SHAKESPEARE GLOBE PRESS RELEASE – 15 February 2010

WORLD PREMIERES

Published by: Tremayne

Shakespeare’s Globe and its 2010 theatre season host two world premieres, Howard Brenton’s new play – Anne Boleyn and Bedlam by first female playwright at the Globe, Nell Leyshon.

“…for years I’d wanted to write a tale about The Tudors.  …sex and religion at such a high level…”

(Howard Brenton).

Anne Boleyn is a dramatisation on aspects of her life and the legacy of her husband, Henry VIII,to whom she was second wife .  A sexually charged woman who took it upon herself to improve the state religion was in, and for the better.

“…anything Tudor-related is gold dust to us at the moment, think to T.V. adaptations…”

(Dominic Dromgoole – Globe Artistic Director).

Nell Leyshon’s writing is described by Dominic Dromgoole as ‘a still and beautiful incapsulation of that Somerset life that’s passing’.  Her new play Bedlam is a fictional take on a London hospital for the mentally insane and looks at the common link between art and insanity.

“…mental illness wasn’t understood, you were either high or low.”

(Nell Leyshon).

SHAKESPEARE’S GLOBE 2010 THEATRE DIARY:

Macbeth by William Shakespeare

23 April – 27 June

Directed by Lucy Bailey

Henry VIII by William Shakespeare

15 May – 21 August

Directed by Mark Rosenblatt

Henry IV Parts 1 and 2 by William Shakespeare

Part 1: 6 June – 2 October

Part 2: 3 July  - 3 October

Directed by Dominic Dromgoole

WORLD PREMIERE

Anne Boleyn by Howard Brenton

24 July – 21 August

Directed by John Dove

The Merry Wives of Windsor by William Shakespeare

14 August – 2 October

Directed by Christopher Luscombe

WORLD PREMIERE

Bedlam by Nell Leyshan

5 September – 1 October

Directed by Jessica Swale

Tickets are available through the box office:

020 7901 9919/020 7087 7398 or

Online: www.shakespeares-globe.org

Q&A SESSION

• The development of The Winter Theatre

“…we retain a shell.  We’ve built up an understanding of The Blackfriars, the indoor theatre in Shakespeare’s day, combined with some of our own designs…”

(Dominic Dromgoole)

•Writing for the Globe

“The Globe loves storytelling.  Being an experimental theatre, it is a psychological window where audience’s brains can open up”.

(Howard Brenton)

•Ticket prices

The Globe continue to sell stand-up tickets for just £5.

“We’ve got the most democratic mix of audience.  I doubt we’ll ever reach the equivalent to New York where a free theatre pass has been made available.

(Howard Brenton)

•Nell Leyshon – First Female Globe playwright

“I wanted to improve the complexity found within plays, which resulted in me writing harder.  For a penny, on a Sunday, during the 18^th century you could observe the mentally ill and poke them with a stick.  I didn’t want to write an historical account.  I wanted to have some fun and not be held by history”.

• Themes of the world premiere plays: religious turmoil from Howard Brenton vs. binge-dinking by Nell Leyshon:

“I’m very interested in religious conflicts.  You don’t set out to write a play with addressing the nation though.  Otherwise you’d go mad like Sir Bernard Shaw!”

(Howard Brenton)

“You couldn’t go to a West End Theatre for fear of being stabbed”, Nell Leyshon who makes a comparison between theatre back in the 18^th century and now.

•Sum-up by Artistic Director, Dominic Dromgoole

“The extraordinary story of the Globe goes on.  It’s little short of a miracle that it’s becoming reachable on your laptop from the top of The Himalayan Mountains”.

Shakespeare Globe Press Release – 15 February 2010

Published by: Tremayne

Shakespeare’s Globe presents plans for its 2010 theatre season: 23 April – 30 October 2010.

Shakespeare’s Globe on Film

Three productions from Shakespeare’s Globe 2009 theatre season have been filmed. Special attention was made to how they were cut and assembled together, so that they could be screened and released onto DVD and Blu-ray in time for this Spring/Summer.  All part of the Globe’s new partnership with Opus Arte.

Screenings of Dominic Dromgoole’s production of Romeo & Juliet will be shown at Odeon, Vue and other selected independent cinemas throughout the UK in February.  Further screenings scheduled internationally in the months to come.

CINEMA

                                    Odeon*                                    Vue**

Love’s Labours Lost    12 Apr at 19:00                       26 and 27 Apr

As You Like It              14 Jun at 19:00                       11 and 12 Oct

*Participating Odeon cinemas include: Blackpool, Colchester, Guildford, Harrogate, Kettering, Lincoln, Manchester, Metrocentre, Taunton, Tunbridge Wells, Wimbledon.

**Participating Vue Cinemas include: Blackburn, Camberley, Cambridge, Carlisle, Cheshire Oaks, Dublin, Edinburgh Omni, Harrow, Hull, Plymouth, Portsmouth, Reading, Southport, Watford, Worcester.

DVD AND BLU-RAY

Romeo & Juliet                       1 April 2010

As You Like It                          1 May 2010

Love’s Labours Lost                1 August 2010

SHAKESPEARE GLOBE PRESS RELEASE – 15 February 2010

Shakespeare’s Globe’s 2010 Theatre Season

Published by: Tremayne

There will be small scale regional tours of The Comedy of Errors and A Midsummer Night’s Dream, which are scheduled to visit the UK and Europe.

Public booking opens on 15 February 2010.

Box office: 020 7401 9919 or visit the website www.shakespeares-globe.org

“There’s been a decline within other companies… …we’re managing to do without subsidies… …we won’t go into that!”

(Dominic Dromgoole)

This year’s theatre theme is Kings & Rogues, following the best box office year in 2009 where the highest attendance figures were held in the Globe’s 13 year history.

Henry IV Parts 1 & 2, described as ‘a waterfall of revelations’, to be shown ‘in isolation to detach from that long history cycle they’ve been attached to in the past.’

Lucy Bailey’s production of MacBeth will begin the theatre season, to be launched on Shakespeare’s birthday, 23 April.  This will star Elliot Couran who played in the Donmar’s award-winning A Streetcar Named Desire.

The Merry Wives of Windsor returns in 2010 after its triumph in 2008.  It echoes roots of a modern TV sitcom, including several the characters from Henry IV Parts 1 & 2.

Fatal Encounter

Darlington Civic Theatre

Francis Durbridge is one of the world’s most prolific thriller writers and his name is synonymous with intricately detailed and beautifully written ‘whodunits’.  Fatal Encounter is the fourth of Durbridge’s plays to be staged by theatre impresario Ian Dickens, and he has done a jolly good job of it to boot.

The story revolves around Joanna Mansfield, played by the wonderful Anita Harris, the wife of a successful publisher, Howard Mansfield (Michael Howe). For quite some time, Joanna has been acting rather strangely and her neurosis, paranoia and general jumpiness is beginning to cause Howard concern.

A series of bizarre events, including her handbag being stolen during a mugging then being left outside the couple’s front door with contents fully intact, lead up to Howard returning home one evening to find that Joanna has shot Perry Kingsley (Aaron Bixley), the husband of her best friend, Grace (Susan Skipper). In an effort to protect his fragile, vulnerable wife, Howard elects to take the rap for the shooting himself and, unwittingly, embroils himself in a world of international blackmail and conspiracy.

Anita Harris is on top form in the role of Joanna and her performance is so accomplished that, despite the skill and talent of her co-stars, she dominates the entire piece. That said, the performances given by Nicholas Ball, as the dogged detective Inspector Coldwell, Neil Stacy, as the soave, sophisticated art dealer Mark Adler, Susan Skipper, as the rather beautiful best friend, and Michael Howe, as the harassed husband, are entirely commendable. A supporting cast made up of Aaron Bixley, Michael Kirk, Miranda Magee and Michael Carrington serve the principals admirably.

Durbridge’s script crackles along at a rip-roaring pace and he throws plenty of red herrings into the mix, confounding even the most diligent of audience members. Ian Dickens’s direction is sharp and dynamic, keeping the momentum up throughout.

The action takes place in the home of Howard and Joanna Mansfield, at 28 Clifton Place in Holland Park, and the wonderful set is beautifully dressed. In fact, the only mystery that remained unsolved at the end of the performance was who should be given the credit for its design. I could find no credit in the programme notes.

This production of Fatal Encounter is a resounding success and comes highly recommended.

Steve Burbridge.

Runs at Darlington until Saturday 27^th February 2010, before touring to Tunbridge Wells and Plymouth

PEPPA PIG’S PARTY!

[Live on stage Wed 7^th & Thur 8^th April]

Click here for Peppa images

Peppa Pig is currently one of TV’s top-rated children’s shows and a BAFTA Award winner. Now, for the first time ever, she has her own live stage show. Peppa Pig’s Party opened on 30 September in Exeter and played to 7 venues in autumn 2009. Now in 2010 this extensive UK tour continues to 60 theatres across including the King's Theatre Glasgow.

Many creative talents have come together to assemble this exciting new production where the main characters are played by puppets with visible puppeteers.

·       Nigel Plaskitt is Puppetry Consultant for the show and is, arguably, the UK’s most experienced puppet specialist. His many credits include Monkey  (who appears alongside Al played by Johnny Vegas) in the current award-winning commercials for PG Tips; Spitting Image; and the current West End hit show Avenue Q.

·       The music comes from LazyTown’s highly talented composer Mani Svavarsson whose songs are well known to children and parents.

·       Director Richard Lewis (who has also adapted Peppa Pig for stage) has many acclaimed children’s stage shows to his credit, including Fimbles and the two LazyTown Live! tours (2007 – 2008 and 2009).

Peppa Pig’s Party is produced by the team (Fiery Angel and Limelight Productions) behind the recent tours of LazyTown Live! and Roald Dahl’s The BFG.

Peppa is a playful little pig who lives with her little brother George, Mummy Pig and Daddy Pig. Through everyday adventures she plays games, makes new friends and enjoys her absolutely favourite activity – jumping up and down in muddy puddles! Today is a very special day. It’s Peppa Pig's birthday. Peppa Pig’s Party is a chance for all her young friends across the UK to join in the fun with Suzy Sheep, Danny Dog and Emily Elephant for her perfect party. This charming, original and imaginative show is full of brand new songs, muddy puddles, and oinks!

Peppa Pig © Astley Baker Davies Ltd / E1 Entertainment Ltd 2003.

Ends/

PRESS PERFORMANCE: WED 7^th April @1pm

Listings Info:

PEPPA PIG’S PARTY

Wed 7^th April @ 10am, 1pm and 4pm

Thur 8^th April @ 10am, 1pm and 4pm

Tickets: £13.50 – £15.50 Adult

          £11.50 - £13.50 Child

Box Office 08448 717 648 (Bkg fee)

www.ambassadortickets.com/glasgow (bkg fee)

NOTES TO EDITORS:

1. Peppa Pig is currently one of the UK’s biggest pre-school properties with confirmed sales of over 2 million DVDs and over 50 licence agreements in the UK alone. Internationally the television programme has been sold into over 150 territories and licensing programmes have been established or are being planned in a number of territories including Europe, Asia and the Americas.

PEPPA PIG’S PARTY

www.peppapiglive.com

Contacts:

To set up interviews, request images or for further information please contact Mark Irwin on 0141 240 1305 or markirwin@theambassadors.com

To organise competitions or ticket giveaways please contact Laura Fitzpatrick on 0141 240 1302 or laurafitzpatrick@theambassadors.com

Mark Irwin
Press Officer
King's Theatre & Theatre Royal, Glasgow 
297 Bath Street
Glasgow G2 4JN
Direct Line: 0141 240 1305
Fax: 0141 240 1301

The Lady in the Van

The Gala Theatre, Durham

The Lady in the Van tells the true story of a bag lady who drove her battered old Bedford van into the garden of playwright Alan Bennett with the intention of parking there for three months, but who ended up staying for fifteen years.

It’s a strange piece which is constructed from a series of pivotal events rather than following a linear path. The wit is understated, the themes low-key, and sometimes the pace moves so slowly that you almost begin to believe that Miss Shepherd’s van might overtake it.

Nevertheless, the poignancy and perceptiveness of Bennett’s bittersweet observations are enough to subtly engage and, before you are aware of it, you are hooked by the curious relationship between the indomitable, cranky and completely batty old woman and the intellectual, introverted, mild-mannered playwright.

Rosalind Bailey, as Miss Shepherd, is a one-woman wonder and she nails the role with expert precision. Her performance is carefully crafted and hallmarked by spot-on comedy timing, convincing characterisation and an indisputable stage presence.

David Hedges, as the younger Bennett, and Hugh Osborne, as the elder, both successfully convey the mannerisms, voice and intonation of the playwright. However, there were moments when I felt that there was an element of competition between the actors as to who could do the best Bennett, and this resulted in Osborne occasionally sounding like a cross between Russell Harty and Melvyn Bragg.

Lucy Campbell has designed a stylish and atmospheric set, depicting Bennett’s study which looks out at Miss Shepherd’s battered old Bedford (and, at one point, a rusty old Robin Reliant, too!), against the backdrop of a silhouetted terraced street, punctuated by a solitary lamp-post.

Simon Stallworthy, directing his thirteenth in-house production for the Gala, demonstrates a complete understanding of the piece and handles it with reverence and responsibility.

The Lady in the Van may not be a piece that hurtles along at an all-action breakneck speed, but it is an astute study of human relationships, highlighting the fallibility and complexity of the species.

Steve Burbridge.

“The Lady in the Van” is at The Gala Theatre, Durham until 27^th February 2010.

Directed by Frances Loy

Theatre delicatessen’s first production in its new home at Picton Place is Philip Ridley’s Mercury Fur. A play told at full throttle, Ridley's world is a dark place, survivors on edge creating dark fantasies for those that will pay to play

Elliot (Matt Granados) and his brother Darren (Chris Urch) prepare places  for ‘parties’ where people can film their fantasies, Lola (Isaac Jones) helps them prepare for these events.

The play opens with Elliot and Darren finding an abandoned flat to hold the party, they encounter Naz, (Mikey Bharj) a squatter who quickly ingratiates  himself in the hope of cadging some drugs from Elliot and to avoid being alone.

The outfit is run by Spinx (Ben Wigzell), a man whose power is seemingly untouchable. The group await the arrival of the party guest, the client whose whims are catered for. Things do not go according to plan and the action moves swiftly to lead the characters to a horrifying and inevitable conclusion. 

Much symbolism is present in this work, links between the characters are hinted at but never fully explained.

There are some compelling performances in this production and Loy's confident direction has employed full use of the space to encourage the audience to feel they are in the moment with the characters.

Mercury Fur

3-4 Picton Place W1U 1BJ

Audience should note Strong language is throughout.

Lear
Lear and his daughters fight it out in the swinging sixties.

Bobby Fincher, the founder of Spadra Bus Theatre Company, transports King Lear into the swinging sixties as the youth rebellion begins. The 1960s were typified by a fraught division between the old and the young. Fincher sees this as a perfect backdrop for Lear and his daughters. When the play opens Lear is bestowing his kingdom on “younger strengths” but are they ready to take the world into their own hands? And is Lear ready to give it up? 

Fincher interprets the tale as a rebellion of youth against age and tradition and compares it with the rebellion and sexual revolution of the 1960s. Sadly, this idea does not quite work. It remains unclear what Fincher thought he could bring to the play by setting it in the 1960s. The actors wear sixties costumes and there is the occasional slide show depicting relevant events of the era such as the student rebellion, the deaths of Robert Kennedy and Martin Luther King jr. or the Vietnam War accompanied by music - mostly by the Beatles. Lear liberates his daughters from his paternal care and empowers Goneril and Regan by dividing his kingdom between them. True. But why is Goneril’s and Regan’s affair with Edmund compared to the sexual revolution of the 1960s? I don’t see the connection. These extramarital affairs had been going on for centuries. Interpreting their desire for Edmund as Goneril’s and Regan’s “sexual liberation” is stretching it somewhat. It does not help that the play was cut down to a length of less than two hours.

However, it was interesting to see two actors playing Lear. Robert Rowe portrays the king with quiet authority and stubbornness. Chris Bearne takes over when Lear is beginning to lose his mind giving a very intense and touching performance. The only character who truly took me back to the 1960s was Suzanne Kendall’s Foole. With her shrill excitement the Foole reminded me of Barbra Streisand in her best comic roles of that era. 

The production is presented by the Spadra Bus Theatre Company and was produced and co-directed by Suzanne Kendall and Hannah Mercer who also perform in the play. They received support from guest director Luke Dixon of Nomad Theatre.

16 to 24 February Tue – Fri 7.30 pm  Sat and Sun 3.00, 6.30 pm

Tickets: £ 12 / £ 10 (concessions)

BOX OFFICE: 020 7704 6665

The Rosemary Branch, 2 Shepperton Road, London N1 3DT

Dreamboats and Petticoats at Milton Keynes Theatre

Reviewed 15^th February 2010

Directed by Bob Tomson; Musical Supervision by Keith Strachan; Choreography by Carole Todd; Designed by Sean Cavanagh; Lighting Designed by Mark Howett; Sound Designed by Ben Harrison; Executive Producer Brian Berg.

 

Performances are strong, particularly Josh Capper as Bobby, who has only been out of theatre school for three years.

Awarded most promising graduate in 2006 he was definitely one of the stand out performances of the evening. He looks the part, has a great voice for the most part, although the Roy Orbison number did cause a couple of problems, and comedic talent. He is very endearing as an dreamy awkward teenager.

Matching Josh in the comedy stakes is Wayne Smith as Ray who looks like a young Danny Kay and is as funny in places!

Again, great voice, convincing and a charming way about him. Bound to see more of these two in the future.

 

Daniella Bowen (Laura)  and Carolynne Good (Sue, above) are both bright and chirpy as knowing, teenage girls with more experience than the boys. Strongest female performance is Bethany Compson-Bradford as the sweet fifteen year old with the songwriting talent and beautiful voice. She is rather wonderful.

Anthony Clegg (Phil/Older Bobby) and Simon Nock (Frank/Slugger/Compere) are the very experienced and more mature cast members and their confidence and ease on stage shines through.
All members of the cast deserve a mention really, particularly as the majority of them play the music live on stage throughout. That certainly says something about todays wealth of talent.
An enjoyable singalong evening of a trawl through the hits of the sixties with the tiniest thread of a story to hold it all together is the sum of this productions parts.

22-27 Feb Opera House, Manchester
1-6 March, New Victoria Theatre, Woking
8-13 March, Liverpool Empire Theatre, Liverpool
15-20 March, Grand Theatre, Leeds
For full tour dates visit www.kenwright.com

The Lady Vanishes

The Tyne Theatre & Opera House

ALFRED HITCHCOCK’S classic 1938 film of lies, lost ladies and locomotives has been brought vividly to life in a new adaptation of The Lady Vanishes by Mark Simpson.

Stylishly staged, with an ingenious revolving set, designed by Maurice Rubens, that doubles as a hotel on the Swiss border and a steam locomotive, it is bursting with intrigue, espionage, romance and drama.

Stranded in a hotel after an avalanche, a cosmopolitan group of eccentric characters are desperate to return to London. They embark on a potentially perilous journey aboard a trans-alpine express train.

Having suffered a bang to the head at the hotel, Iris (Penelope Rawlins), a society beauty, is befriended by an endearing elderly governess, Miss Froy (Jane Evers). But, when the old lady mysteriously disappears and none of the other passengers acknowledge that she ever existed, Iris decides to investigate.

She manages to persuade Gilbert (Darrell Brockis), a handsome young musicologist that she is not hallucinating, despite the diagnosis of the sinister Dr Hartz (Terry Molloy), and he assists in the search for Miss Froy.

The ensuing events are a sophisticated mix of action, deceit, comedy and mystery. There are no weak links amongst the stellar cast, many of whom are required to double-up as other characters.

Mark Sterling’s direction ensures that the momentum is maintained throughout and that the audience are kept guessing right until the very end. The Lady Vanishes is a production that entertains and enthrals in equal measure.

Steve Burbridge.