Peter Kirwan
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Alphonsus, Emperor of Germany @ Shakespeare’s Globe
November 14, 2010
I’ve never, to my everlasting shame, been to a Read Not Dead reading at the Globe, which is something of a travesty for someone with such an interest in overlooked and rarely-performed early modern drama. To be fair, they’re at 3pm on a Sunday and – as was borne out today – it’s a pain …
New Globe season – and some more Jonson
November 8, 2010
Writing about web page http://shakespeares-globe.org/press/ Cheers to Duncan, as ever, for the tip: Shakespeare’s Globe has announced its new season, and it’s a fascinating one: All’s Well, Much Ado and – of special interest to me – Faustus, as well as touring productions of Hamlet and As You Like It. Also, the White Bear Theatre …
Hamlet (National) @ The Olivier Theatre
October 27, 2010
Writing about web page http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/59866/productions/hamlet.html A lady sitting next to me at yesterday’s matinee commented how nice a change it made to have someone relatively unknown playing Hamlet. Certainly, Rory Kinnear hasn’t made the same mass-media impact yet as David Tennant or Jude Law, but he’s been working his way up, giving stunning performances in …
Prince of Denmark (National) @ The Cottesloe Theatre
Writing about web page http://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/59868/productions/discover-prince-of-denmark.html As a prelude to the afternoon’s Hamlet in the Olivier, I managed to catch one of the final performances of Michael Lesslie’s new play Prince of Denmark, part of the NT’s "discover:" programme. Aimed at teenagers, the production’s purpose was to provide a bridge for young people coming to the …
Another sellout
October 14, 2010
Sold out already! Have to say, this wasn’t one I was overly excited about (my gut tells me it’ll be deeply conservative, light entertainment, though I honestly hope I’m wrong), but the British ticket-buying public have made the decision for me…. Twelfth Night by William Shakespeare COTTESLOE THEATRE PLEASE NOTE: This production is now …
Double Falsehood @ Nottingham Playhouse
October 12, 2010
Writing about web page http://www.nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk/whats-on/misc/double-falsehood/ To call this "The First Public Reading" of Double Falsehood, as the website promises, wasn’t entirely accurate (see the KDC production and our own modest, but still public, reading at Warwick), but this was at least the first public reading of the play, since the publication of Brean Hammond’s excellent …
Taymor’s Tempest
October 6, 2010
Well, if you’re going to do Shakespeare on film, you might as well make it spectacular! Event.onDOMReady(function(){ object729651 = new FlashObject(“http://www.youtube.com/v/Q-HIf4VL-7I&fs=1&hl=en”,’object729651′,”425″,”350″); object729651.addParam(“wmode”,”transparent”); object729651.align = “left”; object729651.write(“video_729651”); }); Good use of Sigur Ros too!
Where’s Shakespeare?
October 4, 2010
Regular readers might have been wondering what’s happened to the Bard in Bardathon over the last couple of months. Partly, it’s that there’s been a glut of non-Shakespeare early modern drama produced recently – plays by Middleton, Kyd, Chettle, Marlowe, Ford – all of which come around far less rarely than Shakespeare, so I’ve been prioritising …
Doctor Faustus @ Manchester Royal Exchange
October 3, 2010
Writing about web page http://www.royalexchangetheatre.org.uk/event.aspx?id=331 Sitting in the gods at Manchester Royal Exchange provided the perfect perspective for a review of Marlowe’s Faustus. The circular in-the-round stage, engraved with constellations and symbols, became a giant magic circle within which the play’s action took place; and it was to us, gazing from above, that Patrick O’Kane …
‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore @ Liverpool Everyman
October 2, 2010
Writing about web page http://www.everymanplayhouse.com/show/Tis_Pity_Shes_A_Whore/215.aspx An initial glance through the cast list of Chris Meade’s new ‘Tis Pity at the Liverpool Everyman betrayed from the start that this was a severely pared-down affair. Donado, Grimaldi, Bergetto, Poggio, Richardetto and Philotis were all cut, along with their subplots. What remained was a tightly-focussed domestic drama, drawing …
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