1,878 posts
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Post by Marwood on Jul 25, 2018 15:02:40 GMT
Never mind Rhys Ifans, Indira Varma and Adrian Scarborough - Derek Griffiths! (although I wasn't excited enough to pay more than £15 for the privilege)
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1,064 posts
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Post by bellboard27 on Jul 25, 2018 15:38:13 GMT
A more general question, I keep reading London theatre-makers lamenting the loss of cross-pollination with European theatre post-Brexit. But where is it now? Apart from a couple of revivals of Genet, a few days of Ostermeier and the endless revivals of Art, where are all these European plays and practitioners? The Young Vic, Almeida, NT etc. showcase loads of American plays (the YV rarely seems to do anything else) but I'm not aware of anything similar being brought here from the continent. Is it there, and I'm just missing it? I think we are having to work our way through all the works of Florian Zeller before we are allowed to see anything else.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2018 15:46:45 GMT
A more general question, I keep reading London theatre-makers lamenting the loss of cross-pollination with European theatre post-Brexit. But where is it now? Apart from a couple of revivals of Genet, a few days of Ostermeier and the endless revivals of Art, where are all these European plays and practitioners? The Young Vic, Almeida, NT etc. showcase loads of American plays (the YV rarely seems to do anything else) but I'm not aware of anything similar being brought here from the continent. Is it there, and I'm just missing it? Excellent point, Crow. We could add global theatre to that. We see very little Theatre from around the world. I think culture would be all the richer for it.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2018 15:48:41 GMT
The Barbican's usually the go-to for international theatre but it is a shame they seem to have committed to bringing the bad Ivo Van Hove shows over alongside the good ones.
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2,706 posts
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Post by Cardinal Pirelli on Jul 25, 2018 15:56:58 GMT
A more general question, I keep reading London theatre-makers lamenting the loss of cross-pollination with European theatre post-Brexit. But where is it now? Apart from a couple of revivals of Genet, a few days of Ostermeier and the endless revivals of Art, where are all these European plays and practitioners? The Young Vic, Almeida, NT etc. showcase loads of American plays (the YV rarely seems to do anything else) but I'm not aware of anything similar being brought here from the continent. Is it there, and I'm just missing it? Places like the Barbican and the Gate used to be reliable but less so recently, especially with the RSC seemingly blocking out the main Barbican stage aa they used to decades ago. I’d much prefer if they decamped into the West End and the lost productions from Europe (and beyond) returned. I can go to see English surtitled productions in Berlin or Amsterdam nowadays, I hope these continue and Europe, at least, doesn’t give up on us.
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857 posts
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Post by bordeaux on Jul 25, 2018 17:38:58 GMT
The Barbican's usually the go-to for international theatre but it is a shame they seem to have committed to bringing the bad Ivo Van Hove shows over alongside the good ones. Weren't the bad ones (Obsession and Antigone) originated at the Barbican? The one I really want to see is his adaptation of Visconti's The Damned. It's a Comedie Francaise production, just been on in New York.
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2,976 posts
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Post by crowblack on Jul 25, 2018 18:08:49 GMT
Barbican's usually the go-to for international theatre That was the only place that really sprung to mind, and when they're on they're only fleeting - nothing like the long runs of new and old American plays that the YV and Almeida keep having.
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3,485 posts
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Post by showgirl on Jul 25, 2018 18:18:36 GMT
The Ustinov Studio (Bath) has produced work by a couple of German playwrights recently: Martin Wegner and Daniel Kehlmann, but so many theatres could do so much more. Some American work is fine but it seems to be the default for any new plays not originating here and whilst there may be a lot to choose from, plays from the rest of the world - and elsewhere in Europe in particular - go unseen.
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Post by Jan on Jul 25, 2018 18:28:01 GMT
A more general question, I keep reading London theatre-makers lamenting the loss of cross-pollination with European theatre post-Brexit. But where is it now? Apart from a couple of revivals of Genet, a few days of Ostermeier and the endless revivals of Art, where are all these European plays and practitioners? The Young Vic, Almeida, NT etc. showcase loads of American plays (the YV rarely seems to do anything else) but I'm not aware of anything similar being brought here from the continent. Is it there, and I'm just missing it? The Brexit claim is just rubbish. The RSC and NT have always throughout their entire history massively under-represented European plays (both classic and contemporary) and European directors. However the NT has a continuous programme of USA work despite the fact they aren’t in the EU so that doesn’t seem to be a barrier. The Barbican and YV have been the most notable promoters of European theatre though even the latter has now switched to USA programming.
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2,389 posts
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Post by peggs on Jul 25, 2018 18:49:31 GMT
On the one hand, I love Indira Varma and Adrian Scarborough and I'm intrigued by the reports of how the drum revolve is used towards the end, but on the other hand, I could return my ticket now and just pretend it never happened. Those are entirely my thoughts too @baemax
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Post by profquatermass on Jul 25, 2018 18:56:40 GMT
A more general question, I keep reading London theatre-makers lamenting the loss of cross-pollination with European theatre post-Brexit. But where is it now? Apart from a couple of revivals of Genet, a few days of Ostermeier and the endless revivals of Art, where are all these European plays and practitioners? The Young Vic, Almeida, NT etc. showcase loads of American plays (the YV rarely seems to do anything else) but I'm not aware of anything similar being brought here from the continent. Is it there, and I'm just missing it? The Brexit claim is just rubbish. The RSC and NT have always throughout their entire history massively under-represented European plays (both classic and contemporary) and European directors. However the NT has a continuous programme of USA work despite the fact they aren’t in the EU so that doesn’t seem to be a barrier. The Barbican and YV have been the most notable promoters of European theatre though even the latter has now switched to USA programming. A few Christmases ago the NT had Emil and the Detectives and From Morning to Midnight running concurrently in the Olivier and Lyttleton. There was also the Captain of Kopernik and The Hour we Knew Nothing Of. Plus endless Chekhov, Ibsen, Greek tragedy etc etc. In the past few years I can remember offhand Damned by Despair, The Threepenny Opera, Hedda Gabler, Philistines, The Suicide, the Red Barn etc etc. Is there some sort of quota for European theatre and how does it compare to the quota for African or Asian theatre?
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1,240 posts
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Post by Steve on Jul 25, 2018 20:39:00 GMT
Saw this tonight, and loved it. Felt like the children's TV show I always wanted to see, but which my parents hid from me. Some spoilers follow. . . Everyone's the King or Queen of their own life, and everyone makes an exit, so there's definitely something universal in a show about a King given 68 minutes to live. This definitely feels like the episode of Blue Peter, where they addressed the meaninglessness of everything, but which my parents fastidiously hid from me, cos it would be too brutal for a sentimental mind. It really feels like my child self got to watch a show belatedly, and came out feeling exceptionally gratified, as if the blindfolds were removed. Meanwhile, my adult self was undoubtedly moaning that the show is all too obvious, and the jokes aren't funny enough. But as it happened, I found my child self completely in charge, and I loved every minute of it. As the regally important self we all imagine we are, Rhys Ifans was marvellously entitled one minute, sentimental the next, then narcissistic, then self aggrandising, then playing the martyr, just about nailing every every phase of human self-assertion of meaning in an otherwise empty void. Well, not empty, because a mother figure (aka first wife), Indira Varma is there to keep things real, in her wonderfully blase, assured and tongue-in-cheek way. And there's Adrian Scarborough, perfectly cast, as an affirming best friend type, who knows all your weaknesses, but keeps them from you most of the time. And Amy Morgan as a second wife, always telling you what you want to hear. And your underlings, too, telling you one thing to your face, and another behind your back. The whole ensemble were wonderful, and the coup de theatre at the end a success, for me. Most others there tonight agreed that the stark production and child-friendly emoting of the actors were terrific, but where I thought the play was also terrific, others thought it was terribly simplistic and flawed. But then our deaths are terribly simplistic and flawed, and our child selves do need to be told this information in this child-friendly way, even in hindsight. So, overall, I thought this was wonderful, and I can't help wondering if I'll think of this play on my deathbed, for good or for ill. 4 and a half stars. Running time: 1 hour, 40 minutes.
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1,000 posts
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Post by nash16 on Jul 25, 2018 22:17:39 GMT
Also there tonight.
The child inside wanted it to be joyous and manic and mad, but instead, after a sort of exciting start, and Rhys' appearance, it sort of flatlined and even the people behind who were laughing from the first line "because it's a comedy, we shall laugh at everything" gradually (thankfully) quietened.
It does its job, but it's the repetition that kills it. The pace is too steady. It should, of course, be philosophical, but what Marber's production is missing is the mania and the effortless comedy these plays require. It all feels very placed and, at times, too laboured (the "physical comedy" moments especially).
Indira Varma won the night for us. Especially a brilliant repost to the King and his second wife.
It's not bad by any means. But it is increasingly monotone.
And if that's a "coup de theatre" at the end and an awe inspiring use of the drum, I worry. It's a lovely moment, but it comes after a lot of hard work and doesn't feel early.
I think it would have been more successful in the directing hands of someone else. But who?
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Post by Jan on Jul 26, 2018 5:20:10 GMT
The Brexit claim is just rubbish. The RSC and NT have always throughout their entire history massively under-represented European plays (both classic and contemporary) and European directors. However the NT has a continuous programme of USA work despite the fact they aren’t in the EU so that doesn’t seem to be a barrier. The Barbican and YV have been the most notable promoters of European theatre though even the latter has now switched to USA programming. A few Christmases ago the NT had Emil and the Detectives and From Morning to Midnight running concurrently in the Olivier and Lyttleton. There was also the Captain of Kopernik and The Hour we Knew Nothing Of. Plus endless Chekhov, Ibsen, Greek tragedy etc etc. In the past few years I can remember offhand Damned by Despair, The Threepenny Opera, Hedda Gabler, Philistines, The Suicide, the Red Barn etc etc. Is there some sort of quota for European theatre and how does it compare to the quota for African or Asian theatre? Norway and Russia aren’t in the EU so I’m not accepting Ibsen and Chekhov as being under threat from Brexit.
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Post by profquatermass on Jul 26, 2018 8:35:25 GMT
You talked about an under-representation of plays from Europe, not the EU. But I'm still interested in what that representation should be? And surely the lack of plays from the Commonwealth is far more noticeable
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2,976 posts
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Post by crowblack on Jul 26, 2018 8:43:56 GMT
You talked about an under-representation of plays from Europe, not the EU. I meant the EU, because the lament went up after Brexit. That's what I found bizarre and ironic - we get the non-EU nordic playwrights, but rarely any EU ones as it is. London theatremakers are instead besotted with North America.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 26, 2018 9:17:27 GMT
You talked about an under-representation of plays from Europe, not the EU. I meant the EU, because the lament went up after Brexit. That's what I found bizarre and ironic - we get the non-EU nordic playwrights, but rarely any EU ones as it is. London theatremakers are instead besotted with North America. I find it interesting that when it comes to diversity for example North American writers of colour can sometimes receive more exposure than homegrown talents - Danai Gurira’s play The Convert is to be revived this year when it was only produced last year. Kwei-Armah has voiced the intent to restore to the canon works by black American authors.This when, according to reports, British writers of colour struggle to have their work represented let alone to have it revived.
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Post by MrsCondomine on Jul 26, 2018 10:33:25 GMT
Interesting that the reviews are all over the place on this one.
Haven't yet seen a one-star for it...
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1,465 posts
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Post by foxa on Jul 26, 2018 14:14:28 GMT
I think the West End Whingers gave it one wine glass. :-)
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Post by MrsCondomine on Jul 26, 2018 14:55:21 GMT
I think the West End Whingers gave it one wine glass. :-) Hooray!! Cheers for the heads up foxa Love the Whingers (or whichever one is currently not on sabbatical and is entertaining us with high bitchery). I just booked my ticket. Can't resist an antihero with long hair and flowing robes.
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Post by sf on Jul 26, 2018 20:35:25 GMT
You talked about an under-representation of plays from Europe, not the EU. I meant the EU, because the lament went up after Brexit. That's what I found bizarre and ironic - we get the non-EU nordic playwrights, but rarely any EU ones as it is. London theatremakers are instead besotted with North America.
One reason, perhaps, is simply that plays from North America - mostly from the US, there's a whole seam of new Canadian writing that is barely seen at all in this country - usually don't need to be translated into English (with the obvious exception of work from Quebec, where there's a vibrant Francophone theatre scene and a lot of new work, not all of which gets translated into English).
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Post by dani on Jul 26, 2018 21:28:35 GMT
I've always enjoyed the Whingers, but they never really get anything experimental or avant-garde. This is a museum piece rather than a radical new theatrical proposition, but it's a manifestation of a tradition that's probably a long way from the Whingers' tastes. I thought it was a respectable attempt to do one of Ionesco's less admired plays, and Ifans is really something. I'm not convinced, like others here, by the idea of Patrick Marber as a director. This is the sort of play that calls out for Robert Icke.
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Post by nash16 on Jul 27, 2018 0:05:06 GMT
I've always enjoyed the Whingers, but they never really get anything experimental or avant-garde. This is a museum piece rather than a radical new theatrical proposition, but it's a manifestation of a tradition that's probably a long way from the Whingers' tastes. I thought it was a respectable attempt to do one of Ionesco's less admired plays, and Ifans is really something. I'm not convinced, like others here, by the idea of Patrick Marber as a director. This is the sort of play that calls out for Robert Icke. No play calls for Rob Icke's involvement...
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Post by bordeaux on Jul 27, 2018 7:40:25 GMT
I'm not convinced, like others here, by the idea of Patrick Marber as a director. This is the sort of play that calls out for Robert Icke. Marber's production of The Caretaker with Gambon and the recent Travesties were both superb, as were his direction of his own first two plays, Dealer's Choice and Closer.
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Post by Jan on Jul 27, 2018 8:16:58 GMT
I'm not convinced, like others here, by the idea of Patrick Marber as a director. This is the sort of play that calls out for Robert Icke. Marber's production of The Caretaker with Gambon and the recent Travesties were both superb, as were his direction of his own first two plays, Dealer's Choice and Closer. Small Studio theatres flatter directors. His adaptation Three Days in the Country in the Lyttelton was dismal and badly-directed and was rescued only by one brilliant performance. Giving him another main house production was never likely to work. This production should have been in the Dorfmann.
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Post by dani on Jul 27, 2018 8:49:49 GMT
His adaptation Three Days in the Country in the Lyttelton was dismal and badly-directed and was rescued only by one brilliant performance. I agree completely. That said, I concede that Marber's production of Travesties was good.
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Post by Jan on Jul 28, 2018 8:10:44 GMT
His adaptation Three Days in the Country in the Lyttelton was dismal and badly-directed and was rescued only by one brilliant performance. I agree completely. That said, I concede that Marber's production of Travesties was good. That originated at the Menier. It is a problem common to the NT and RSC that many directors like to direct in their small theatres but dislike (or refuse) to direct in their large theatres. This is because it is harder to do. It is one reason the new RST is based on a scaled-up Swan theatre, they thought more directors would be comfortable directing there.
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Post by theatreliker on Jul 31, 2018 11:24:17 GMT
I have a ticket for this on Saturday. Tempted to see if I can return and see Home, I'm Darling or The Jungle or Consent. Any recommendations? Or is it worth seeing for this apparently great set change?
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Post by MrBunbury on Jul 31, 2018 12:16:11 GMT
I have a ticket for this on Saturday. Tempted to see if I can return and see Home, I'm Darling or The Jungle or Consent. Any recommendations? Or is it worth seeing for this apparently great set change? I would recommend to see The Jungle or Home, I'm darling, depending on the type of night you want (more politically-inclined or lighter and enjoyable).
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1,000 posts
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Post by nash16 on Jul 31, 2018 22:48:18 GMT
I have a ticket for this on Saturday. Tempted to see if I can return and see Home, I'm Darling or The Jungle or Consent. Any recommendations? Or is it worth seeing for this apparently great set change? The set change really isn't the coup de theatre their writing about. It's just the set being removed piece by piece. But they obvs had to find something to write about. See Jungle or Home I'm...
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