A lot of these blog entries this term have been about what people did over the summer. Over the last three summers, I was lucky enough to work at an open air theatre in Chester, so my blog is going to be all about my love of the theatre.
The shows we put on were ‘As You Like It’, ‘Twelfth Night’, ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ and ‘Othello’ (by Shakespeare); ‘Masters Are You Mad?’ and ‘Merlin and the Woods of Time’ (by Glyn Maxwell); and ‘Cyrano de Bergerac’ (by Edmond Rostand, adapted by Glyn Maxwell). As each season was at least eight weeks long with eight shows a week, I got to know these plays very well. Here are two clips of my favourite speeches:
Jacques’ ‘All the World’s a Stage’ from a Digital Theatre production of 'As You Like It', and a short clip of Ed Harrison’s Cyrano, ‘my’ Cyrano, from this summer:
Jacques’ ‘All the World’s a Stage’ from a Digital Theatre production of 'As You Like It', and a short clip of Ed Harrison’s Cyrano, ‘my’ Cyrano, from this summer:
Of course, many plays have been adapted into more accessible films, like ‘She’s the Man’, loosely based on Twelfth Night and starring Amanda Bynes; and ‘Roxanne’, starring Steve Martin, based on Cyrano. Here is a clip of Steve reciting a modern version of Cyrano’s nose speech:
I love the theatre. There is something truly magical about watching a play or a musical live in front of you, mere metres away from the actors. Every show is different. For that one performance, every audience member is part of the magic, feeling as if the actor is talking directly to them. I hope lots of you have been to the National Theatre at some point, or perhaps you’ve seen one of the National Theatre Live broadcasts at your local cinema. Recent productions have included Frankenstein, the History Boys, War Horse and Othello. Frankenstein, directed by Danny Boyle, starred Benedict Cumberbatch and Johnny Lee Miller as both Dr Frankenstein and the Monster alternately. This was a radical new way of getting real depth to both of the characters, as each actor knew the other’s part so well. The History Boys, which launched the careers of Dominic Cooper, Russell Tovey and James Cordon, which was later made into a film with the original cast, but it did begin on the stage. War Horse, based on the book by Michael Morpurgo, has broken box office records for its huge popularity. The use of puppets as the horses on stage is absolutely mesmerising. In my opinion, the film version, directed by Spielberg, didn’t invite the same level of emotion as the stage version did. A real tear jerker.
Of course, I can’t write something about the stage and not mention musicals. Les Miserables, Wicked, the Phantom of the Opera, West Side Story, Cats, Jersey Boys, Matilda, the Book of Mormon… the list of long-running West End and Broadway hits is endless and constantly growing. In the words of Neil Patrick Harris at the 2011 Tony Awards, Broadway has never been broader:
I think one of my personal favourites was watching Hairspray on tour in the Liverpool Empire, where the actors were really playing it up for the scouse crowd- I have never laughed so much! The interaction of the actors with the audience really makes a play spectacular; the actors know if the audience is receptive. From working at the theatre over the summer, it was when the audience were the most absorbed that the actors shined the brightest, coming up with new improvised hilarity, or provoking powerful emotions. In one performance, the ending of Othello (and I won’t ruin it for those of you who don’t know the plot) drew most of the audience to tears, and there was a good few minutes of stunned silence before the applause began.
This month marked the 50th anniversary of the National Theatre. I hope some of you managed to see the special show on BBC2 where the theatre brought together all the actors who have ever played there to give short performances. Here is the trailer:
As part of their anniversary season, they will be screening some of their most popular recent shows again. Othello, Coriolanus, Frankenstein and War Horse will all be on in the Picturehouse between now and March, so do go along and see one of them at least (I will be seeing them all!)
And finally, if this hasn’t convinced you already, go and see a show. The actors and everyone back stage and front of house work so hard to put on eight shows a week, and many of the seasons are only very short. Many famous faces are in the West End at the moment: Matthew Macfadyen and Stephen Mangan in Jeeves and Wooster, Jude Law in Henry V (actually, Ed Harrison who was Cyrano in Chester this summer is in this show as well), Tom Hiddleston in Coriolanus… Go and see something! In the words of Neil Patrick Harris, I guarantee a truly legendary show.
Sophie
Sophie