A few years ago, I started going to the theatre a fair bit. It was part encouraged by discovering how to work the entry pass system - the first time I investigated the website, I found it too hard to decipher. The entry pass system sold cheap tickets to the theatre to those under 26, I started rounding up a few friends and soon we were booking for all sorts of things. Danny Boyle's Frankenstein, Grief and The Last of the Haussmans - all at The National plus front row tickets for The Old Vic where we saw Kevin Spacey as Richard III. Incredible.
I'm no longer under 26, but I've kept abreast of theatre goings on and regularly score affordable tickets to great plays. As you generally have to book the tickets a few months in advance, I often find myself with 3 shows in 2 weeks - this happened a few weeks back when I saw The Book of Mormon musical (alas no cheap tickets for this one), A Season in the Congo and Othello at The National.
The Book of Mormon was extremely sharp, so effortlessly sharp that you didn't notice how expertly written the show was. It was very funny and I'd recommend but I couldn't help but think £75 for a ticket meant it was hard for it to compete against best play I've seen all year (Chimerica), tickets for which were £16. However, I do think you often put more weight on plays that deal with serious issues - not that Book of Mormon doesn't mention these, but it's done in a South Park way and not that Chimerica isn't funny, it is whilst blowing your mind about the world's power and money.
Next up was Chiwetel Ejiofor in A Season in the Congo who plays Patrice Lumumba. Backstory fro The Telegraph: The play deals with the civil war that erupted out of Congo’s first stuttering weeks of independence from Belgium in 1960. Lumumba, who had risen from eloquent beer salesman to the country’s first prime minister of the new regime, attempted to introduce socialist ideas to Congo, but his efforts ended in military conflict and his own murder. In January 1961 he was shot by his Congolese enemies, or possibly by the Belgians supporting them, and later dismembered and dissolved in acid. The CIA and the British have been rumoured to have been involved in his assassination.
The play was directed by Joe Wright (who everyone loves and tends to work with Keira Knightley, ok, maybe just twice), I did think the stage direction was great - the use of puppets, and toy soldiers cascading onto the audience to mark the paratroopers entering the country. I thought Chiwetel was great too.
To round up my theatre binge, was Othello played by Adrian Lester and Rory Kinnear as Iago. It was set in modern times but used Shakespeare's language obviously. I'd never seen Othello before, and thought it was a really good production.
Chimerica still stands though.
Showing posts with label national theatre. Show all posts
Showing posts with label national theatre. Show all posts
Tuesday, 13 August 2013
Saturday, 6 July 2013
Drunk
Last week I made it to my first ever Punch Drunk production. They are an immersive theatre company who came on to my radar a few years ago but haven't done anything in the last couple of years here, except a thing for kids.
We went to You Me Bum Bum Train in December 2011 - an incredible immersive experience, you went in solo and moved throughout their sprawling set for 45 minutes with only actors as your accompaniment, you were essentially the star and your reactions changed their actions. This was said to be similar in feel to Punch Drunk's shows so I had high expectations.
Tickets went on sale in March and I booked tickets for the previews for myself and 5 others.
Unfortunately on the day of our booked slot last week, they had technical issues so had to cancel our show. I was pretty pissed but got on the phone straightaway and managed to rebook 4 of our tickets for the next night.
It took place next to Paddington station it what looked like an old postal sorting office but I'm not sure if that is correct. After checking in our belongings, we went in with nothing except our tickets (some cash might have been useful though). I don't want to say exactly what happens as the show is running for a long time but similar to YMBBT, you make your own experience. You can follow the actors to gather fragments of the story, pulling them together the more you explore but you also need to explore by yourself and discovering the incredible detail in the sets. One of my particular favourites was the Narnia esq wardrobe in the fitting room. I didn't see everything and didn't follow half the actors, the three hours flies but the actors do certain scenes on loop so you have the chance to take it in from different perspectives - apparently the action is 10 hours end to end so I guess it's impossible to see it all in one night. The plot is based on a real/fictional Hollywood studio pre WWII in America and the goings on around it, I never saw anything to do with a drowned man though, perhaps I missed that bit.
Just reading some background on Punch Drunk and they worked on the Adam Curtis film which I remember watching - interesting how these things come together.
We went to You Me Bum Bum Train in December 2011 - an incredible immersive experience, you went in solo and moved throughout their sprawling set for 45 minutes with only actors as your accompaniment, you were essentially the star and your reactions changed their actions. This was said to be similar in feel to Punch Drunk's shows so I had high expectations.
Tickets went on sale in March and I booked tickets for the previews for myself and 5 others.
Unfortunately on the day of our booked slot last week, they had technical issues so had to cancel our show. I was pretty pissed but got on the phone straightaway and managed to rebook 4 of our tickets for the next night.
It took place next to Paddington station it what looked like an old postal sorting office but I'm not sure if that is correct. After checking in our belongings, we went in with nothing except our tickets (some cash might have been useful though). I don't want to say exactly what happens as the show is running for a long time but similar to YMBBT, you make your own experience. You can follow the actors to gather fragments of the story, pulling them together the more you explore but you also need to explore by yourself and discovering the incredible detail in the sets. One of my particular favourites was the Narnia esq wardrobe in the fitting room. I didn't see everything and didn't follow half the actors, the three hours flies but the actors do certain scenes on loop so you have the chance to take it in from different perspectives - apparently the action is 10 hours end to end so I guess it's impossible to see it all in one night. The plot is based on a real/fictional Hollywood studio pre WWII in America and the goings on around it, I never saw anything to do with a drowned man though, perhaps I missed that bit.
Just reading some background on Punch Drunk and they worked on the Adam Curtis film which I remember watching - interesting how these things come together.
Tuesday, 22 November 2011
Grief
Last night I went to The National to see 'Grief', a new play by Mike Leigh.
I was expecting the play to be set in the current day, something I associate with Leigh films (without having seen that many) but it was actually set just after WWII. The script had me and my flatmate in giggles but it was also a very moving story about loneliness.
On a side note, on the way home, I read that Mike Leigh had picked up Best Director at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards... I haven't seen enough plays this year to judge.
I was expecting the play to be set in the current day, something I associate with Leigh films (without having seen that many) but it was actually set just after WWII. The script had me and my flatmate in giggles but it was also a very moving story about loneliness.
On a side note, on the way home, I read that Mike Leigh had picked up Best Director at the Evening Standard Theatre Awards... I haven't seen enough plays this year to judge.
Sunday, 30 January 2011
Interval
So I've decided to try harder to keep at this...
After a delightful Christmas (Die Hard should be on every year)
New Years was spent in Diss, Norfolk - good food, lovely walks and lots of games courtesy of Toby Price - alpaca alert!
Then there was Fela at The National Theatre (don't ever want to see a theatre audiece shaking their hips again), Tom Wrigglesworth at the BBC Studios, Jonny Sweet at The Soho Theatre, The Wild One at The Phoenix, The Big Sleep at the BFI, BUG at the BFI (the videos weren't as good this time), a ski lesson in Hemel Hempstead (I didn't fall over!), Bob Le Flambeur at the BFI (Hello Jonathan Ross), Alex Winston at Bush Hall, The Dogs at Wimbledon's Stadium and a delicious roast at Mason & Taylor.
After a delightful Christmas (Die Hard should be on every year)
New Years was spent in Diss, Norfolk - good food, lovely walks and lots of games courtesy of Toby Price - alpaca alert!
Then there was Fela at The National Theatre (don't ever want to see a theatre audiece shaking their hips again), Tom Wrigglesworth at the BBC Studios, Jonny Sweet at The Soho Theatre, The Wild One at The Phoenix, The Big Sleep at the BFI, BUG at the BFI (the videos weren't as good this time), a ski lesson in Hemel Hempstead (I didn't fall over!), Bob Le Flambeur at the BFI (Hello Jonathan Ross), Alex Winston at Bush Hall, The Dogs at Wimbledon's Stadium and a delicious roast at Mason & Taylor.
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