Playhouse Pickings

Review: 3*** Love Never Dies – via the Shows Must Go On YouTube @OfficialALW #cultureduringquarantine #stayathome #musicals

Tweetingit: 3*** Andrew Lloyd Webber’s magic touch just about sees this sequel to Phantom through any rough patches. But it’s sometimes difficult to see the join with plainly familiar melodies.

The sequel is generally confined to the big screen where we’re accustomed to roman numerals in the title and resigned to the money printing potential of a follow-up tale. However, in the theatre it’s rarely if ever tried with any degree of success.

Who else but Andrew Lloyd Webber would have the nerve and financial muscle to pull it off? Despite ALW’s protestations Love Never Dies is a sequel to Phantom of the Opera. Negative previews in 2010 forced a re-write before it opened for a year-long run in the West End. However, a planned Broadway transfer was shelved after more mixed reviews. The show decamped to Australia in 2011 where it generally found a warmer reception. This film is a recording of the show staged at the Regent Theatre in Melbourne.

Review: Secret Sofa – The Grand Budapest Hotel – Star rating depends on your own efforts but 5***** for making staying home so much better! @secretcinema #secretsofa @haagendazsuk @KieranMortell #staycreative #cultureinquarantine

Last Friday I got dressed up, drank champagne, ate ice cream and explored the gloriously odd world of The Grand Budapest Hotel. I did in my living with with 1000s of people from around the world thanks to Secret Sofa.

Secret Sofa is a new branch of the highly acclaimed Secret Cinema. It is obviously slightly different as you cannot possibly get the same level of interactivity without the incredible amount of work that goes into the standard Secret Cinema experience, but this is all about what you make it and if you put in some effort, it is blooming brilliant.

The premise is this:

Every Tuesday you receive an email telling us what the next film is. You are given some activities and instructions which we can choose to do, or not, it is up to you. You find a place to stream the film and then on Friday night, the community gathers on Facebook. Announcements are made throughout the afternoon/early evening. This week that included a fabulous Spotify playlist to get us in the mood. 15 minutes before you start the film, a member of Secret Sofa immerses you in the world of that film. This week it was the Lobby boy, Henrik. ( Kieran Mortell). He welcomed the guests, told us of the happenings in the hotel, promised to hold any sordid secrets until his death, and taught us to waltz.

Review: 4**** Treasure Island – The National Theatre at Home via YouTube @PatsyFerran @NTLive #NationalTheatreAtHome #TreasureIsland #cultureduringquarantine

Tweetingit: 4* A one-legged man with a parrot on his shoulder looking for treasure never fails to grip the imagination. A classic story refreshed and rebooted for the London stage.

For a novel first published in 1883 Treasure Island remains an enduring classic. No less than nineteen film and TV adaptations have been made including animated features and a memorable Muppet movie. The story’s appeal lies in the spirit of adventure and promise of untold riches, fighting with pirates and stealing away hidden treasure. We played this story out in our minds as children and this excellent production recreates the magic once again.

Old sailor Billy Bones (Aidan Kelly) takes up lodging at the Admiral Benbow Inn on the English coast. Innkeeper’s child Jim Hawkins (Patsy Ferran) learns of a one-legged seafaring man while Bones fights with old shipmate Black Dog (Daniel Coonan). A blind beggar called Pew (David Stern) later tempts Bones with the promise of a map showing buried treasure. However, Bones dies of a stroke shortly afterwards as Pew and cronies lay siege to the Inn. Hawkins and her mother escape with a package taken from Bones’ belongings. The package contains a map of an island where infamous pirate Captain Flint had hidden treasure. With the help of Dr Livesey (Alexandra Maher) and squire Trelawney (Nick Fletcher) they raise an expedition to the island. Their appointed crew includes the mysterious Long John Silver (Arthur Darvill), a man with history and more than a passing interest in the booty.

Review: 3*** East – The Vaudeville Theatre @digitaltheatre @VaudevilleTh #cultureduringquarantine #stevenberkoff

Tweetingit: 3* A smartly scripted verse play from the cultured pen of Stephen Berkoff is a hit and miss affair but still generates a distinctive aura of time and place.

Stephen Berkoff made his name as a villain in numerous film roles where he grappled with James Bond and Rambo among many others. He even mastered Adolph Hitler in TV blockbuster War and Remembrance. However, Berkoff’s spiritual home is the theatre where his skills as a playwright were honed. East was first performed in 1975 and this is the 25th-anniversary production captured live at the Vaudeville Theatre in London.

The play is an occasionally witty and frequently explicit portrayal of life in London’s East End. The anatomy of a rowdy working class family is explored in a series of vignettes – love, romance, family and friendship are all recurring themes battling for centre stage. Mike (Christopher Middleton) and Les (Matthew Cullum) are two likely lads competing for the affections of flirtatious Sylv (Tanya Franks). Mum and Dad (Edward Bryant and Jonathan Lindsey) survey the unfolding chaos and reminisce about the good old days.

News: Secret Cinema launches Secret Sofa – immersive cinematic experiences at home. @haagendazsuk @secretcinema #secretcinema #staycreative #immersivetheatre

Do you enjoy luxury and decadence? Are you Rich, old, insecure, vain, superficial, needy and liberally perfumed? Well The Grand Budapest Hotel is the place for you, and this Friday you get to escape lockdown and head there with many 1000s of other new clientele.

This might be one of the most exciting things I have seen for a while!

Secret Cinema, have been helping fans since 2008 to immerse themselves in their favourite imaginary worlds for real. Stranger Things, Dirty Dancing, Back to the Future, Blade Runner and many more have been tackled by them so far and now they are creating a weekly Secret Sofa for us to enjoy from our homes.

It is time to escape this madness and join 1000s of other households (potentially from all over the world) and immerse ourselves in the Secret Sofa world.

Review: 5**** Les Miserables 25th Anniversary Concert – The 02 Arena, London via @SkyArts #CultureinQuarantine @AlfieBoe @MsLeaSalonga @realmattlucas

Tweetingit: 5* Victor Hugo’s sprawling epic seamlessly transfers from stage to the stadium rock atmosphere of London’s 02 Arena. A perfect production showcasing rare genius.

Once upon a time I acquired the hardback version of Les Miserables by Victor Hugo. Needless to say 1,232 pages stayed in pristine condition as I contrived excuses not to read it. Hugo’s masterpiece had so many alternative uses – mine was primarily a doorstop before its convenient loss during a house move. Any literary guilt was assuaged by the brilliant stage version that first graced the London stage in 1985. My own twisted logic dictated that I no longer needed to read the book. It is after all a brilliantly distilled version of the novel that marries narrative with beautifully constructed songs.

This film made in 2010 marked the 25^th anniversary of the show’s first production at the Barbican. The transfer from theatre to the stadium like 02 Arena might at first present a challenge. However, Les Mis easily fills the 20,000 capacity venue as the songs grow bigger and better. Two giant screens flank a full orchestra and huge choir stretching across the stage. Sets are stripped away as cast members take the stage in authentic 19^th Century costume. The unique atmosphere was obvious even on the small screen and one could sense the film captured a very special night.

Seeing the positives – the things I hope theatre will take from lockdown! #staycreative #cultureinquarantine @HIT_CPH #theshowmustgoonline @robmyles

Ok, so before I begin this, there is no questions that this C-19 and lockdown is horrendous for the arts and for actors, musicians, theatre makers and so on. BUT I want to try and think of some positives so that is what this is about.

I have been speaking to a lot of people recently about how “this” will all affect things in the future. These have included how will it effect the way we work – will we all work from home more? How will it affect the views on home schooling? But the one which is the most interesting from our point of view is how will we consume culture and make theatre in the future? I guess much of this is being considered with the view that we might be in lock down for a while longer. But what about after that? How will, this affect theatre long term?

The other reason I began thinking about this is because last week I attended a fabulous reading of a play, Night of the Living by Dave Lankford, performed by House of International Theatre (HIT)

Afterwards there was a Q&A to get the audience talking about how it worked, how it could be developed for the future and what would make the experience of theatre in this format better.

Review: 3*** Antony and Cleopatra – RSC at Stratford-Upon-Avon @MarqueeArtsTV @TheRSC #staycreative

Tweetingit: 3* A well-drilled, highly talented cast go through the numbers and deliver a slick production. But this feels like an overly sterile approach to an infrequently staged play.

Well three hours four minutes and thirty five seconds is a bit of a stretch even for a battle hardened theatre goer like me. But I was undaunted by the marathon that is Antony and Cleopatra. Watching online is a less onerous prospect as it can be split into bite sized viewing portions.

Even so, a highly efficient production by the RSC at Stratford-Upon-Avon is still heavy going. There is a slavish commitment to detail that adds little to the narrative and sails dangerously close to self-indulgence. Tony and Cleo is essentially a love job hovering between tragedy and history – a tale supercharged by the greatest power brokers of the ancient world.

More places to stream shows this Easter Sunday (and beyond) #CultureInQuarantine #staycreative

And the shows available for you to stream just keep rolling in.

One of the only positives I can see about this whole thing right now is that people who might not usually get the opportunity to go to the theatre (too far away, too expensive) have the chance to see some of the best shows around.

So here are the next batch for your enjoyment.

We will of course get reviewing as many as we can.

Review: 5***** Cirque Du Solei 60 minute special 27th March 2020 #cirqueconnect @Cirque #staycreative #CultureInQuarantine

There are now many plays and musicals being streamed access the internet but sometimes we all need a bit of variety. You need something you can just watch and enjoy, something where you do not have to follow a complicated story, or get heavily invested in the lives of the characters on stage only for them to die, be heartbroken or something else tragic. So, I propose to you that at times like these, when we are anxious about the outside world and fed up being stuck indoors, there is simply nothing better than watching people performing incredible death defying acrobatic feats on, for example, a giant floating ships high above an enormous swimming pool!

Cue Cirque Du Solei with their 60 minute special!

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