|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 16, 2024 9:43:43 GMT
Am reviewing on Thursday so will share my thoughts!
The Masque of the Worthies is going to have to be radically rethought to fit a contemporary setting I would imagine.
Also I can't see a Sir Nathaniel in the cast list.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 12, 2024 23:29:45 GMT
It's out of copyright now which saves a lot of hassle.i can just imagine a set made up of Georgie's watercolour sketches.
A vocal setting of the Moonlight called Un Po di Mu
And a reprise of Au Reservoir to end Act 2.
Yes, it would have to be a passion project. But theatre is all about passion.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 12, 2024 18:13:49 GMT
Anderson and Petty might be the right partnership
Would love to see them tackle a longer form piece
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 12, 2024 17:48:29 GMT
I know it has been tried before but I think the Mapp and Lucia stories would make a great chamber musical. Lots of fun period pastiche combined with memorable characters and wonderful catty lyrics/dialogue.
We have some fantastic older MT stars who would be fab in it.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 11, 2024 16:44:43 GMT
Matinee today cancelled due to cast illness Oh dear!!! More bad luck! It is starting to look more like bad planning now
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 11, 2024 11:47:30 GMT
I loved the musical side of the production. Top class orchestra and the singing well delivered. Shadow has a lighter sound than many who have sung the role but it worked.
I don't yet know if it was a technical failure or bad lighting design that left the singers in darkness in many numbers last night. But it did impact on my enjoyment.
The production needs editing. Just too many ideas buzzing around. And I thought we left chairs being endlessly moved around the by the chorus back in the 90s. Just so dated.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 11, 2024 11:41:50 GMT
If this had been in a venue known for artistic innovation, it might have stood a better chance.
It was never a project that held any appeal for me.
But if it had been programmed as part of a season at the Almeida or a Vic, it might have received internal company support to help with artistic development which may have delivered a better piece.
None of us like it when theatre folk lose their jobs. But the writing was on the wall long before today.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 4, 2024 15:54:10 GMT
Taken far too soon.
A formidable set of credits both stage and screen. But 60 is no age at all
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Apr 2, 2024 13:04:29 GMT
The West Wing gets my vote I rewatch it all at least once a year.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 27, 2024 23:11:25 GMT
Cosi was utterly charming.
The orchestra has never sounded better. The detail particularly in the obbligato sections was superb.
Dorabella pretty much stole the show for me. Rich, warm tone. Lovely even voice throughout her range. Pitch perfect characterisation. Well matched with a great young Guglielmo.
It didn't fully tackle the cruelty and misogyny at the core of the piece. But it was a top piece of entertainment with some real talent.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 27, 2024 16:50:24 GMT
No. What I am saying is this is a very inexperienced lead cast with no professional experience.
It is right that people have to start somewhere. One or two leads fresh out of drama school is not uncommon. But a principal cast with this little professional experience is exceedingly rare.
Learning how to sustain performances as part of a long run is not something a lead cast should be doing as their first gig.
A show or two in the ensemble and as a cover gives you that experience to help for when you do start taking lead roles.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 27, 2024 11:20:14 GMT
It is not acceptable to charge full price for a graduate showcase
Paying audiences deserve more than a bunch of leads making their professional debuts.
Yes, this sort of cast is cheap. But it does not inspire confidence
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 27, 2024 10:25:11 GMT
I could see that is what they were trying to do but because he spent the majority of his active stage time in various states of undress, that was harder to sustain
What they chose to do works within the construct of the production. I just felt that it lacked part of that sort of transgression.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 26, 2024 23:31:38 GMT
Death in Venice
So much to admire. Stunning work from the orchestra and chorus.
The use of circus performers was inspired and their work was almost beyond belief. Skill, stamina, flexibility and artistry
Mark LeBrocq probably gives the performance of his career.
But I struggled to love it.
Visually it is too monotone for the richness of the orchestration. I understand that budgets are v tight particularly for niche works. But it felt as if it was missing the grandeur it needed at times.
Also the character of Tadzio is supposed to be about 14. By casting someone who is very clearly a fully fledged adult took away what felt to me like a key point in the plot. I don't want the piece to in any way normalize paedophilic attraction. But the casting removed one of the elements of taboo which I think was important.
So much quality. So much to admire. But I didn't love it
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 25, 2024 22:30:12 GMT
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 24, 2024 22:21:43 GMT
Now that's what I call a cast
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 24, 2024 17:02:10 GMT
Hopefully rehearsals will bring it to an equivalent quality to this:
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 24, 2024 16:07:46 GMT
Neither part of the song fits her voice properly.
And breath control is not what it should be.
Hopefully by the end of rehearsals it will be a better integrated vocal performance
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 23, 2024 19:50:35 GMT
I am reviewing both productions this coming week. Going to be an exhausting but hopefully exciting time
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 23, 2024 19:49:45 GMT
What does 'the necessity of the play for today' mean?
Is it that the play tackles attitudes that are shockingly still present today in a number of forms?
Or is the point of the question is that the play is too offensive for modern audiences?
It is far from clear what point is being made
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 23, 2024 18:40:24 GMT
I directed this 5 years ago and had a ball. The script is taut and tells the story very clearly. Lots of music.
But the races and overall physicality are central to it.
I had a revolve, ramps and seats taken out to create the running track and I still remember the feeling of the cast running round during the curtain call to the main theme from the film. Unforgettable!
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 21, 2024 15:41:41 GMT
Makes sense to open a short run of a well known piece as a filler in August. Good for tourist and school holiday trade and the venue is then free again for a new piece in the autumn season.
The production is serviceable and The Vivienne does good work.
There are worse things out there
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 20, 2024 19:07:28 GMT
Let's not forget that many will never forgive her for dragging this on for years and wasting the valuable resources of Curve and her former agents.
She ruined her own career through being a homophobic bigot. Simple as that.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 20, 2024 17:45:39 GMT
FFS
it is time to block her father's organisation from the courts.
They waste the precious time of the courts seeking to entrench their bigotry in our society.
Enough is enough
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 15, 2024 16:24:17 GMT
Better than quite good!
The lyrics are very well put together and the whole thing has a good flow.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 14, 2024 20:42:32 GMT
Good theatre should provoke all kinds of feels.
It is not there to pander to those who put feels above theatre.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 14, 2024 1:06:26 GMT
I would imagine they haven't announced more cast as this is about to get pulled 👀 People are being booked for the band...
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 13, 2024 23:24:44 GMT
Almost certainly c or a variation among those lines.
They may not have one person in charge of keeping on top of submissions so it might just have slipped through the net. Or they get so many that keeping track is hard.
Don't get too disheartened. But open submission is a tough route
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 13, 2024 22:24:48 GMT
As long as the theatre and the agency aren't out of pocket, I don't honestly care where the cash comes from.
If it happens to take money out of the pockets of bigots, I can live with that.
|
|
|
Post by oxfordsimon on Mar 13, 2024 18:16:34 GMT
I could cope with some of the ideas. But I haven't heard Shakespeare so badly delivered since the infamous Troilus and Cressida.
Macbeth mumbled too much. Lady M just chopped up her speeches.
It was nothing to do with their accents and everything to do with poor text preparation and badly conceived sound design.
|
|