(no subject)
Okay. So this is ridiculous. I saw Roots in October and I still haven't written about ti /o\ Short reviews of the 5 things I haven't reviewed yet and then there are only 2 more plays (Candide & American Psycho) plus the National Theatre quiz and my theatre year is done.
Roots @ Donmar Warehouse
Seeing this was Mum's idea, she studied the trilogy at school but hadn't seen them since then. Of course starting with the middle play of a trilogy is a bit weird but it's a great play on it's own (which I can say because I've never seen/read the other two!)
The story isn't complicated- Beattie comes back to her rural family home full of ideas & quotes from her socialist boyfriend who is coming to visit any day now (only of course he isn't)
Jessica Raine played Beattie and she was just brilliant. Fierce and determined and very clever but struggling to work out her own ideas between her boyfriend and her family. I loved the way she would quote one of the lines she'd learned at her mother half to try and convince her and half to try and work out for herself whether they're true/she believes them.
Her scenes with her mum (Linda Bassett) were the best bits because it was such a real relationship and there was so much affection in between the arguing. Actually what I liked best about the play was that despite all of the family quarrels and nagging arguments they all clearly loved each other and wanted the best for Beattie.
It was a brilliant set too, there are 3 scenes and the set changes completely between them to show the different rooms and it was absolutely fascinating watching them change and seeing all the detail. (The women next to us weren't impressed, they were very cross the scene changes meant we got two intervals and complained LOUDLY about it)
It made me want to see the other two plays and it also made me want to see Jessica Raine on stage LOTS more.
Then a month later at the end of November (though still three weeks ago, oops!) I went to see Mojo with its incredibly starry cast!
Mojo @ Harold Pinter Theatre
Merlin, Ron Weasley, Mr Bates, Ronnie Biggs and Q walked into a nightclub...
I'm still surprised this hasn't sold out more nights than it has although having seen the play a little less so than I was. Also that joke is a tad unfair because poor Tom Rhys Harries hasn't really had a recognisable enough role to be included but it's still weird!
First things first it really is a very good cast and I was particularly impressed with Rupert Grint who forms half of the "comedy" duo element with Daniel Mays and anyone who can keep up with Daniel Mays is doing very well in my book!
Ben Whishaw does his slightly psychotic thing, Colin Morgan is generally oblivious and Brendan Coyle was menacing (though with the suggestion there wasn't much backing that menace up). Also Tom Rhys Harries was pretty which was basically what the character was there for and I did feel sorry for him as he spent a lot of the second half hanging upside down.
But the thing is the play itself isn't that great. I mean don't get me wrong a lot of the individual scenes were funny and some bits hit my narrative kinks rather heavily but I basically knew what was coming from very early on and the fact that the other characters seemed oblivious to what Baby was capable of struck me was willful blindness!
I saw some reviews say that it punctured the bravado of that kind of gangland lifestyle which I guess it did? But I don't think the plays a classic.
However I will treasure the image of Ben Whishaw terrorising Colin Morgan with a sword for quite a long time.
(I suck at short reviews... three more to go at a later point)
Roots @ Donmar Warehouse
Seeing this was Mum's idea, she studied the trilogy at school but hadn't seen them since then. Of course starting with the middle play of a trilogy is a bit weird but it's a great play on it's own (which I can say because I've never seen/read the other two!)
The story isn't complicated- Beattie comes back to her rural family home full of ideas & quotes from her socialist boyfriend who is coming to visit any day now (only of course he isn't)
Jessica Raine played Beattie and she was just brilliant. Fierce and determined and very clever but struggling to work out her own ideas between her boyfriend and her family. I loved the way she would quote one of the lines she'd learned at her mother half to try and convince her and half to try and work out for herself whether they're true/she believes them.
Her scenes with her mum (Linda Bassett) were the best bits because it was such a real relationship and there was so much affection in between the arguing. Actually what I liked best about the play was that despite all of the family quarrels and nagging arguments they all clearly loved each other and wanted the best for Beattie.
It was a brilliant set too, there are 3 scenes and the set changes completely between them to show the different rooms and it was absolutely fascinating watching them change and seeing all the detail. (The women next to us weren't impressed, they were very cross the scene changes meant we got two intervals and complained LOUDLY about it)
It made me want to see the other two plays and it also made me want to see Jessica Raine on stage LOTS more.
Then a month later at the end of November (though still three weeks ago, oops!) I went to see Mojo with its incredibly starry cast!
Mojo @ Harold Pinter Theatre
Merlin, Ron Weasley, Mr Bates, Ronnie Biggs and Q walked into a nightclub...
I'm still surprised this hasn't sold out more nights than it has although having seen the play a little less so than I was. Also that joke is a tad unfair because poor Tom Rhys Harries hasn't really had a recognisable enough role to be included but it's still weird!
First things first it really is a very good cast and I was particularly impressed with Rupert Grint who forms half of the "comedy" duo element with Daniel Mays and anyone who can keep up with Daniel Mays is doing very well in my book!
Ben Whishaw does his slightly psychotic thing, Colin Morgan is generally oblivious and Brendan Coyle was menacing (though with the suggestion there wasn't much backing that menace up). Also Tom Rhys Harries was pretty which was basically what the character was there for and I did feel sorry for him as he spent a lot of the second half hanging upside down.
But the thing is the play itself isn't that great. I mean don't get me wrong a lot of the individual scenes were funny and some bits hit my narrative kinks rather heavily but I basically knew what was coming from very early on and the fact that the other characters seemed oblivious to what Baby was capable of struck me was willful blindness!
I saw some reviews say that it punctured the bravado of that kind of gangland lifestyle which I guess it did? But I don't think the plays a classic.
However I will treasure the image of Ben Whishaw terrorising Colin Morgan with a sword for quite a long time.
(I suck at short reviews... three more to go at a later point)