Paul in London Feed

Theatre: The Pitchfork Disney

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 06:30:00 PST

Wednesday night I was fortunate enough to see the first preview of The Pitchfork Disney at the Arcola Theatre in Dalston.

It is a mildly unnerving post-apocalyptic tale of dreams, nightmares, chocolate and things that bug you... Nothing is quite what it seems in this play. And through a series of monologues, there are laughs and shocks. It is hard to talk too much about the play without giving it away. But it is a showcase for some very talented actors.

Chris New - who was in the well-received movie Weekend - gives an intense performance as Presley. He is great to watch along with co-star Nathan Stewart-Jarrett (pictured) as Cosmo Disney. Both manage to make their crazy roles believable and interesting in as much as that is possible. Rounding out the cast is Mariah Gale and Steve Guadino...

Philip Ridley's play celebrates its 21st anniversary this year. While it may not be as shocking to audiences now as it was then. It does have a certain unnerving quality that remains, and this production does show the work at its best. The creepy theatre space of the Arcola - where there is a fine line between the ghosts of past industry that inhabited the building and organic beers - also adds to the tension.

It runs through to March. The musings of @johnnyfoxlondon and I follow (with apologies to Webcowgirl as she was stuck in the line for the ladies while we were boo-ing - or she was hiding somewhere after being disturbed by the show - I was not sure)...
Boo about pitchforks: Pitchfork Disney (mp3)

Theatre: First Light and Mr Darwin's Tree

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 06:30:00 PST

First Light - Trailer from Fionn Watts on Vimeo.

The King's Head Theatre in Islington is playing a season of plays by Murray Watts this month. I finally caught the double bill - First Light and Mr Darwin's Tree - on Thursday evening. It all makes for an evening of unexpected surprises. Laughs, shocks and a few revelations abound over the course of two very different pieces of theatre.

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Panto: Dick Whittington

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 04:30:00 PST

It's the tail-end of panto season. School is back, Christmas and New Year have come and gone and the holidays are over. But fortunately the New Wimbledon Theatre's Dick Whittington is a welcome hanger on from the period. Its funny, sharp and varied enough to keep people of all ages entertained. There's even a 3D film segment in the second half to scare the children. But top billing for this show is Dame Edna as the Spirit of London fairy helps Dick (and the show) along. The show gives and opportunity for Dame Edna to fly through the audience, riff on old routines and muse about the genre of the pantomime. It is hilarious stuff. The jokes about empty seats being the result of subscribers to the theatre from the posh parts of Wimbledon, who have since died, are comedy gold...

Of course when Dame Edna isn't around there is the good looking Sam Attwater as the hero and Anna Williamson as Alice along with a host of supporting characters that work so hard it is exhausting to watch. Even if you are not so sure whether pantomime is your cup of tea (it is a curious mix of children's comedy and adult filth), it is a hell of a night out... It finishes Sunday...

The Wimbleboo with johnnyfoxlondon on the train home (with apologies for the station announcements):
Wimbleboo: Dick Whittington (mp3)

Scenes of London: Sunday in the Park

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 04:30:00 PST

January in London doesn't have to be grey and miserable.

It can be crisp, sunny and green with a dog mid-distance wandering around for no real reason...

Theatre: Cirque Du Soleil - Totem

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 03:00:00 PST

Cirque Du Soleil's journey of the origin of the species - Totem - returns to the Royal Albert Hall for a limited run. Directed by Robert Lepage, it is a thrilling and beautiful show. People fly through the air, juggle, unicycle, play tricks and clown around. It is all spectacular stuff.

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Grim New Year: Sweeney Todd Preview

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Thu, 05 Jan 2012 09:00:00 PST

2012 looks set to be delightfully grim if this teaser trailer for the Sweeney Todd musical is any measure... It opens at the Adelphi in March 2012...

But it won't be all blood and murder... I'm off to see Cirque du Soleil's Totem tonight... More later...

Theatre: The Importance of Being Earnest The Musical

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 10:30:00 PST

The Importance of Being Earnest, The Musical currently playing at the Riverside Studios Hammersmith, turns out to be a nice little Christmas surprise. The show with a book by Douglas Livingstone and score by Adam McGuinness and Zia Moranne takes Oscar Wilde's play and turns it into a brisk and witty affair that captures the essence of the comedy while feeling like a distinct show in its own right.

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Music and Advertising: Millbank Tower

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 06:30:00 PST

In case you missed it, Millbank Tower earlier this week served as a showcase for a light show and performance by Deadmau5 to mark the launch of the new Nokia Lumia smartphone. Maybe this landmark building is getting a new groove (albeit through a phone and operating system that is a bit boxy)...

Theatre: Crazy For You (and those legs)

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Wed, 30 Nov 2011 06:00:00 PST

After a successful run at Regents Park Open Air Theatre this summer, Crazy For You is now at the Novello Theatre. I saw it at Regents Park and was not so crazy about it then. Now in a theatre and away from evening chills, planes flying overhead and the occasional moth, it is a chance to ignore those distractions and focus on the vibrant singing and dancing, and spectacular costumes. There is so much energy on stage conveyed through a series of spectacular dances. Legs kick, flip and dance their way through nearly three hours of entertainment. You will be exhausted just watching it.

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Theatre: A Round-Heeled Woman

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Sat, 26 Nov 2011 11:56:00 PST

A Round-Heeled Woman has just transferred from the Riverside Studios to the Aldwych Theatre. It is an opportunity for Sharon Gless (of Cagney and Lacey fame) to portray through part monologue / part drama the true story of Jane Juska. Juska is a woman who placed an advertisement in the The New York Review of Books that read: "Before I turn 67 – next March – I would like to have a lot of sex with a man I like. If you want to talk first, Trollope works for me."

The play, which is based upon Juska's book, goes through some of the encounters that lead to love, heartbreak, rejection and laughs. The audience on Friday night was not prepared for the humiliation arising from this situation. There were audible gasps when one of her male suitors tells her why she needs to get some lubricant.

But the sharp wit and brutal incisiveness is frequently undermined by a superfluous supporting cast that have little to do, and a set so distracting that it has your mind wondering to ask questions such as, "Why does Juska have a tomb in her front garden?" Maybe it is meant to be a metaphor. But perhaps cutting back on both would enable more time to focus on the central character.

Still, Gless gives a pretty good performance and it is an enjoyable night. But perhaps the target audience is for those whose last outing was to see Menopause The Musical, although there were plenty of fans from Gless's Cagney and Lacey and Queer As Folk days in the audience... It runs until January. Incidentally Tyne Daly is appearing January in Masterclass... Maybe the two productions should have a mash-up?

Theatre: Revenge of The Grand Guignol

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 25 Nov 2011 06:00:00 PST

It was a bloody night at the Courtyard Theatre Hoxton where I finally managed to catch Theatre of the Damned's Revenge of the Grand Guignol. Well it is not all blood and gore, but these four stories all have enough thrills, laughs and shocks to have you and the ice within your favourite beverage all aquiver... So much so that when the lady in front of @johnnyfoxlondon and I blew her nose, we both jumped.

Last year's show in Camden was great, but this year was even better with stories that are even more compelling and some great performances. There is a melodramatic story about a mad doctor, a pensioner with a buried secret, a long distance relationship gone wrong and a beautiful woman trapped in a munitions factory. All of the stories have in common the ability to turn something ordinary into the unusual. And through some rather clever lighting and sound effects, even when things seem fine, you were on the edge of your seat.

The show is part of the London Horror Festival (which has been running over the past month). It is great to see there is a dedicated festival for giving audiences intended shocks. Here is hoping there is more next year. It runs through to Sunday...

An audioboo with @johnnyfoxlondon follows

listen to ‘Evening horror at The Revenge of Grand Guignol ’ on Audioboo

Games: The Show Must Go On

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 11 Nov 2011 07:00:00 PST

Thursday evening I found myself at the launch event for The Show Must Go On, which is a rather nifty little game that brings together opera, cheap laughs and the iOS platform. Given all three are favourites of mine I downloaded it.

It is very cute and quite amusing little game, recreating Covent Garden and backstage at the Royal Opera when everything goes wrong. The game puts you in the shoes of a stage manager and includes a series of mini games. Within these you have to undertake a variety of back stage tasks in order for the show to go on. I particularly liked running over the rooftops of Covent Garden chasing sheet music and dodging pigeons. Depending on how well you do, depends on how good the show is. So far I have only created rubbish shows... The game might be trying to tell me something but I will ignore that for now and keep practicing...

An interesting collaboration between the Royal Opera, including its sound technicians singers from the Jette Parker Young Artist programme and musicians of the Orchestra, EMI and Hide and Seek. Very funky cool stuff... Go play...

Theatre: Three Days in May

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 08:30:00 PST

Three Days In May, is about the period shortly after Churchill becomes Prime Minister in 1940 and when Britain contemplated whether throwing in the towel and negotiating peace with a stronger, more powerful Germany was an option. It is currently playing to healthy audiences at the Trafalgar Studios. An early surrender seems today to be an unthinkable prospect. But at the time France was powerless to stop the German invasion and worried that without surrendering they would be annhilated. The British were outnumbered and feared suffering a humiliating defeat at Dunkirk. The play therefore unfolds with this context and debate.

There is nothing like a bit of Churchill to get people standing to attention nowadays and reflect upon glories past. Or at least perceived glories past. As the play notes, Churchill commented that he expected history to be kind to him as he intended to write it. So it is a shame that the play doesn't attempt to throw more grey on a dark period in the country's history. Instead we have what is essentially a radio play and half a history lesson gleamed from wikipedia without too much characterisation.

The production relies on the audience having lived through the war to know its context. And judging by the average age of the audience on Saturday night they might have got it right. But it might have been more helpful to inject a bit more context via newsreels and footage of the day rather than bland projections and a map as a backdrop. It might have given the story a greater sense of urgency and drama. Also, while Churchill's secretary may have provided for the source material, he does not make a compelling character. And as a narrator he kills the drama.

Still, what makes the play a stand out is the performances. The actors manage to polish the material and give it a subtlety and at times sophistication that makes it worthy of a night out. Warren Clarke as Winston Churchill delivers an engaging performance. While he may not be channeling the man with his cane, bowler hat and cigar, you get a sense of a man with an understanding of history weighed down by his own experiences and age. Robert Demeger manages to give a more sympathetic portrait of Neville Chamberlain than most history books will record. At this point in history Chamberlain was still largely respected and not been written off as an appeaser and Churchill was not respected amongst his peers. It is how Churchill plays upon Chamberlain's regret for negotiating with Hitler in Munich in 1938 that gives the play its most dramatic fire.

The play is proving too tempting for journalists to draw parallels to the current loss of British military power. Perhaps a more relevant parallel (and less rabid) is one that highlights how intertwined the island is to the continent... Whether it likes it or not... Catch it and contemplate... Good seats available (for now) at the usual discount venues.

(Pop up) Theatre: Inzain

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Mon, 07 Nov 2011 04:45:00 PST

Fine Artis Tree's production of Inzain under the railway arches at Queens Circus Battersea is an example of a great concept in bringing new theatre to the unlikeliest of places. The company specialises in pop up theatres and in this case is next door to a tile shop. It was a pity we didn't arrive earlier as the tile shop had closed and we could have done with some inspiration for our next mosaic, but we were somewhat distracted by the plethora of gastropubs in the Battersea area serving good quality food and had lingered longer than we should have over bangers and mash and burgers.

The play is a two-hander by Leah Chillery, it tells the story of Zain who had a vision that he would become a player at Crystal Palace Football club and his battles with the club manager. The stage is set for battles over faith, entitlement and youth culture. And football. It is an interesting premise but the punches are often pulled. Also the vast space of a railway arch means that the audience are watching the action on the sidelines... Literally.

But all told the trip to Battersea proved to be an unexpected experimental diversion for an evening. It runs through to 19 November and good discounts are available if you look for them...

Opera: La Sonnambula

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 08:00:00 PDT

Opening night of La Sonnambula at the Royal Opera was an opportunity for Eglise Gutiérrez to show off some incredibly light yet lingering high notes in this piece about jealousy, mistaken identity... And sleepwalking. It is a mildly silly opera but the piece by Bellini with its music and creative forces at work make you overlook these things and the let the action unfold in what looks like a large railway station foyer.

The cast are great and rising star tenor Celso Albelo makes his Royal Opera debut as the jealous composer Elvino. But the real passion and drama was perhaps watching Gutiérrez and conductor Daniel Oren create music together. It was exhausting yet exhilarating and what any good night at the opera surely is about. Nothing too serious but lovely music set to a mildly amusing farce, complete with a domineering mother. It runs through to November 18.

Scenes from Waterloo Imax early evening...

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 06:00:00 PDT

Current advertisement around the Imax informs passers by, "Brazil is calling you."

So that's what all the noise around Waterloo is...

Theatre: Shalom Baby

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 07:00:00 PDT

The message from Shalom Baby, currently running at the Theatre Royal Stratford East appears to be that no matter what the circumstances are, there is always a group of people out there that are beneath you. At a time when people are feeling less sympathetic for rioting chavs, travellers building illegally on green belt land, migration from Europe (or elsewhere) and Broken Britain, it is an interesting topic for reflection.

Shalom Baby is a love story initially set in 1930s Berlin. Events unfold as the daughter of a wealthy Jewish family falls in love with their black "Shabbles Goy", which is a term used to describe people who assist Jews on their Sabbath with tasks they are unable to do within Jewish Law. The play then moves forward to the present day where a mixed-race couple in modern and unprejudiced Brooklyn have to cope with a dysfunctional family unit.

Writer-director Rikki Beadle Blair originally became interested in exploring information about information about black survivors of the holocaust. But the scene is set for a much larger exploration of prejudice, sexuality, family and friendship using a variety of theatrical devices including some thought-provoking poetry. It all makes for a constantly intriguing and entertaining night at the theatre.

Helping to keep things in focus is an incredibly talented cast that make two wildly different families so believable. The story bounces back and forth between each family. And with the seating of the theatre rearranged to be either side of the proscenium, characters run in from the back, climb over the seating and fly (sometimes literally) onto the stage which also helps keep things at a brisk pace.

Depending on which side of the proscenium you sit also gives you a slightly different perspective of the theatre. Although I'm not sure being able to see the sign over the stage door reading "Work sets you free" would be everyone's cup of tea. But there is something creepy about being on the wrong side of the safety curtain. Interval boo reactions with @johnnyfoxlondon follow. Shalom Baby interval musings (mp3)

Shalom Baby runs until 19 November at the Theatre Royal Stratford East. Catch it if you can.

Theatre: John Leguizamo Ghetto Klown

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 28 Oct 2011 06:00:00 PDT

John Leguizamo's latest show is in London for the next couple of weeks. It is a chance for him to showcase his ability to impersonate people, dance and tell some pretty funny stories based on his personal and professional life. Relating the experiences of working with Al Pacino, Patrick Swayze and Sean Penn are funny, but it is his personal life stories that are particularly engaging. When he talks about his depression that involves drinking too much coffee and not being able to sleep it, the delivery and visuals take it to a whole new level.

It isn't stand up comedy, it's more intense, it's more personal and as it is so coherent and well written it is much more satisfying. He calls it therapy. Whatever it is, it is good value. And it works really well in the Charing Cross Theatre.

Theatre: Earthquakes in London (National tour)

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Wed, 26 Oct 2011 09:00:00 PDT

Earthquakes in London, currently on a national tour, is having a quick stop this week at the Richmond Theatre. It is an engaging and and entertaining take on global warming, political activism and childbirth. It seems even more relevant in the week that the population hits seven billion and the world teeters on the brink of economic collapse that these big issues are up on stage. They are made even more palatable with a great pop/rock soundtrack, dance, movement and some pretty sharp and incisive dialogue. The neuroses of the country are on show warts and all at times, and we're even told that we are all c--ts and / or we are fucked... Now that is my kind of play...
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Overheard at the Affordable Art Fair Sunday...

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 11:07:00 PDT

Woman: Oh yes that's my sort of thing
Man: What that?
Woman: Yeah that's my sort of thing when I'm talking about abstract landscapes...

Opera: Der fliegende Holländer

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 11:04:00 PDT

Der fliegende Holländer (The Flying Dutchman) at the Royal Opera is an opera with a long burn. But the story comes together in the last act so quickly, with music so rousing and a production so stylish that it will almost leave you breathless.

The opera tells the tale of the captain and his ghost ship that is doomed to sail the seas forever unless its captain can find a wife once every seven years when the winds will bring him ashore. It is the seventh year and again his ship is washed to the shores of a Norwegian fishing village. The daughter of a ships captain has heard of the tale of the ghost ship and wants to save him, regardless of what her former boyfriend things. It is at times a frustrating opera as there is so little action happening and then there is so much at once. The production updates the time to a late twentieth century period when socialist aesthetics and polyester reign. It is jarring and gives rise to anachronisms about ship sails but as things progress it takes upon a beauty of its own.

Opening night's performance of this austere production included brilliant performances by Egils Silins as the Dutchman and Anja Kampe (reprising her role from the original 2009 production) as Senta. Both commanded the stage and were in fine singing voice. The opera choruses added to the excitement and were worth the price of admission alone and quickly brought things to life.

It makes sense there is no intermission but careful with the pre-show drinks. The temperature inside the theatre seemed to be designed to further evoke a Norwegian fishing village and had me rushing for the nearest mensroom once people were on their feet applauding. Or alternatively dress warmly. The short run concludes on 4 November. Seats were noticeably available on opening night...

Theatre: Backbeat

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 15:12:00 PDT

Backbeat is based upon the film of the same name which is a snapshot of the period when The Beatles were on the edge of stardom. It is also about creativity, artists, relationships and some excellent classic rock and roll music. It is thoughtful and fun, with a talented and good looking cast that can act, sing and play musical instruments and the bar has now been set very high for the jukebox musical.

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Overheard at the supermarket

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Thu, 29 Sep 2011 15:15:00 PDT

Woman (arriving at checkout with a lot of greens): Don't laugh, but I have an unhealthy obsession with cucumbers. Well... I guess it is healthy...

Opera: The Passenger

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Mon, 26 Sep 2011 15:15:00 PDT

The Passenger which is having its UK premiere at the ENO's Coliseum, is a lavish production with a great cast. It is a pity that the music does not live up to the standards of production. By interval I found it to be hard going with little reward from the Shostakovitch-like score. However upon heading to the bar for interval drinks I found myself listening to an elderly gentleman also heading to the bar who thought it was brilliant and compared it to Shakespeare. Or Shakespeare with a lot of clanging...

Following that brief discussion, it seemed like it would be too easy to leave and not come back for the second half. So @Johnnyfoxlondon and I returned to the general area of our seats. The lady next to me in the first half who was texting on her phone throughout and laughing at rather serious parts of the piece had not returned so we had room to spread out. Fortunately in the second half, the music and story is much stronger. There are also a surprising blend of styles including traditional folk music and jazz, which helps to keep things believable.

This work, by Soviet composer Mieczyslaw Weinberg, was written in 1968 and did not have its first performance until 2006. The reasons for this are not made clear but maybe he just wasn't the fashion of the day in Soviet-era Russia. He did have first-hand experience with the subject matter however since Weinberg lost most of his family due to the holocaust. This opera tells the story of a real-life concentration camp survivor who meets her captor and her liberator on a boat to South America. The scene is set for fragments of recollections, guilt and the inevitable horrors from the period.

The piece attempts to musicalise what is inherently unmusical and by the end of the piece you can't help but have some admiration for the effort. The split level production moves between modern ocean liner and concentration camp quickly, but maybe in this case a smaller scale production might have matched what is essentially a story of two women. A sombre and reflective evening evening at the opera.

There are six more performances spaced between now and the end of October... All told, it is probably worth catching to see a lost opera that is unlikely to be staged again anytime soon...

Theatre: A Clockwork Orange

noreply@blogger.com (Paul In London) — Tue, 20 Sep 2011 15:16:00 PDT

The London riots come to mind when thinking about A Clockwork Orange, which has been "re-imagined" at the Theatre Royal Stratford East. While it is not the entire focus of the story, the lawlessness and the violence that features in this story evokes the memories of August when fear and panic gripped the city. A Clockwork Orange serves to remind us that perhaps this is not a new problem for this part of the world...

This re-imagining and musicalisation of the story does take a different approach to the book by Anthony Burgess. But taking it on its own merits rather than a faithful adaptation it makes for a engaging and entertaining evening out.

There is no classical music in this version of the story. Instead we have some thrilling music by Fred Carl that appears to be inspired by jazz, hip hop and perhaps AfroReggae. For the most part this propels the story forward and gives the performances the opportunity to deliver some emotionally charged songs.

Holding the show together is a terrific performance by Ashley Hunter. A lot of this show rests on his performance and he holds your attention as the violent delinquent Alex. One to watch.

Under the glow from the newly-opened Westfield Stratford City (and a small fire from a bin alight from a stray cigarette) @johnnyfoxlondon and I recorded the following Audioboo during the interval... Worth a trip out east to catch... And perhaps even to take a peek at the new mega mall as well... Although maybe you should check out his Londonist review before making that decision... And mind the glass ceilings...

Burning boo: half way through A Clockwork Orange (mp3)