woman or maybe it’s inadvertent misgendering - which is a particularly live issue at the moment.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Jan 29, 2018 15:00:28 GMT
Strange things are happening on the BoM website. Bios are disappearing - so maybe new ones will appear. The full new cast might even be known before the curtain goes up.
Good to see producers showing so much respect for their cast members!!!
UPDATE at 1500
New cast there - Dom Simpson as Elder Price; J Michael Finley, a previous Broadway standby, as Elder Cunningham
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Jan 25, 2018 22:20:56 GMT
Am I getting older or are the cast members getting younger? I think that most of the current principal cast members are pretty much the same age as the original cast were when they played the roles - with the possible exception of Valjean and Enjolras. As I'm only a couple of years younger than Michael Ball it makes me feel very old!
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Jan 22, 2018 0:49:10 GMT
Rebecca as Mrs Johnstone in Liverpool at the Empire in 1984 with Peter Capaldi as Eddie and, if I remember correctly, a certain David Pugh was the Assistant Director. This was the tour based on the original London production not the Bill Kenwright revival.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Jan 19, 2018 23:10:06 GMT
with somebody called Neil from Eastenders as the Captain. That will be Neil McDermott who played Rolf in original revival cast of SoM at the Palladium, Jean-Michel in La Cage at the Menier, Lord Farquaard in Shrek at Drury Lane and most recently Chief Weasel in Wind in the Willows at the Lowry and the Palladium.
|
|
581 posts
|
Post by princeton on Jan 12, 2018 0:06:25 GMT
Interesting how little she's actually directed there recently - nothing since St Joan at this time last year and, given what's already been announced, nothing until June at the earliest - although she did have a co-author credit for the Kids Company musical. And in 2016 most of her directing was in New York on transfers. With this and the time spent making the Mary Queen of Scots film, one wonders whether she's had her eye on the door for quite some time.
|
|