Tag: Stephen Brimson Lewis

Marat/Sade by Peter Weiss, Olivier Theatre, 24 May 1997

Actually the play is titled:

The Persecution and Assassination of Jean-Paul Marat as Performed by the Inmates of the Asylum of Charenton Under the Direction of the Marquis de Sade 

But for reasons of sheer laziness and delinquency amongst the arty classes, the title has been widely abbreviated to Marat/Sade.

Joking apart, we really liked this one. My log reads:

Very good. This was the Olivier “in the round” for renovations.

From memory, this was a reduced size of auditorium but with seating all around the stage, which worked very well for this play.production.

Jeremy Sams directed a fine cast including Anastasia Hille, Corin Redgrave, David Calder, Iain Mitchell and many others. The slightly bare Theatricalia entry can be found here.

Nicholas de Jongh in The Standard hated this production:

Marat Sade de Jongh StandardMarat Sade de Jongh Standard 15 May 1997, Thu Evening Standard (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Paul Taylor in The Independent was more impressed, although he found the production “over-light”:

Marat Sade Taylor IndyMarat Sade Taylor Indy 16 May 1997, Fri The Independent (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Michael Billington, like Paul Taylor, speaks well of the production in The Guardian, but not too well:

Marat Sade Billington GuardianMarat Sade Billington Guardian 15 May 1997, Thu The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

Charles Spencer in The Telegraph hated this play/production:

Marat Sade Spencer TelegraphMarat Sade Spencer Telegraph 19 May 1997, Mon The Daily Telegraph (London, Greater London, England) Newspapers.com

But we said “very good” which rather puts a stop to the debate on my Ogblog!

Les Parents Terribles by Jean Cocteau, Lyttelton Theatre, 4 June 1994

In theory this National theatre production should have been amazing. Alan Howard, Frances de la Tour, Sheila Gish, a young as yet little known Jude Law…

…but my log reads, “not bad. Not the greatest either”. That means we didn’t like it all that much.

Here is the Theatricalia entry for this production.

I think it was a little farce-like for our taste.

I cannot find any contemporaneous reviews for this one, so my vague memory will have to do…

..except that I do now have at least this Michael Billington clipping:

Billington On Les ParentsBillington On Les Parents Sat, May 7, 1994 – 28 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

…and this Michael Coveney clipping…

Coveney On Les ParentsCoveney On Les Parents Sun, May 8, 1994 – 71 · The Observer (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Our indifference to this production did not stop it from getting a West End transfer, nor did it stop Jude Law from winning “Outstanding Newcomer” awards for his performance, making this production seminal for him, if not necessarily all that special for us.

Somewhere by Judith Johnson, Cottesloe Theatre, 1 May 1993

Janie and I went threee times in a fortnight to see RNT Studio plays at the Cottesloe. This was the first of those three visits. It was a modern Liverpudlian play of the post-Thatcherism variety. We thought it was a very good play and really enjoyed (if that is the right word) this production.

Michael Church gave it a very good review in the Observer:

Observer May 1993 CottesloeObserver May 1993 Cottesloe Sun, May 9, 1993 – 55 · The Observer (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Michael Billington similarly applauded the project in The Guardian:

Billington Springboards May 1993Billington Springboards May 1993 Tue, May 4, 1993 – 23 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

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

Obviously I was better from my 48 hours of food poisoning by the Saturday. I’m pretty sure I went in to work on the Friday and then a full weekend of activities.

Now I have had written complaints from Jilly already about my handwriting, so the above page is only for artistic effect. Here is the entry for the Saturday:

Saturday 10 December: Driving lesson & Orpheus Descending With Jilly & Annalisa Party

There – that wasn’t so challenging, now, was it?

I remember really liking this play and production. What a fabulous cast.

The Theatricalia website lists the production thus.

Note that we saw this production three days before the stated first performance, so Jilly and I must have gone to see a preview.

Below is Michael Billington’s Guardian review:

Billington on OrpheusBillington on Orpheus Thu, Dec 15, 1988 – 28 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Below is Kate Kellaway’s Observer review

Kate Kellaway on OrpheusKate Kellaway on Orpheus Sun, Dec 18, 1988 – 40 · The Observer (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

They made a film based on that Peter Hall production with some (but not all) of the cast we saw in it. Here is the trailer for that movie – far more melodramatic looking than the stage production I remember, but still it should give you some idea:

For that particular evening, I’m sure that the original idea was that Bobbie would join me to see this play/production. But when she had to pull out for some reason, it made a great deal of sense for Jilly to act as sub, especially as we were both invited to Annalisa’s party and were given leave to be fashionably late arrivals.

In truth, I cannot remember specific details of this particular party at Annalisa’s place in Hinde Street, but her parties were always popular, always lavish in hospitality and always late nighters. At that time, just a couple of years after Annalisa had finished at Keele, I suspect it was a very Keeley crowd that night.

As the diary says, on the Sunday, I:

…went to G Jenny with Ma & Pa…

…the next day, quite probably a little tiredly and sore-headedly. But Grandma Jenny no doubt wanted to know all about my new flat and my new job, so I’ll guess that I was centre of attention that Sunday afternoon.

Mrs Klein by Nicholas Wright, Cottesloe Theatre, Followed By Dinner at RSJ, 19 November 1988

The diary is quite clear about this one:

I rated the play/production very good indeed at the time. I am pretty sure that Bobbie rated this highly too.

Here is a link to the Theatricalia entry for this production. Some cast: Gillian Barge, Francesca Annis and Zoe Wanamaker. Peter Gill directed.

There is a page about this production on Zoe Wanamaker’s website – here.

Below is Michael Billington’s Guardian review:

Billington on Mrs KleinBillington on Mrs Klein Fri, Aug 12, 1988 – 26 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Below is Michael ratcliffe’s Observer review:

Ratcliffe on Mrs KleinRatcliffe on Mrs Klein Sun, Aug 14, 1988 – 37 · The Observer (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

More than 20 years later, Janie and I went to see the revival of this play at the Almeida – which I also rated highly:

Mrs Klein by Nicholas Wright, Almeida Theatre, 24 October 2009

Bobbie and I went to RSJ’s after seeing the 1988 production. RSJ was one of our favourite places back then. I recall Janie liking that place too. It is still there in 2018 but apparently with a different formula.

That was a top notch evening back in November 1988.

Cymbeline by William Shakespeare, Olivier Theatre, With Bobbie, 15 November 1988

This production started its life at the Cottesloe, then went on tour and then returned to the National at the Olivier. Bobbie and I caught it on its return.

Theatricalia lists the production here.

I recall not much liking this play. We had seen a cast comprising mostly this ensemble perform The Tempest some months earlier, which I had loved. I think it was that experience that drew us to Cymbeline.

I also realised by then that I prefer smaller spaces than the Olivier – there was a comparatively impersonal feel to the Cymbeline and I remember wondering whether I would have liked it more in the Cottesloe.

Still, it was a fine production with an excellent cast. I wonder what Bobbie thought of it and/or recalls about it?

Below is Michael Billington’s Guardian review of Cymbeline:

Billington on CymbelineBillington on Cymbeline Mon, May 23, 1988 – 21 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Below is Michael Ratcliffe’s Observer review, which also covers The Tempest:

Ratcliffe on Tempest & CybelineRatcliffe on Tempest & Cybeline Sun, May 22, 1988 – 39 · The Observer (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

This was my last week working for Newman Harris, I was doing exam marking for Financial Training college to make a few extra bucks and on the preceding Monday my parents went on holiday. How do I remember all that?:

The Tempest by William Shakespeare, Cottesloe Theatre, 23 July 1988

This was a very good production of The Tempest at the National Theatre. Peter Hall directed it. Superb cast.

Here is the Theatricalia entry for this production.

Below is Michael Billington’s Guardian review of the Tempest

Billington On The TempestBillington On The Tempest Sat, May 21, 1988 – 17 · The Guardian (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

Below is Michael Ratcliffe’s Observer review of the Tempest and Cybeline:

Ratcliffe on Tempest & CybelineRatcliffe on Tempest & Cybeline Sun, May 22, 1988 – 39 · The Observer (London, Greater London, England) · Newspapers.com

It was part of repertory trio of productions of late Shakespeare plays, of which we also saw Cybeline a few months later:

Cymbeline by William Shakespeare, Olivier Theatre, With Bobbie, 15 November 1988

I rated this production very good. I think we benefited from seeing The Tempest in the intimate environment of the Cottesloe – certainly when compared with Cybeline at the Olivier.

Not sure what we did afterwards – the diary might have some info on that, which I shall add in the fullness of time if it does.