lorannah

This was another slightly silly week of theatre (though nothing can beat the 8 show week of doom) - so with four plays squeezed in (and a resignation), I've split the diary into two posts. First up, as I seemed to spend most of the start of the week at Sloane Square, it's the Royal Court Edition.

So this week I've seen:

20. 14th February 2011 - The Heretic, Royal Court Downstairs (Play - Bean)
21. 15th February 2011 - Our Private Life, Royal Court Upstairs (Play - Rozo)


( The Heretic )

( Our Private Life )

Although this was a three show week (I should have known the two show a week rule would never work) - it's only a one show blog as I've only talked about the other two shows recently. Links included below.

So this week I've seen:

17. 4th February 2011 - The History Boys, Rose Theatre Kingston (Play - Bennett)
... 15b. 5th February 2011 - As You Like It, RSC at the Roundhouse (Play - Shakespeare) - PREVIOUSLY REVIEWED HERE
... 12b. 5th February 2011 - Julius Caesar, RSC at the Roundhouse (Play - Shakespeare) - PREVIOUSLY REVIEWED HERE


( The History Boys )

So this week I've also seen:

13. 27th January 2011 - King Lear, Donmar Warehouse (Shakespeare)
14. 29th January 2011 - King Lear, RSC at the Roundhouse (Shakespeare)

Originally  I was going to do this weeks shows as three posts, instead of the four that it's ended up as and that's mostly due to the two Lear's. Given that I saw them one after another and it's inevitable that I'm going to end up comparing the two - it seemed silly not to write about them together. Anyhow - I'm extrememly glad that I saw both of them but as experiences go, it was something akin to being repeatedly battered around the head - in the best way possibly - but still battered. By the end of the pair, I felt like my brain had bled out of my ears and that I desperately needed a drink (may be one of only two people who associate Shakespeare with whisky). I really can't imagine how the actors get through these plays, especially twice a day.

( King Lear - Donmar )

( King Lear - RSC )

OK, well this has been a bit slower getting up than normal - mostly because I did the most ridiculous week of theatre ever - seven days, eight plays (actually I'd squeezed them all into six days), several hours queuing in the cold and a pub crawl. Insanity! In some ways it was too much theatre and all a bit overwhelming - but on the other hand nearly all the plays were excellent and my mind is buzzing in a way that only this sort of cross-pollination of ideas promotes. Anyhow, it does mean I've had to split these reviews thoughts into four posts this week. This one's the non-Shakespeare edition (so much Shakespeare!). I'll try and get them up as soon as possible.

So this week I've seen:

9. 24th January 2011 - Tiger Country, Hampstead Theatre (Nina Raine)
10. 25th January 2011 - Three Sisters, Sovremennik at the Noel Coward (Chekhov)


( Tiger Country )

( Three Sisters )

A rough list of what theatre I saw in 2010, may be the odd mistake here and there, records not being my skill - but mostly right. And scary. Somewhat pleased that my theatre going got much more interesting as the year wore on. Think it is fairly obvious when I was living in Stratford.

 

( And the winner is... )

3) JULIET:- But as much as I Iove Romeo, this production is all about Juliet for me. Mariah Gale is amazing. She practically glows throughout this for me. I never fail to find the way she throws herself around the dance in the ball scene enthralling, or how quickly her mind seems to work. She is so clever and bright and so determined in every single moment, even if the next moment will be entirely different. She is committed to her very core. She reminds me a lot of Mecutio oddly, they are similar in a lot of ways, which obviously adds another dimension to her relationship with Romeo. And as I said before I think she becomes something of an anchor for Romeo, in the way that nothing else has been and when he thinks she is dead – he’s cast loose and desperate. This was particularly true for me when I saw Mariah against Dyfan, who was an excellent, though very different, understudy Romeo – his Romeo (which I also rather loved) was much more hesitant and self doubting and it worked wonderfully against Juliet’s certainty – her appeal was so obvious and then his fascination with/devotion to her was so appealing for her, because I think she is so often not noticed at the beginning of the play... Ummm... sorry tangent. But, yep, I actually think Juliet is one of my absolute favourite heroines almost solely based on Mariah Gale’s performance.



4) COSTUMES:- I think the costumes have probably been discussed by more people than anything else in the production – costumes generally seem to upset people in the theatre. Rupert Goold is definitely doing something interesting with them in this – with a mix of costumes from Elizabethan to Steampunk to Pirate to Modern and I can’t even begin to understand or explain everything he’s doing with it. But I do love it – particularly all the gorgeous dresses for the girls (the way the servants dresses move fill me with envy – even though they do seem a bit rich for their social class) and Lord Capulet’s ridiculous (and awesome) boots. But what I love most is that the way Romeo and Juliet are separated from those surrounding them by their modern clothes but also that it makes that moment when they see each other at the ball, it gives them an instant connection and recognition. It makes their attraction palpable for the audience.



5) THE CRAZY CAPULETS:- Almost as much as I love Juliet – I love her crazy, twisted, incestuous family. This production for me is as much about watching the Capulet family tearing each other apart. One of my favourite scenes is the one at their breakfast table in the second half where you see them shift between grief and forced closeness and violent anger. It’s both disturbing and compelling and it’s the real driving force of the play. One of the little choices they made with this production that I think is awesome is that during the dance you suddenly spot Tybalt and Lady Capulet kissing – passionately and that tiny moment throws everything into a different light (and has given me a huge fanon about how Tybalt should really be the head of the family by right) – it heightens Lady Capulet’s grief at his death, focuses the tension between Tybalt and Lord Capulet, deepens Tybalts frustration and barely controlled aggression, and provokes Capulets desire for control. I could watch the relationship between those three playing out for hours.



6) DISEMPOWERMENT:- Alongside the violence and passion in this production, there’s a deep vein of powerlessness and disempowerment as well. I’ve already mentioned this in terms of the Prince and I certainly see it within the Friar and the young lovers, but for me its best represented by Lord Capulet. Every other production I’ve seen has played Capulet as all powerful and I understand that desire, but in this he is wearing the mask of power to hide how little he truly has and how much is beyond his control. And it works so much better for me – it’s why he is so intent on controlling Juliet, she is his last opportunity. I think it also motivates a lot of the other characters to their most desperate acts – whether it’s Tybalt’s fighting or Mecutio’s bravado or the lover’s suicide – they’re all trying to take back some control, to leave some mark of themselves. Also this is one of those issues that I love to see explored (wade through my Drunks review for more evidence... much more evidence).



7) DANCE:- Ah, I have already described this Verona as throbbing with anger and passion in the fight at the beginning, but the joyful, energetic side of that is carried through to the Capulet Ball. It never fails to fill me with glee when the play reaches it. The fun of it all is infectious. There are scantily clad people and chanting and dashing around and fire literally bursting from the floor. And there are lots of bits o bits nd there are lots of bitsthe floor. And there are lots of bits are scantily clad people and chanting and dashing around af choreographical pairing that fill me with happiness – Tybalt dances with the nurse, Juliet dances with her father – it is the little glimpses of relationships at their best we only see at their worst, if at all. And then in the middle of that you get Juliet and Romeo’s first meeting, and once Juliet stuck her tongue out at him and my heart all but exploded. :D



8) MUSIC:- Obviously a big part of the dance scene is the music within it (Morrocan inspired, or so I’ve heard I think) – but there are bits and pieces of music throughout that I think are awesome. From the choral chanting at the beginning that issues you into the theatre to the beautiful piece of music that Romeo is listening to her just before he hears of Juliet’s ‘death’. I personally don’t like the way the news is sung to him but I am sort of digging the idea my friend raised of Balthasar as a castrato (even more disempowerment).



9) BANISHED:- My other favourite scene (I have lost count of how many favourites I have and why are there no pictures of it???) is the way they do the two banished scenes, overlapping each other – so clever and the way Romeo and Juliet echo each other gives me so many feelings. They make it feel like the end of the world. Plus all four actors absolutely nail these scenes.



10) PARIS’S FLOWERS:- A very little one to end with and a bit silly but even whilst I think this production clearly shows that Paris and Juliet completely wouldn’t work (their brains just work differently) it also makes me sigh a little that Paris spends the whole play carrying his flowers for Juliet around, trying to give them to her – until he finally has to scatter them on her grave. It’s sort of sweet.


So there you go and I've barely touched on some awesome parts of the production - Jonjo's Mecutio! Noma's Nurse! Forbe's Friar Laurence! The fight scenes!
 

Ok, so last year I saw a lot moer plays than musicals (partly because most musicals are just so damn expensive) - so instead of a top 5, I'm going to do a top 10. And in an attempt to keep my sanity I'm going to try and attempt miracles and keep this a bit shorter. Yeah, we'll see how that goes....


( Onwards... )

PART TWO

OK, so one of my very loose resolutions for this year is to try and keep a record of what I'm seeing theatre wise and what I've thought about it, mostly because my memory is truly apalling. So, hopefully, once a week-ish I'll post a round-up of what I've been to. This week I'm cheating a little as I'm going to include things from before the turn of the year (though I won't count them) and won't talk about some things that do count - because I already did and will do again in at least one case. Also, a question for those out there who may be as pedantic as I am - I'm not going to count shows more than once in a year (i.e. repeat viewings) - but should I count shows I've seen in previous years? They're not new for me, but they are new for the year? Decisions, decisions.

So this week (ish) I've seen:

a. 30th December 2010 - The Three Musketeers, Rose Kingston (Musical)
b. 31st December 2010 - Get Santa!, Royal Court (Musical / Kids)
1. 1st January 2011 - The Winter's Tale, RSC at the Roundhouse (Shakespeare)
2. 1st January 2011 - Romeo and Juliet, RSC at the Roundhouse (Shakespeare)
3. 3rd January 2011 - An Ideal Husband, Vaudeville Theatre (Wilde)


( The Three Musketeers )

( Get Santa! )

( Winters Tale / Romeo and Juliet )

( An Ideal Husband )

 

I am feeling a little more human today, though still not quite - at least I am not fool enough to say I will never drink again. I have more RSC booked after all.  So... Post number 2. This time it's TV fandoms. :D


( Downton Abbey )

( The IT Crowd )

One more post to come.