(no subject)
Is there any particular reason why the LJ banner has gone all birthday-ish?
Last night I gate-crashed Brownies to see A be presented with her 20 year service badge (she didn't know she was getting it and was somewhat bemused by me and our Division Commisioner turning up *g*). It was a great night to go though because they were having an evening "at the races" and they'd all come dressed up in their prettiest dresses and hats and they were given plastic champagne glasses with sparkling apple juice and got to pick horses and then watch videoes to see who won. It was a little surreal to have 8 year olds coming up and asking for more champagne but it was more surreal to see so many of my Rainbows looking quite so grown up.
Anyway I loved the idea, I know we can't steal it directly for the Rainbows but it's giving me thoughts (we're doing Cheerleading next week... I'm not sure if I'm excited or terrified! Mostly I'm glad someone else is leading it!)
Anyway speaking of parties (nice segue Sarah)
Before the Party @ Almeida Theatre
So I FINALLY got to see something at the Almeida last week (and yes it is ridiculous it's taken so long given it's a theatre on the right side of London and also given their £8 restricted view tickets really aren't that restricted and are spectacularly good value)
Anyway. Mostly I can't resist a play with Katherine Parkinson in it. N & I were discussing afterwards that we both know she's a great actress and have seen her in all sorts of serious things AND YET I still always have this weird moment of "oh but this isn't comedy is it?" when she appears. And no this definitely wasn't comedy, though it was funny in a biting sort of way in quite a lot of places.
Possibly I should be concerned by how much I enjoy watching families self-destruct on stage but there's something about a play that lays all these family dynamics out and then slowly shows just how much damage they're all doing. The flaky but utterly self-obsessed mother insisting she's acting in other people's interests, the father who is equal parts controlling and uninterested and the INCREDIBLY bitter spinster sister, not to mention the much younger child growing up in a very strange atmosphere.
I loved how brittle Michelle Terry was and how her jealousy and bitterness were unavoidably tied up with the snobbishness she and her parents shared. Laura & Kathleen must have had some spectacular fights growing up and watching the way that their current, much more serious, arguments still seemed tied to those childish ones was wonderful.
I did mostly want to run away with Laura and take her somewhere safe and away from all these awful people, even after the full truth came out about Harold's death. Katherine Parkinson managed to balance the anger and coldness that Laura seemed to wear as a shield with the vulnerability that her marriage had left her with- you never forgot how much she must have been hurting.
And I just loved the final scenes with her and Alex Price as David- not knowing the play I was genuinely uncertain which way it was going to end. Or at least if not genuinely uncertain then I definitely had that heartstopping moment of waiting for his reaction.
I also loved the costumes and the set- the beautiful post-war/New Look dresses and Kathleen's sensible outfits and poor Susan in her party dress.
It was a great production, I'm so glad we actually went because we'd been putting off booking for ages!
I still need to write about Gorboduc and on Friday I'm going to a concert in the Under Globe which should be interesting but in theatre terms it is ALL about next week- I'm seeing Book of Mormon & Othello on consecutive nights which is going to be interesting... (and I'm not the only one *g*)
Last night I gate-crashed Brownies to see A be presented with her 20 year service badge (she didn't know she was getting it and was somewhat bemused by me and our Division Commisioner turning up *g*). It was a great night to go though because they were having an evening "at the races" and they'd all come dressed up in their prettiest dresses and hats and they were given plastic champagne glasses with sparkling apple juice and got to pick horses and then watch videoes to see who won. It was a little surreal to have 8 year olds coming up and asking for more champagne but it was more surreal to see so many of my Rainbows looking quite so grown up.
Anyway I loved the idea, I know we can't steal it directly for the Rainbows but it's giving me thoughts (we're doing Cheerleading next week... I'm not sure if I'm excited or terrified! Mostly I'm glad someone else is leading it!)
Anyway speaking of parties (nice segue Sarah)
Before the Party @ Almeida Theatre
So I FINALLY got to see something at the Almeida last week (and yes it is ridiculous it's taken so long given it's a theatre on the right side of London and also given their £8 restricted view tickets really aren't that restricted and are spectacularly good value)
Anyway. Mostly I can't resist a play with Katherine Parkinson in it. N & I were discussing afterwards that we both know she's a great actress and have seen her in all sorts of serious things AND YET I still always have this weird moment of "oh but this isn't comedy is it?" when she appears. And no this definitely wasn't comedy, though it was funny in a biting sort of way in quite a lot of places.
Possibly I should be concerned by how much I enjoy watching families self-destruct on stage but there's something about a play that lays all these family dynamics out and then slowly shows just how much damage they're all doing. The flaky but utterly self-obsessed mother insisting she's acting in other people's interests, the father who is equal parts controlling and uninterested and the INCREDIBLY bitter spinster sister, not to mention the much younger child growing up in a very strange atmosphere.
I loved how brittle Michelle Terry was and how her jealousy and bitterness were unavoidably tied up with the snobbishness she and her parents shared. Laura & Kathleen must have had some spectacular fights growing up and watching the way that their current, much more serious, arguments still seemed tied to those childish ones was wonderful.
I did mostly want to run away with Laura and take her somewhere safe and away from all these awful people, even after the full truth came out about Harold's death. Katherine Parkinson managed to balance the anger and coldness that Laura seemed to wear as a shield with the vulnerability that her marriage had left her with- you never forgot how much she must have been hurting.
And I just loved the final scenes with her and Alex Price as David- not knowing the play I was genuinely uncertain which way it was going to end. Or at least if not genuinely uncertain then I definitely had that heartstopping moment of waiting for his reaction.
I also loved the costumes and the set- the beautiful post-war/New Look dresses and Kathleen's sensible outfits and poor Susan in her party dress.
It was a great production, I'm so glad we actually went because we'd been putting off booking for ages!
I still need to write about Gorboduc and on Friday I'm going to a concert in the Under Globe which should be interesting but in theatre terms it is ALL about next week- I'm seeing Book of Mormon & Othello on consecutive nights which is going to be interesting... (and I'm not the only one *g*)