Tag: Hugh Vanstone

Birthday by Joe Penhall, Royal Court Theatre, 14 July 2012

After all the excitement of the previous evening at the Orange Tree in Richmond:

Mottled Lines by Archie W Maddocks, Orange Tree Theatre, 13 July 2012

…this evening at the theatre seemed remarkably sedate and incident free.

We are fans of Joe Penhall’s writing – in particular we thought Blue/Orange was a cracking good play. This one, with a stellar cast at the Royal Court, sounded intriguing.

Here is a link to the Royal Court resource on this play/production.

The conceit of the play is the idea that there is a new procedure that enables the man, rather than the woman, to carry a baby through pregnancy and birth.

 

Below you can see the trailer:

The idea does have lots of room for comedy, but in truth we found it rather obvious comedy and thought the piece was a little underwhelming.

It was well received by the audience our night, not least my friend John from the gym who was sitting near us.

It got reasonable/mixed reviews – click here for a link that finds them.

The Physicists by Friedrich Durrenmatt, Donmar Warehouse, 9 June 2012

What a palaver.

I was really keen to see this rarely-performed play, having absolutely loved reading it “back in the day”. Further, it was a cracking good cast, Josie Rourke directing – unquestionably one for us.

So we booked it, way in advance – as soon as tickets became available to members…

…for 2 June – which turned out to be the date of Charlotte and Chris’s wedding.

My bad? Janie’s bad? For both of us, presumably it was so obvious that the first weekend in June was the youngsters’ wedding weekend that we were both far too polite to book out the date in our diaries. I’ll write up the wedding in the fullness of time.

For The Physicists, of course, it was “impossible” for mere ordinary members like us to swap our tickets by the time we spotted our error…

…but it was not impossible for one of Janie’s high falutin’ clients who had some sort of corporate or “patron” membership to arrange a switcheroo for us. Thank you, anonymous high-falutin’ client – we were truly grateful to you – I’m sure Janie also found ways of thanking you gift-wise, foot-wise, etc.

With the benefit of hindsight, of course, perhaps we would have been better off without this one.

What a mess.

All style. All star-quality. No substance.

Perhaps it has dated badly. Perhaps it was adapted in a way that simply didn’t work for us.

This was the culmination of an especially disappointing week of special treats for me, given the unprecedented lack of cricket at Edgbaston on the preceding days:

Long To Rain Over Us, England v West Indies, Edgbaston, Days One and Two, 7 & 8 June 2012

Oh dear.

Here is a link to the excellent downloadable “Study Guide” pack from the Donmar on this production.

Here is the trailer for The Physicists:

Here is a link to reviews and such – mostly less than special.

Small Change by Peter Gill, Donmar Warehouse, 12 April 2008

I’m not too sure why we booked this. to be honest.

We had not enjoyed Cardiff East at the National 10+ years earlier, despite the presence of the wonderful (ex NewsRevue) Di Botcher in that play/production.

Small Change is a revival of one of Peter Gill’s earlier plays around similar subject matter. So why we thought we might like another of Peter Gill’s working class Welsh drab-fests I cannot imagine.

Here is a link to the Donmar’s excellent downloadable Study Guide on the production.

Anyway, we didn’t much like it, although it was a less bleak and more lyrical piece than the relentlessly miserable Cardiff East.

…you get the drift. Wonderfully well acted and produced. It was just one of those minimalist pieces that didn’t really float Janie’s or my boat.

 

 

Mouth To Mouth by Kevin Elyot, Royal Court Theatre, 3 March 2001

Janie and I had loved The Day I Stood Still…

The Day I Stood Still by Kevin Elyot, Cottesloe Theatre, 24 January 1998

…so thoroughly expected to enjoy Kevin Elyot’s next play, Mouth To Mouth, which indeed we did. Not quite to the same extent as The Day I Stood Still – Mouth to Mouth was quite dark – but still we liked it a lot. Fine acting and thought provoking writing.

Here is the Theatricalia entry. Michael Maloney, Lindsay Duncan, Adam Godley, Peter Wight, Andrew McKay, Lucy Whybrow and Barnaby Kay, directed by Ian Rickson. What’s not to like?

Charles Spencer in The Telegraph loved it.

Mouth Telegraph Spencer Mouth Telegraph Spencer 8 Feb 2001 The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Nicholas de Jongh also spoke very highly of it:

Mouth de Jongh Standard Mouth de Jongh Standard 7 Feb 2001 Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Paul Taylor in The Indy was more measured, sensing that Kevin Elyot constantly returns to the same themes…but does so very well!

Mouth Taylor Indy Mouth Taylor Indy 7 Feb 2001 The Independent (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Life x 3 by Yasmina Reza, Lyttelton Theatre, 2 December 2000

Janie and I rated this one in my log:

very good.

We also both remeber it quite well, 25 years later. That might have a fair bit to do with the superb cast: Mark Rylance, Harriet Walter, Imelda Staunton and Oliver Cotton. The production was directed by Matthew Warchus. We didn’t recogognise his name then but we certainly do now. Here is the Theatricalia entry for this one.

Yasmina Reza (as translated by Christopher Hampton) was all the rage in the English speaking world back then. This was our fourth go at one of hers – Art having been the piece that kicked off the Reza fashion…

Art by Yasmina Reza, Wyndham’s Theatre, 11 January 1997

…we’d even seen one of hers at The Almeida just 10 weeks earlier:

Conversations After A Burial by Yasmina Reza, Almeida Theatre, 16 September 2000

Anyway, apart from Art, with thought Life x 3 to be the most interesting and memorable of Reza’s works.

Again we went to a preview, so we were ahead of the critics. What did they think? Here’s Charles Spencer who seemed pretty impressed with it, at least as entertainment if not as profound drama:

Life Spencer Telegraph Life Spencer Telegraph 11 Dec 2000 The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Kate Bassett wrote an interesting profile-cum-review with some equivocation about this piece and Reza-ism generally:

Life Bassett Indy Life Bassett Indy 10 Dec 2000 The Independent (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Our friend, Michael Billington, was not at all sure about this piece:

Life Billington Guardian Life Billington Guardian 8 Dec 2000 The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Nicholas de Jongh was impressed, while spotting something a bit Ayckbournish about the piece, which I remember thinking/saying myself at the time:

Life de Jongh Standard Life de Jongh Standard 8 Dec 2000 Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

The Caretaker by Harold Pinter, Comedy Theatre, 10 November 2000

We booked this preview, leaping in ahead of the reviews, for a Friday evening, at the start of a big weekend of “show-going” for us. We were all booked up for Saturdays and I would have been very keen indeed to see this.

Rupert Graves as Mick, Douglas Hodge as Aston, Michael Gambon as Davies, directed by Patrick Marber, in a 40th anniversary production. Wow. Here’s the Theatricalia entry for this production.

I had seen the play before – on a school trip in 1977 at The Greenwich Theatre, with Max Wall playing Davies, Anthony Higgins playing Mick and Peter Guinness as Aston. I’ll write that up in the fulness of time. Meanwhile, here’s the Theatricalia entry for that production.

Undocumented (although it will be Ogblogged at some point) is my own performance as Aston for AO-level drama at School in 1979.

But returning to 2000, let’s have a look at how Janie and I got on at The Comedy Theatre – now renamed the Pinter Theatre, as it happens.

Nicholas de Jongh wrote very highly of it, wondering only about Gambon not quite ringing true:

Caretaker de Jongh Standard Caretaker de Jongh Standard 16 Nov 2000 Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Dominic Cavendish also seems to have cognitive dissonance in the matter of the Gambon performance:

Caretaker Cavendish Telegraph Caretaker Cavendish Telegraph 17 Nov 2000 The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Our friend Michael Billington gave this one a rare five stars. Say no more:

Caretaker Billington Guardian Caretaker Billington Guardian 16 Nov 2000 The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Susannah Clapp also gushed…

Caretaker Clapp Observer Caretaker Clapp Observer 19 Nov 2000 The Observer (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Paul Taylor agreed.

Caretaker Taylor Indy Caretaker Taylor Indy 16 Nov 2000 The Independent (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

You get the idea. I did the right thing booking a preview on a Friday. You wouldn’t have been able to get a ticket for love nor money once the reviews came out.

Janie’s diary tells me that we were in Row C. Mine tells me that I parted company with £60, which I suppose was sort-of real money back then.

Oh, but worth it. I will return to the topic of Gambon’s drifty accents when i write up my own Pinter acting experience from 1979. Watch that space.

The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov, Cottesloe Theatre, 23 September 2000

The previous week we saw Yasmina Reza’s “Conversations…”, which Michael Billington described as Chekhovian…

Conversations After A Burial by Yasmina Reza, Almeida Theatre, 16 September 2000

Well if you thought that Reza’s work was Chekhovian, Michael, just wait until you see The Cherry Orchard.

Another Saturday night at the theatre which didn’t raise a comment in my log at the time. Perhaps we were overdoing at bit at that time.

Amazing cast: Maxine Peake, Roger Allam, Michael Bryant, Vanessa Redgrave, Eve Best, Corin Redgrave (yes, that was two Redgraves for the price of one), and many other fine acting folk, directed by Trevor Nunn.

Nicholas de Jongh liked it but didn’t gush:

Cherry de Jongh Standard Cherry de Jongh Standard 22 Sept 2000 Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Michael Billington also rates it good without rating it great:

Cherry Billington Guardian Cherry Billington Guardian 23 Sept 2000 The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Perhaps my null log entry was about right for this one.

Five Kinds Of Silence by Shelagh Stephenson, Lyric Hammersmith, 24 June 2000

No comment on this one in my log. Not necessarily a bad thing but also not necessarily a good thing.

Fabulous cast – including Tim Pigott-Smith, Lizzy McInnerny, Gina McKee & Linda Bassett. Ian Brown directed. But in truth I remember little about this one – even after looking at some of the reviews.

Paul Taylor was impressed:

Five Kinds Taylor Independent

Article from 3 Jun 2000 The Independent (London, Greater London, England)

Michael Billington was less impressed:

Five Kinds Billington Guardian

Article from 5 Jun 2000 The Guardian (London, Greater London, England)

Nicholas de Jongh was also somewhat underwhelmed by the play:

Five Kinds de Jongh Standard

Article from 5 Jun 2000 Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England)

Janie and I went to a gastro pub restaurant, The Chiswick, afterwards.

Orpheus Descending by Tennessee Williams, Donmar Warehouse, 17 June 2000

Really good.

That’s what I wrote in my log. And I meant it.

I had previously seen Peter Hall’s excellent 1988 production of Orpheus Descending, with Vanessa Redgrave, Jean-Marc Barr and other fine acting folk:

Orpheus Descending by Tennessee Williams, Theatre Royal Haymarket, With Jilly, Followed By Annalisa’s Party, 10 December 1988

Janie is especially partial to a bit of Tennessee Williams. Although I suspected that I would not be seeing a better production that the one I saw in 1988. the lure of Helen Mirren and Saskia Reeves was enough for me. Also involved, a young Stuart Townsend in the male lead, a yet-to-fall-foul-of-my-displeasure Nick Hytner directing, ably assisted by a young Josie Rourke.

Our friend, Michael Billington, was quite impressed:

Orpheus Billington Guardian

Article from 28 Jun 2000 The Guardian (London, Greater London, England)

Paul Taylor described Hytner’s production as “powerful, if over-emphatic”:

Orpheus Taylor Independent

Article from 28 Jun 2000 The Independent (London, Greater London, England)

Kate Bassett wrote well of it in the Telegraph:

Orpheus Bassett Telegraph

Article from 29 Jun 2000 The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England)

Nicholas de Jongh described Hytner’s production as “staid”, but still rated the experience “very good”:

Orpheus de Jongh Standard

Article from 28 Jun 2000 Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England)

I wrote “really good”, not “very good”. I wonder whether the LLMs detect a difference between those two ratings?

The Lady In The Van by Alan Bennett, Queen’s Theatre, 4 February 2000

This play/production was hugely hyped and got rave reviews when it opened a few week’s before we attended. I think we applied for our tickets before the show opened, opting to wait until good seats were available. Even then, we needed to opt for a Friday rather than a Saturday to get what we wanted. Such was the pull of the West End, not least Maggie Smith…or rather “Dame Maggie”…in those days.

Here’s a link to the Theatricalia entry for this one.

Here’s a gushing preview from The Telegraph, by way of example:

Dame Maggie Telegraph PreviewDame Maggie Telegraph Preview 03 Dec 1999, Fri The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Despite Janie’s reservations about Dame Maggie, we were drawn in and actually rather enjoyed this production. The play is a little contrived and mawkish, but the performances, especially Dame Maggie’s, were excellent, as was the intriguing van-themed set.

Van Butler IndependentVan Butler Independent 12 Dec 1999, Sun The Independent (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Charles Spencer also loved it:

Van Spencer TelegraphVan Spencer Telegraph 09 Dec 1999, Thu The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Some equivocation in Nicholas de Jongh’s Standard review, that reflects my thoughts on the play/production more than the utter gush reviews:

Van de Jongh Standard

Praise with some equivocation also from our friend Michael Billington in the Guardian:

Van Billington GuardianVan Billington Guardian 08 Dec 1999, Wed The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Looking back 25 years Janie and I are both glad we saw this one.