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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 21, 2017 20:15:04 GMT
From my somewhat limited experience seeing theatre in the UK, I've noticed that most of the "celebrity" casting seems to be of actors who have already proved themselves as strong actors of the stage, despite gaining fame through TV and film. So in that sense, it doesn't feel at all forced or gimmicky.
In NY, the celebrity casting tends to be more out of left field - often they cast movie stars who have never, or rarely, set foot on a stage. That said, many of the performances I've seen by these movie stars have actually been pretty good. I've noticed that hyper-naturalistic acting is becoming more and more "in" when it comes to contemporary plays. The more you can accurately replicate real life behavior and mannerisms, the stronger the performance is considered. Obviously, the average film star knows how to achieve that naturalism pretty well.
Also, I'm not at all opposed to the casting of celebrities - even the untested ones - if it means that more shows can make their way into the commercial houses. Many shows have only been able to get funding for Broadway runs based on the name of some attached celebrity. So I appreciate that it's a dependable way to provide commercial opportunity to shows that might otherwise die on the vine during workshops/tryouts.
I've also noticed that in the UK, you tend to see more big names at the non-profit theatres. You see them on the West End too, of course, but lots of companies like the Almeida, National, Donmar, etc. are able to attract big names moreso than than the off-Broadway theatres in NY. Though nowadays the Public Theatre in NY pretty consistently produces shows with big names. And of course there are plenty of other examples of celebrity casting at non-profits in NY, but in general you see it more on Broadway. I think it's great that these companies are able to produce bold, exciting theatre with celebrities involved, though often it creates very pesky ticket demand. Things sell out in a flash when there are celebrities in the cast. UK theatres tend to be good about providing later opportunities for tickets (day-seats, friday rush, Klaxon, etc). NY theatres aren't as good about that, I've noticed.
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 20, 2017 22:26:37 GMT
Got a ticket to this today via their Monday day-seats.
I loved it. I found the first half of the show incredibly moving. The portrayal of their relationships felt so strikingly honest and raw. I was nearly moved to tears several times. The 2nd half of the show (Parts 2 & 3) were not quite as enthralling for me, though I still really enjoyed them. I loved the stylized dialogue throughout.
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 20, 2017 12:25:08 GMT
Wow! I didn't realize just how many insdustry people were there. I did see Ruth Wilson, Kate Fleetwood, Angus Wright and also Leo Bill. Plus I spotted Ivo in the wings during curtain call, but I don't know when he showed up.
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 19, 2017 10:51:20 GMT
Saw this last night. I saw the movie back when it first came out, though I've never read the graphic novel. As far as I could tell, this was a pretty faithful adaptation - though trimmed down to 90 minutes, of course. I enjoyed it, and found the moral complexity to be compelling. However, I don't think this material really needed to be turned into a play. After having seen the excellent movie, I didn't feel like the theatrical setting brought anything exciting or new to the story. Still, as I said, I did enjoyed it. I thought it was well-acted, and I appreciated the versatile use of the space.
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 11, 2017 19:56:10 GMT
Going on the 19th (Sunday). Extremely excited.
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 11, 2017 9:11:18 GMT
I agree with those who have said that anything can be adapted. I truly believe that any source material has the POTENTIAL to be adapted effectively to the stage - it only depends on who is hired to work on it, and what direction they decide to go with it. I think it's especially true if you don't limit it to musicals, which are much harder to write effectively. That isn't to say that a lot of them wouldn't end up being terrible, because it's very difficult to know exactly what choices to make in order to make the material adapt well, but I think it's always possible to make choices that work.
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 10, 2017 9:26:16 GMT
I heard from one of the actors in the show that Charles Kay dropped out of the production, though I didn't get any other details.
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 9, 2017 20:51:50 GMT
I believe it's called "Lost Without Words," not "Lost For Words"
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Post by sondheimhats on Mar 6, 2017 17:41:54 GMT
Still some scattered tix available for those looking! Just picked myself up a £10 seat in the Circle. I'll be seeing it the same day that I see Hamlet at the Almeida. Should be an interesting day...
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 28, 2017 22:20:36 GMT
I'll echo a lot of what's been said:
I didn't hate this play. It was an engaging enough evening at the theatre - I definitely wasn't bored. But it was pretty mediocre. The script had some nice moments but they were pretty drowned out by the play's glaring flaws. I thought the performances were all pretty middling. I didn't like the sister at all. But I think a lot of the blame goes to the director, not the actors. The problems with the acting were fairly consistent throughout the cast, which leads me to think that they were all just directed poorly. All the emotion was very broad and general, without any nuance to it. Kris Marshall was my favorite out of the 5, though I thought Fleetwood did a good job too.
Cool design and nice use of projections.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 20, 2017 23:33:34 GMT
There's a £40 single available on the website for the April 6th Matinee if anyone wants to run and claim it! (alas, I can't go to weekday matinees, nor can I afford £40)
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 20, 2017 18:03:55 GMT
Nice feature (assuming it works!) I've noticed that at the various venues that use Q-IT, and wonder the same thing. Do please try it, xanderl, and let us know. No, really, I do insist that you go first when next there's a massive line and < 100 tickets going I've tried it! It does work! It even worked when I exited the chrome app on my phone
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 20, 2017 10:38:58 GMT
Success! Got in the queue at like 9am and got to the front at about 10:30. Booked a £10 ticket for a weekend in March. Looks like there's over 2000 in the queue currently.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 19, 2017 0:47:06 GMT
LOVED this production! So clever, creative and elegant. Oliver Chris, Tamara Lawrence, Phoebe Fox, Tamsin Grieg, and really the whole cast are just excellent. Like in the best of Shakespeare productions, Godwin has a clear sense of what story he's telling, and finds his own hilarious directorial touches that rise so effortlessly from the text. Easily the best Twelfth Night I've seen. Lovely design and excellent use of space and NT's budget.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 15, 2017 12:37:30 GMT
I thought it was verbatim theatre, sondheimhats? BTW, is it "in the round" or end-on? Any advice on which seats to grab? I don't know if you would technically categorize it as verbatim theatre, since the performers are playing themselves and telling their own stories in the form of monologues that they wrote for the show. It's done in thrust formation - all on the ground. I'm sure all the seats will be great. There's some audience involvement, for which they mostly pick people in the front and on the aisles (though I was in the front and did not get picked). Some of the performers aren't as great as projecting their voices as others, so closer might be better. But it's an intimate space so I'm sure it's not a big issue anyway.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 15, 2017 12:28:23 GMT
Saw it last night. It's pretty interesting. Mostly a collection of monologues, with some music and dance/movement. The stories are all very impactful, and they've cast a group of people with a pretty wide range of experiences. Sometimes I would have liked to see those experiences more in dialogue with each other (e.g what would the girl who had been trafficked think of the other woman's comment about the over-victimization of sex workers?). The aim of that wouldn't be to invalidate anyone's perspective or experience, but just to create a dialogue and build in more of the moral complexity surrounding the laws and social stigmas.
Many of the performers aren't trained actors, so it's a little rough at the moment, but I'm sure they'll find their footing as the run progresses. Even so, there's something kind of beautiful about its current, rougher state. When there were line flubs, they would help each other get back on track, and really support each other when they got nervous. It was a refreshing reminder that these are really people who are bravely telling their own stories, despite not necessarily having a background in theatre.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 12, 2017 0:51:11 GMT
Well, I definitely had more appreciation for the show tonight than parsley did, though I'll concede that I had some of the same criticisms. It does resemble a radio-play in many ways. As parsley said, the use of sound and music is excellent - really one of the most interesting soundscapes I've ever experienced in a show. There is staging, but it's minimal, often suggesting action more than showing it. I found many of the staging moments to be quite interesting, but ultimately it all felt supplementary to the more aural storytelling. On one hand, this did cause some feeling of detachment. On the other hand, however, it worked out sort of perfectly; because it was in German, I spent more time than not reading the supertitles. In a more physical play, I might've felt like I was missing out, but since this play was so aural, I could just read and listen while remaining peripherally aware of what was happening onstage. I didn't hate the use of video, but I think they could have made better use of it.
I found the story pretty engaging, though it was a slow build, plot-wise. The actors all did a great job. For me, the 2h10m runtime (and yes, it ran 10 minutes longer than announced) went by fairly quickly. I sat in one of the £10 gallery seats, which came with a big warning that the supertitles would be obscured for the final 10 minutes. In the end, they were only minimally obscured for the last 3 or 4 minutes (at least it felt like only 3 or 4). They actually printed out an English transcript of the final few minutes and handed them out to us after the show, which was extremely considerate. So no harm done.
Definitely not my favorite piece, but I appreciated much of what they did with it. Excited to see Richard III next weekend.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 11, 2017 9:04:27 GMT
Begins previews tonight. Anyone planning to see this? I'm intrigued by the description, and I'm familiar with "Hello, Again," the musical that was adapted from the play. Would love to hear any reports/thoughts, either on this show or on this company's track record.
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 8, 2017 21:29:40 GMT
Sorry to be "that guy," but I'd just like to re-iterate my question from earlier (quoted above), since it looked like it might have gotten lost among the other posts pretty immediately. Anyone happen to know the answer? The extra tickets will be release on Monday the 20th of February for the rest of the run. Also from 1st of march day seats will be available. More info on there website almeida.co.uk/whats-on/hamlet/16-feb-2017-22-apr-2017Ah! Looks like they've updated the site since my initial post! Last week it said "before February 17th." Thanks for bringing that to my attention! You wouldn't happen to know what time of day Almeida usual begins their ticket sales, would you? Would it likely be at midnight or more like 10am?
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 8, 2017 21:07:10 GMT
Anyone know when exactly the next round of tix goes on sale? The site says "Before the opening performance on February 17th." Does that mean that the tix will be released ON the 17th before the first performance? Or on a date TBD that will definitely be before the 17th? And if it's the former, do we know what time of day it will be? Any info would be helpful. Sincerely, a silly theatre-goer who didn't book when he had the chance Sorry to be "that guy," but I'd just like to re-iterate my question from earlier (quoted above), since it looked like it might have gotten lost among the other posts pretty immediately. Anyone happen to know the answer?
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 1, 2017 20:51:04 GMT
Anyone know when exactly the next round of tix goes on sale? The site says "Before the opening performance on February 17th." Does that mean that the tix will be released ON the 17th before the first performance? Or on a date TBD that will definitely be before the 17th? And if it's the former, do we know what time of day it will be? Any info would be helpful.
Sincerely, a silly theatre-goer who didn't book when he had the chance
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Post by sondheimhats on Feb 1, 2017 0:33:11 GMT
Thanks for the heads up! Got a preview-rate ticket in the front row for the first week. Excited!
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 31, 2017 22:55:09 GMT
Thanks! Good to know!
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 31, 2017 22:47:26 GMT
Anyone know what time general tickets go on sale tomorrow? I'm guessing something like 10am?
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 28, 2017 11:22:43 GMT
I saw the first preview on Thursday. I enjoyed it much more than I thought I would. I had read the play, but did not enjoy it at all (it doesn't read nearly as well as Duchess of Malfi). Seeing it live, however, was highly entertaining. The production is much funnier than I would have anticipated. It seems the director is aware of how ridiculous the play is, and has allowed some room for humour, without completely making a mockery of the text. In fact, the text is very clearly delivered, and the story is surprisingly easy to follow. The acting is sort of all over the place, but also fun to watch. Some of the actors (especially the man playing Brachiano) are wildly over the top, to the point of (probably unintentional) hilarity. It's almost campy in it's ridiculousness, but very entertaining. Purists may be offended by the campiness, but personally I think it's just what the text needs to break it out of it's stuffiness. Some bizarre directorial and design choices (I think it was supposed to be Steampunk-esque?), but nothing that bothered me. It works well in the intimate space, and the candle-lighting is beautifully utilized.
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 28, 2017 11:12:42 GMT
I saw it at the National, and really enjoyed it. It's definitely bold and risky in terms of the tone and subject matter, but I think it does it really well. The staging is beautiful. If you go, I would recommend reading the playwright's note in the program (which is free). It really puts the play in context, and sheds light on why it takes the form it does.
My girlfriend saw it with me at the National, and she had already seen it in Edinburgh. Interestingly, she found that it stood out more in London than in Edinburgh. She felt that it was actually too similar to the other shows she'd seen at the festival, i.e "here's another 60-minute two-hander about a topical subject, told in an unexpected way, with creative staging effects." I've never been to the festival so can't speak to how accurate that is, but just though I'd share her perspective since she's seen it in both places.
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 24, 2017 23:50:59 GMT
We had Juliet Stevenson as Betty and Lia Williams as Mary. Which is as it should be I think. It's a great yarn. No idea why they have the ridiculous idea to start at 7 though. Anyhoo, Juliet was marvellous. She really does have a wonderful voice and there's not many people who can cry like her. For the first half Lia Williams took me back to that dreadful Sarah Snook in 'The Master Builder' at the Old Vic, waving her arms around like a windmill in old Amsterdam. I'd have chopped her head off there and then to be honest. She calmed down in the second half but I did get the impression that she was ACTING DARLING rather a lot. Just curious as to why you think that pairing is "as it should be," if you didn't think Williams was very good?
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 23, 2017 10:21:35 GMT
If you lose, yes. However, the times that I've won TodayTix lotteries, I've usually gotten the notification later. That's weird. What if people turn it down? Don't they draw someone else? So, obviously I'm speculating here, but what I gather is that they select a large number of losers first, then start narrowIng the list down somehow. I think they select some backup winners, like a wait list. Sometimes I've gotten my "Better luck next time" 2 hours to curtain - in those cases I assume I was on the backup list, but nobody forfeited their ticket. One time they actually called me to offer a forfeited lotto ticket AFTER they'd already sent me a rejection. Not so sure what happened there.
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 22, 2017 22:08:59 GMT
But those people living too far away to dayseat.. Will they be able to reach the theatre in a short notice? Last time I tried lottery for Lazarus it took ridiculous amount of time for them to send back the results. I recieved "better luck next time" almost at 1 p.m. which was 2 hours before the show. Bit annoying since I was planning another show in case I didn't win (I managed to get there eventually thogh). I dayseated too many times to count and ALWAYS got a seat - you just need to ask around and be sure you beat the queue beore it gets too long. And yes, you meet wonderful people there, share your previous theatre experiences and all. And for what it's worth in case you're not getting a ticket you know it at 10 am and can arrange another show on the day (so your precious time is not really lost).
I don't know about matinees but for evening shows it's normally four hours notice. If you lose, yes. However, the times that I've won TodayTix lotteries, I've usually gotten the notification later.
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Post by sondheimhats on Jan 20, 2017 11:28:48 GMT
Ok well, I didn't think it was that bad at all. I mean, it's definitely too long, definitely has sections that drag. But I think there's a lot of cool can stuff going on. I thought the acting was all very strong - almost no weak links. The design is very effective and atmospheric. The production wasn't especially creative, but I think they have a clear sense of the text and emotion behind it.
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