Tag: Steff Langley

Easter by August Strindberg, The Pit, 25 February 1995

We went on a bit of a Strindberg fest that February – this the second of two Strinds in one month. The first was The Dance of Death at The Almeida:

The Dance Of Death by August Strindberg, Almeida Theatre, 11 February 1995

My log says that we thought Easter “excellent” wheras I rated The Dance Of Death “superb”. Not sure whether one of those big adjectives trumps the other. We clearly very much enjoyed both plays/productions.

Katie Mitchell directed Easter and the cast was excellent. A young Lucy Whybrow picked up an Ian Charleson Award for her role as Eleanora in this production. Adrian Rawlins played Elis, Susan Brown played the mother and Philip Locke played the sinister Lindkvist.

Here is the Theatricalia entry for this production.

A wonderful preview of this one and The Dance of Death by Paul Taylor survives in The Independent on-line – click here.

Taylor does mention this production in the review I posted for The Dance Of Death. Nothing else that I can find on-line from 1995.

It was excellent – take our words for it.

Or if you don’t like our word, try this Michael Billington clipping:

Billington On EasterBillington On Easter Sat, Jan 28, 1995 – 26 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Or try Kate Kellaway:

Kate Kellaway On EasterKate Kellaway On Easter Sun, Jan 29, 1995 – 75 · The Observer (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

The Seagull by Anton Chekhov, Barbican Theatre, 14 September 1991

Stellar cast for this RSC production of the great Chekhov play. Alfred Burke, Simon Russell Beale, Amanda Root, John Carlisle, Susan Fleetwood, Roger Allam…to name but a few. In the capable hands of Terry Hands.

The Theatricalia entry for this one can be found here.

Bobbie and I both enjoyed this production a lot.

I hadn’t realised that this production was Terry Hands’s swansong for the RSC, but Nicholas de Jongh made much of that fact while praising the production in The Guardian:

De Jongh on SeagullDe Jongh on Seagull Sat, Jul 13, 1991 – 21 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Singer by Peter Flannery, The Pit, 9 June 1990

I saw this one with Bobbie and I recall we both found it very powerful, although a bit long for its relatively slight story.

What fine acting. Antony Sher & Malcolm Storrey in particular, but a fine supporting cast and Terry Hands directing.

The Theatricalia entry for this one can be found here.

Nicholas de Jongh gave it a good but not ecstatic review in The Guardian:

de Jongh on Singerde Jongh on Singer Sat, Mar 31, 1990 – 21 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com