First: Josh Groban is getting me through the Holiday Season. See below.
“I am dreaming tonight of a place that I love, even more than I usually do. And all though I know it’s a long road back, I promise you: I’ll be home for Christmas. You can count on me. I’ll be home for Christmas, if only in my dreams.”
“It's up to us to be the change. And even though we all can still do more, there's so much to be thankful for.”
Today was the last day of classes.
Let’s just let that simmer for a bit. *simmers*
Kelly walked into Theatre in London: An Introduction today and was like, “wow, last class.” Then we simultaneously realized, “Sweet Jesus! It’s the last class!” How did that happen? How have I been in this city for over three months? Time is a tricksy little devil, me thinks.
Our last class focused on reviewing the nine productions we saw this semester in preparation for our final. We all brought our play texts and programs in to draw on for discussion. I was pretty prepared already for the discussion, so I wasn’t really looking forward to three hours of review—though I am sure it would have been very helpful. Everything changed very quickly, however, when Jen wrote the following words on top of the white board: IES Oscar Awards. I knew it was going to be a great class.
For anyone unaware, I think that Oscar night is the best evening of television all year. I love awards. I love movies. I love being right about who was best and which film dominated the screen. Naturally, the Academy Awards should be my favorite event of the year. The only thing that would make them better is if they announced the nominees in descending order from fifth place to winner (tenth place for the new Best Picture set-up). Ugh, I am actually getting giddy just thinking about it. AH!
Anyway, all class, we nominated actors and actresses and designers for their work in the productions we saw this semester. Following our discussions we also picked our winner (and loser) for Best and Worst Production. Let me tell ya, I ate that stuff up. Seriously. I love awards. I love ranking things. I love listing things. It was the best possible note to end my semester of classes on. Also: it inspired me to do more or less the same thing with this little blog. I’ve been meaning to talk about the shows I have seen for class anyway, so it’s the perfect opportunity to do so! So without much further adieu, I give to you my personal rankings of the plays I’ve seen this fall.
9th Place – Enlightenment by Shelagh Stephinson at the Hampstead Theatre
Enlightenment is about a family, specifically a mother and father, dealing with the disappearance of their son. The father has moved on, has come to terms with Adam’s probable death. Leah, the mother, has not. She seeks the help of a psychic to calm and assuage her fears. Then, just when everything looks the bleakest, a report that Adam is alive emerges. The first act ends with the family meeting Adam outside the airport where he is greeted with a great ending line, “who the fuck are you?!” The rest of the show is a “thriller” (yawn) focusing on not-Adam’s interaction with his new family.
Ugh, where to really begin with Enlightenment? I couldn’t be bothered to go see it again, that’s for sure. The acting was dull, the story was forced, predictable, and a little boring, and the excitement and energy of the production was lackluster. All of that aside, I thought that Enlightenment featured an excellent design. It was set in an entirely white stage that featured a cluttered house, slowly losing all of its possessions in an attempt of Leah’s to clear her mind, to soothe her soul. Overall: it just didn’t work. However, you win some, you lose some. Enlightenment was the only show that I saw this semester that I did not enjoy which makes the rest of this entry very tough.
8th Place – Deathtrap by Ira Levin at the Noel Coward Theatre
Deathtrap is a play about a playwright and his play called “Deathtrap.” Are you confused yet? Yeah. It’s a little convoluted. The playwright is involved with a former student of his that has made a very successful name for himself. After reading his student’s play, the main character Sydney decides to kill Clifford (the student) and take the script for himself. However, things take a very interesting turn when Clifford isn’t really the target of the murder plot! Dun dun dun!
Right. Maybe it’s just that Thrillers do not work in theatre. Our modern audience just doesn’t get scared anymore? Maybe we like to work things out too quickly and, when we do so, it ruins the fun, the mystery, and the suspense. Deathtrap is already a semi-weak work of writing which means that the production has to be perfect for it to even grab us. Jonathon Groff and Simon Russell Beale were fantastic as Clifford and Sydney, but I don’t think you can build a great production off of a two performances. The play, the set, the other characters, etc all have to be great as well. The set: impeccable.
Everything else meh. Still, fun show.
7th Place – All My Sons by Arthur Miller at the Apollo Theatre
This famous little classic follows the life Joe Keller over the course of a few days. Joe lost his son in the war due to some faulty parts that were in the planes his son was flying. Joe’s business partner is in jail because the parts for the plane were actually sent from his company—treason is a tricky thing when it destroys lives. Joe has spent his life lying about his involvement with the fiasco, tricking his son, his neighbors, and his wife into believing his innocence. However, Joe learns quickly that just because he thinks he’s gotten away with effectively murdering his son, does not mean that he has.
It really boils down to this: we had terrible, and I mean TERRIBLE seats. A bummer, really, because I like the play and I loved most of the acting, and the set. The acting I didn’t care for came from the girl playing Anne. I will not soil her name by posting it here but MY GOD was it just atrocious. I thought throughout most of the production that she was supposed to be a remedial character…nope! Anyway, the set was amazing, and David Suchet and Zoe Wanamaker were phenomenal.
6th Place – My Romantic History by DC Jackson at the Bush Theatre
A lovely story about work and love. The action centers on an office relationship and is told from the view of the boy in act one and the girl in act two. Act three is about figuring things out together. It was funny and charming and very intimate. Overall, hard to not laugh and feel like you just spent a very mice night at the theatre.
I think that sixth place is still pretty good…I mean, My Romantic History just isn’t a very deep show: there isn’t much to it. It’s important to note however, that it is a comedy about romance, not a romantic comedy. I thought the writing was pretty awesome and the set could not have been done better. The acting, primarily on the part of Rosaline Sydney, was great. I haven’t laughed that hard at a show in quite some time. It helped too that Iain Banks, who played Tom, looked right at me during a funny line in the show because I was dying of laughter and then delivered the rest of the line directly to me. So great.
5th Place – Hamlet
Well, this is the middle of the road for these awards. The play that’s neither on top or on bottom: the real middle of the pack. Hamlet is about, well, Hamlet. If you don’t know the story of Hamlet: your education system has failed you!!! Seriously though, google it. It’s too much to put here and this is already a little on the long side…woops!
Hytner, the director, brought Hamlet into our contemporary society by placing it in a modern building in 21st century Denmark. The constant surveillance state of the set was insane! Closed-caption cameras, guards, secret service, ever changing walls…just phenomenal. Rory Kinnear, who played the title character, was equally impressive—he delivered a Hamlet that we never really knew and he did it masterfully. I think he was our class’s choice for best Actor. Also: Shakespeare in London…can that ever go wrong?
4th Place – Faust at the Old Vic Theatre
Faust is about selling your soul to the devil to freeze a moment in your life forever. If you could have a chance to do it all over again, would you? It focuses on the life of one man in a nursing home who is allowed to be young again and pursue the woman of his dreams.
Okay: Faust is wackadoodle. It was an acrobatic, performance based show that really, really blew my mind. I was confused, I laughed, I sobbed like a small child who just lost their ice cream. It really did a lot for me. I think that’s why I’ve ranked it so high. The space was amazing: nets above our heads, people climbing on the walls. More than anything, Faust was an experience and that’s why I responded to it so well. It is hard to describe the show because it really was such a spectacle.
3rd Place – Pieces of Vincent by David Watson at the Arcola Theatre
The lives of 8 people have been shattered by the death of Vincent, killed in a supermarket bombing. The play focuses on the interactions of those 8 people and their stories as the information surrounding the bombing slowly comes to the surface.
It’s hard to believe that the first piece of theatre I saw in London was already 3 months ago. Weird. Still, what a testament to this production. I was blown away by the acting, the design, the writing, everything. It was heart-breaking, really. Ugh. I want to see it again. I want be back in that little theatre, watching some lives unfold before me.
2nd Place – Blasted by Sarah Kane at the Lyric Hammersmith
Well Blasted is about war. The brutality, the anger, the hatred, the love, the passion, the fire, the disaster, and the all consuming monster that lives inside it. Not a play for the queasy or the weak stomached, though. Nope. Not at all.
I have already sort of beat this play and production to death this semester and in some previous blogs, so I am only going to say this: Sarah Kane left this earth to soon. Blasted, as well as her other works, are genius and should be viewed as such. A poet and gifted realist, Sarah Kane’s Blasted is a masterpiece.
1st Place – Clybourne Park by Bruce Norris at the Royal Court Theatre
Racism and Property: That’s what this play is all about.
The acting, the set, the writing, the direction: it was all brilliant. Everything came together perfectly. I could not have been more wooed by this production. It’s transferring to the west end and it will be on Broadway! How cool is that. Clybourne Park, upon its release in the states, should not, SHOULD NOT, be missed. It is a classic work that will undoubtedly go down as a masterclass of writing and production. Mad, mad props.
So there you have it. My faves, my least faves. I noticed in re-reading that I had a lot more to say about my least favorites. Maybe I am still wowed by the better ones that I don’t want to say anything to make them seem less than they are.
I am constantly told that there is no better place to see theatre than London, England. I have realized that this may be true.
Cheers. Looks like we’re in single digits…
Bring back Scripts if you think I (read WE) could make cuttings for speech. :)
ReplyDeleteLOves!