We loved this play and production.
In those days, Ralph Fiennes was one of my buddies as Lambton Place…
…OK, what I really mean is that I’d quite often see him there and we were nodding acquaintances.
Anyway, Fiennes was doing great theatre work in those days, not least at the Almeida, which was having a heyday under the joint leadership of Iain McDiarmid (also one of my nodding acquaintances in the Notting Hill neighbourhood back then, as it happens) and Jonathan Kent.
I wrote in my log:
Very good production. Ian McDiarmid near stole the show the night we went understudying as Kosykh.
Here is a link to the Theatricalia entry, which informs us that John cater was supposed to play Kosykh.
Anyway…
Charles Spencer loved it in The Telegraph:
Ivanov Spencer Telegraph 20 Feb 1997, Thu The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com
Nicholas de Jongh was less sure in The Standard:
Ivanov, de Jongh, Standard 20 Feb 1997, Thu Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com
Paul taylor spoke highly of it in The Independent:
Ivanov, Taylor, Independent 21 Feb 1997, Fri The Independent (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com
While my friend, Michael Billington, loved it:
Ivanov, Billington, Guardian 20 Feb 1997, Thu The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com
…as did we (have I mentioned that yet?) – then we left the country for a few weeks.