CINEMA
I really enjoyed The Damned United, a film about Brian Clough’s short time at Leeds United with another stunning portrayal of a real person by Michael Sheen. I found it more sympathetic to Clough than the backlash suggested.
In The Loop, Armando Ianucci’s big screen version of his BBC profile of spin doctors benefits from the [...]
Archive for April, 2009
The Rest of April
Posted in Art, Contemporary Music, Film, Theatre, tagged Art, Contemporary Music, Film, Theatre on April 30, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Estranged
Posted in Theatre, tagged Theatre on April 30, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
This is the second play I’ve seen by young writer Jason Charles and it proves he is someone to watch. His plays remind me early Jonathan Harvey, but he has his own less in-your-face voice.
This one is a family drama set on the eve of a wedding. The groom has invited his dominant mother’s estranged sister and [...]
SohoStreets
Posted in Theatre, tagged Theatre on April 30, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
You might find this one hard to believe…..
When you arrive at Soho Theatre you have to choose to join one of four groups – Hippies, Punks, Ravers and Goths. I was a too young 15 at the height of flower power and a too old 25 when Punk arrived, so I was torn between Hippies and [...]
Rookery Nook
Posted in Theatre on April 29, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
When you walk into the tiny Menier theatre you marvel at the Tudor cottage that has been created – another extraordinary use of this space.
Initially, I was wondering why they’d bothered to revive this 1920’s Ben Travers farce, but it doesn’t take long before you succumb to the silliness and period charm of it all.
The [...]
Parlour Song
Posted in Theatre on April 28, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
The problem with Jez Butterworth is that he doesn’t write enough plays! – this is only his 5th in 15 years. Like the others, I found it sparklingly original.
Many consider him ‘pinteresque’ but I disagree because he leaves you to decide what you think / work it out it rather than be obtuse for its own [...]
Othello
Posted in Theatre, tagged Theatre on April 26, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
This was my third visit to Kingston’s new Rose Theatre but the first one with a decent audience; this was probably because this Othello is national treasure Lenny Henry.
It’s a brave move to make Othello your first stage role and there is much to admire in the performance - he has extraordinary stage presence and a fine barritone voice [...]
Panic
Posted in Theatre on April 25, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
April must me my month for disappointments. Earlier in the month that other highly inventive theatre company Kneehigh disappointed and now so do Improbable.
Despite a welcome return to a smaller scale, in this case the magic that normally results from their unique working method hasn’t emerged. It has its moments, but not enough of them [...]
Madame de Sade
Posted in Theatre on April 22, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
Well, I suppose it was only time before we got the Donmar Turkey, but I didn’t think it would be such a big turkey that it doesn’t even fit in the oven.
This is a translation by an American of a Japanese play by Mishima about the famous French Marquis, who doesn’t appear but whose exploits are [...]
The Fever
Posted in Theatre, tagged Theatre on April 21, 2009 | Leave a Comment »
This Wallace Shawn ‘play’ about the developed world middle class attitude to the developing world is more of a download than a monologue, which gives it realism but at the expense of losing your attention too often. Though it has a lot to say, its impact is watered down by its structure and its length.
Claire Higgins [...]
Oman – April 2009
Posted in Travel on April 20, 2009 | 3 Comments »
Oman shares the southern part of the Arabian peninsular with The Yemen. It’s the same size at the UK, but with only 4% of the population. Mountains rise to 2000m / 6000 feet from the thin coastal strip and descend again to a vast desert where oil was first exploited only 30 years ago when [...]
