Dublin Carol
I saw WP in Dublin Carol! Wooot!
First of all, let me say that at about 6:30 p.m. on Friday, December 8, as I was making my way from the Trinity Brewhouse (where my friend Julie and I had just had a wonderful dinner with csishewolf…I finally got to meet her!), a shiny black stretch limousine passed directly in front of me on its way (it seemed to me) to the theater. I am convinced that was WP on his way to the performance and if anyone has information that will burst my bubble on this score, keep it to yourself! ;)
We arrived at the theater at 7:30 on the dot. I was surprised there was no line since there were two performances going on (Dublin Carol downstairs and A Christmas Carol upstairs). A gal with a barcode reader at the door of the Dowling Theater (directly opposite the glass entry doors) scanned our tickets and handed them back to us without tearing them in half (extra souvenirs). Another gal led us to our seats.
The theater is quite small. There are three sections of seven rows each. The seats are arranged stadium style so every patron has a clear view of the stage regardless of how tall the person in front of you might be.
The stage itself is a thrust stage: that is, it projects out into the theater. This eliminates the fourth wall…the set is viewable on three sides. Another plus for the audience. The show was blocked in such a way as to make maximum use of the stage, giving the entire audience a good view of the action during the entire show. Also, no seat is more than about 25 feet from the stage. No nosebleed seats!
The set was very homely. The action is set in a somewhat dilapidated office of a funeral home: the furniture looked like it came from the Salvation Army. There were a few pitiful Christmas decorations set about (also from the Salvation Army). There were no wings per se. The left side of the stage was actually a set: the alleyway entrance to the funeral home. It was backed by a cement wall and a board fence topped with barbed wire. A few beat up metal trash cans were in evidence, as was a battered cardboard box. The right side of the stage was a tan brick wall painted with a faded advertisement for the funeral home.
Right before the lights dimmed, an announcement was made to turn off watch alarms, pagers and cell phones and to unwrap any candy (which got a laugh from the audience). Once the lights dimmed, they were off.
WP looked very much the part of a dissipated and sad man of middle age. He was speaking for 75 of the 90 minutes of the play - some very long, emotional speeches, too. It was a thrill to be so close to him (and I didn’t rush the stage, despite having a clear shot at it). I thought he hit the accent just right for an American audience (there but not so thick as to be difficult to understand). My friend Julie made the comment that he wasn’t as tall as she thought he might be…and I answered back that he looked faaaabulous to me - scruffy beard, white hair and all. He really dissolved himself into the character. I did not think of Grissom once during the play, nor the WP I’ve seen in interviews, either. For someone so well known to be able to do that says a lot about the quality of his acting.
The play is funny and sad, tragic and hopeful. I have a copy and had read it on the train on my way up to Providence…there is a lot of depth to this piece. I’m sorry I only got to see it once as it is the kind of thing you need to see several times in order to appreciate the nuances. I’ve thought about it a lot since I saw it. I think the author, Conor McPherson, made good use of symbolism…if anyone wants to hear my thoughts on that, let me know. For everyone else, I’ll skip it as I’m sure it would make your eyes glaze right over.
The other actors did a good job. It seemed as though they were forming an ensemble quite well. I do think they were settling in to the play…I suspect the end of the run will be slightly different and a little more…something…hard to say exactly what. This is not a criticism, just an observation about how good theater comes together over time.
When the play was over a member of the Trinity company did a talk back with those members of the audience who had stayed behind. It was interesting to see what others thought of the play. One man, a friend of Bill W., was very moved, talking at length about how the character John Plunkett rang true for him. Another woman spoke of how she finally understood the torment of being an alcoholic (she may have mentioned her familial connection with alcoholism, but I didn’t quite hear it). Another fellow said that the use of Christmas decorations (John takes them down in the third scene and puts some of them back up at the end), speaks to the hopefulness and symbolism associated with the Christmas season.
I am still thinking about this play and the layers of meaning it seems to have. I was fortunate to have been able to see WP in person on stage…it wasn’t quite as magical as I thought it might be, but then, it was still amazing and I couldn’t be happier with my experience. Well, I could but that would involve close personal contact and other things not remotely likely to happen on this planet in my lifetime.
The weather was BLOODY COLD and I did not try to find a stage door or get an autograph. All I know is that cab drivers do not want to take people on short trips and we waited more than 30 minutes for one to show up. The staff at the theater made the call for us and checked back with the cab company twice…and waited with us, too. Staff at the theater were very nice.
Don’t know what else to say about the trip (well, I have a lot to say about the trip…perhaps another post). I had, perhaps, the best birthday of my entire life. I will never forget it, that’s for sure.
First of all, let me say that at about 6:30 p.m. on Friday, December 8, as I was making my way from the Trinity Brewhouse (where my friend Julie and I had just had a wonderful dinner with csishewolf…I finally got to meet her!), a shiny black stretch limousine passed directly in front of me on its way (it seemed to me) to the theater. I am convinced that was WP on his way to the performance and if anyone has information that will burst my bubble on this score, keep it to yourself! ;)
We arrived at the theater at 7:30 on the dot. I was surprised there was no line since there were two performances going on (Dublin Carol downstairs and A Christmas Carol upstairs). A gal with a barcode reader at the door of the Dowling Theater (directly opposite the glass entry doors) scanned our tickets and handed them back to us without tearing them in half (extra souvenirs). Another gal led us to our seats.
The theater is quite small. There are three sections of seven rows each. The seats are arranged stadium style so every patron has a clear view of the stage regardless of how tall the person in front of you might be.
The stage itself is a thrust stage: that is, it projects out into the theater. This eliminates the fourth wall…the set is viewable on three sides. Another plus for the audience. The show was blocked in such a way as to make maximum use of the stage, giving the entire audience a good view of the action during the entire show. Also, no seat is more than about 25 feet from the stage. No nosebleed seats!
The set was very homely. The action is set in a somewhat dilapidated office of a funeral home: the furniture looked like it came from the Salvation Army. There were a few pitiful Christmas decorations set about (also from the Salvation Army). There were no wings per se. The left side of the stage was actually a set: the alleyway entrance to the funeral home. It was backed by a cement wall and a board fence topped with barbed wire. A few beat up metal trash cans were in evidence, as was a battered cardboard box. The right side of the stage was a tan brick wall painted with a faded advertisement for the funeral home.
Right before the lights dimmed, an announcement was made to turn off watch alarms, pagers and cell phones and to unwrap any candy (which got a laugh from the audience). Once the lights dimmed, they were off.
WP looked very much the part of a dissipated and sad man of middle age. He was speaking for 75 of the 90 minutes of the play - some very long, emotional speeches, too. It was a thrill to be so close to him (and I didn’t rush the stage, despite having a clear shot at it). I thought he hit the accent just right for an American audience (there but not so thick as to be difficult to understand). My friend Julie made the comment that he wasn’t as tall as she thought he might be…and I answered back that he looked faaaabulous to me - scruffy beard, white hair and all. He really dissolved himself into the character. I did not think of Grissom once during the play, nor the WP I’ve seen in interviews, either. For someone so well known to be able to do that says a lot about the quality of his acting.
The play is funny and sad, tragic and hopeful. I have a copy and had read it on the train on my way up to Providence…there is a lot of depth to this piece. I’m sorry I only got to see it once as it is the kind of thing you need to see several times in order to appreciate the nuances. I’ve thought about it a lot since I saw it. I think the author, Conor McPherson, made good use of symbolism…if anyone wants to hear my thoughts on that, let me know. For everyone else, I’ll skip it as I’m sure it would make your eyes glaze right over.
The other actors did a good job. It seemed as though they were forming an ensemble quite well. I do think they were settling in to the play…I suspect the end of the run will be slightly different and a little more…something…hard to say exactly what. This is not a criticism, just an observation about how good theater comes together over time.
When the play was over a member of the Trinity company did a talk back with those members of the audience who had stayed behind. It was interesting to see what others thought of the play. One man, a friend of Bill W., was very moved, talking at length about how the character John Plunkett rang true for him. Another woman spoke of how she finally understood the torment of being an alcoholic (she may have mentioned her familial connection with alcoholism, but I didn’t quite hear it). Another fellow said that the use of Christmas decorations (John takes them down in the third scene and puts some of them back up at the end), speaks to the hopefulness and symbolism associated with the Christmas season.
I am still thinking about this play and the layers of meaning it seems to have. I was fortunate to have been able to see WP in person on stage…it wasn’t quite as magical as I thought it might be, but then, it was still amazing and I couldn’t be happier with my experience. Well, I could but that would involve close personal contact and other things not remotely likely to happen on this planet in my lifetime.
The weather was BLOODY COLD and I did not try to find a stage door or get an autograph. All I know is that cab drivers do not want to take people on short trips and we waited more than 30 minutes for one to show up. The staff at the theater made the call for us and checked back with the cab company twice…and waited with us, too. Staff at the theater were very nice.
Don’t know what else to say about the trip (well, I have a lot to say about the trip…perhaps another post). I had, perhaps, the best birthday of my entire life. I will never forget it, that’s for sure.