The End Of History… by Jack Thorne, Royal Court Theatre, 29 June 2019

The play takes place over two decades, starting in 1997 soon after the Blair government took power. It is a chamber play about a nuclear family, the parents being firmly of the left.

The Royal Court resource for this play/production can be found here.

We saw a preview of this play/production and were both really taken with it.

It is hard to explain why this play is so good. It’s just beautifully well written. All of the characters are flawed and yet likeable. We wanted to know what was going to happen to all of them.

The acting is top notch. Lesley Sharp has been a favourite of mine for several decades. David Morrisey is also always good value. Indeed all of the cast were fine actors and well suited to their roles.

No gimmicks – it’s simply a super production of a very interesting new play.

Formal reviews, once they come out, will be available through this link.

If you get the chance to go see it…go see it.

Meanwhile, the drama of our evening was only just beginning when the curtain call was taken. We’d agreed to go on to Jo and Sheyda’s cyber party in Tottenham – another story for another blog piece – except that we decided to change into our gear at the Royal Court.

Having checked with the staff, we ascertained that none of the loos are designated by gender any more; they are designated as “urinals and cubicals” or “cubicals only”, so we would be welcome to change in the outer area of the cubicles one.

But when Janie and I went through the “cubicals only” door together, several women in that area started hissy-fitting. How very unwoke and cis-gendered that incident was.

Still, we retired to the relatively pokey but safer space of the disabled toilet to transform ourselves into cyber-folk:

The End Of History…Hertory…Theytory?

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.