A trip to Scotland and a few lovely days in Tarporley with cricket and rugby added in too, meant May was a fairly quiet month for theatre , so I’m going to combine June too!
May 9th – Standing At The Sky’s Edge – The Gillian Lynne Theatre. This was my 3rd time of watching and I was back to my original thoughts. There were a couple of cast changes with the main member of the cast playing their parts. I found the music to be far too loud at times again, which is something I didn’t feel at all at the National! But overall I was blown away again and had tears galore at the end. (40)
May 13th – Nye – NT Live, The Odeon Cinema – I had tickets for this as the National but was overstretched that week so gave them to 2 people who had a connection to the NHS. Thanks to NT Live I was able to see the production, Michael Sheen is a true great and was outstanding as Aneurin Bevan the man who was Minister of Health and was instrumental in the introduction of the NHS – Free Dentistry and Healthcare for all was his dream and it was achieved, he is widely regarded as one of the most influential left-wing politicians in British history. Sheen did him and his work justice, while wearing pyjamas for the duration as the play revolved around flashbacks from his own hospital bed. With the way things are in 2024, especially with dentistry Nye must be turning in his grave!
May 14th – Passing Strange – The Young Vic. This was one of the earliest performances of this production and I’d paid £10 for my seat. I was at the side and in effect in the front row. I’m a big Giles Terrera fan and will try to see everything he’s in! He was in effect the narrator via song in this tale of a young lad making his way in the World as he heads to Europe from America. This is a funny and touching production with some great songs and brilliant performances. I booked to go again as soon as I came home, but had an email letting me know Giles wouldn’t be performing, with that in mind I took a credit on my account, I watch most things at the Young Vic. (41)
May 16th – Love Labours Lost – The RSC Stratford-upon-Avon. I confess to booking this as soon as I got the email as Luke Thompson was in the cast. This isn’t a Shakespeare play I knew so I read up before I went. My friend Sarah booked to join me and amazingly managed to get the seat right next to me! I’m going to the RSC site for the description of the play – “Taking an oath to isolate themselves from the trivial distractions of women and love, four men think a spell of celibacy, study and self-improvement is the key to maxing out their potential. But when a Princess and her three companions arrive on a diplomatic mission, the allure of abstinence begins to evaporate. Something’s got to give…”. I enjoy Shakespeare and have seen some excellent productions, this one was laugh out loud funny! The whole cast were superb but Jordan Metcalfe as Boyet and Jack Bardoe as Don Armado were just fabulous, they both had the audience in fits of laughter! It was well worth the drive to the lovely Stratford-upon-Avon! (42)
May 21st – Two Strangers Carry A Cake Across New York – The Criterion Theatre With no theatre trips planned during this week I couldn’t resist a bargain ticket for this lovely show. I was initially disappointed to see Dougal wasn’t Sam Tutty, but was Ellis Kirk the understudy making his debut I believe, I had no need to feel disappointed, he was great! But, I now have a excuse to go back for a 4th time! (43)
June 6th – The Cherry Orchard – The Donmar Warehouse. A Chekov play I wasn’t familiar with I read up about it before I went, with my Friend Sonia, for this one. We had seats in the second row of what would ordinarily be the back of the stage. I like that but have spoken to another theatre goer who was quite put out by being moved there from a standard seat, I didn’t feel it affected the experience. As we waited for the play to start various cast members came and sat amongst the audience and that continued for the duration, Adeel Akhtar sat near us. Having nothing to compare this to I enjoyed the play, I did find the introduction of a ‘rock band’ at one point a bit odd, but that aside this was a well acted portrayal of a classic. June Watson was in the lift with us at the end of the play and we asked her how she was enjoying it, she shared that it was very hard work being ‘on stage’ for the whole performance. (44)
June 6th – Between Riverside and Crazy – The Hampstead Theatre. This is a theatre I tend to go to with my friends James and Laura, they introduced me to it, and we’ve seen some cracking plays. This was no exception as I’m sure any play with Danny Sapani up front and centre is going to be excellent. A quick precise from the theatre website – “Since his wife died, ex-cop Walter ‘Pops’ Washington has filled his palatial rent-controlled apartment in one of Manhattan’s most desirable areas with an oddball extended family of petty criminals. So now he’s besieged by the landlords, who want him out, the NYPD, who want him to settle his lawsuit against them, and the ladies from the local church, who want to save his soul… But Pops, calm at the eye of the storm, is going to do precisely what Pops wants to do…”. Sapanai is a force of nature and he was well suited to this part. I’d always though Hampstead theatre was just too far away for me, but it’s literally just outside Swiss Cottage station so perfectly fine, and it puts on some great plays! (45)
June 8th – Boys From The Backstuff – The National Theatre – Based on Alan Bleasdale’s TV series from over 40 years ago and adapted by James Graham: I watched avidly then, but 40 plus years later I was able to watch with quite different eyes. In spite of living through the Thatcher years it’s only more recently and largely through theatre that I have a better understanding of how her time ravaged so much of the industrial North and the people of Liverpool were no exception. Based around the Liverpool Docks this is a tale of a group of friends without legitimate work and largely living on the dole. It’s sadly relevant to today and how things are for many people. The key character from my memory bank was Yosser, Barry Sloane played him perfectly, his ‘giz a job, I can do that, giz a job’ brought back a lot of memories. His mental health in particular was a key facet of this play, one I can’t imagine being portrayed in the 80’s. I cried at the end of the play, as the humanity of those at ‘the social’ was shown. It moves to The Garrick for 8 weeks from June 13th, I only just got it in at the National. (46)
12th June – Wedding Band – The Lyric Theatre, Hammersmith. I went solo on this one but had picked the same day as Sonia so in a theatre that had far too many spaced we sat together for the second Act ( the sports fan in me so wants to say second half). A story of a ‘mixed’ love affair in the Deep South in 1918 here’s a better description from the Lyric site – “Set in the deep south of USA in 1918 when interracial marriage was illegal, Julia, a black seamstress, and Herman, a white baker, are defying all odds with their secret love. They face vicious judgement not just by society but also their closest friends and family. As they finally begin to believe their dreams for a future together are possible, Herman becomes a victim of the Spanish flu. Determined to save him, Julia is faced with decisions that will change her life”. I found some of the language used very uncomfortable, but it was apt and of its time. An important play it was sad to see so many empty seats. (47)
15th June – Bradley Jaden in Concert – Cadogan Hall. This was the piece de resistance across the 2 months. I very selfishly bought myself a ticket for the 14th, but my friend Sheila did what I should have and bought 2 for the Saturday. We were able to let my friend Cory have the Friday ticket as he’d missed out and go along together on the Saturday. This man has one of the best voices on the West End stage and is Javert for me, we were also lucky to catch the small window when he and Killian Donnelly had the main parts in Les Mis racently, they’re both taking part in the tour starting later in the year. He had 3 guests, Ed Larkin of The Little Big Things, Carrie Hope Fletcher, a first appearance after having a baby and Adam Pearce who suffered a stroke in December 2022. He’s performing as the Priest 8 times a week in Les Mis, which is remarkable! Their duet was a thing of beauty. Bradley explained a visit from Jason Robert Brown to his theatre school in Guildford and sang one of my favourite musicals song, Wondering from The Bridges of Madison County. A choir of future stars from Guildford also supported the concert. (48)
17th June – Alma Mater – The Almeida Theatre. The Almeida is definitely on my list of favourite theatres, I’ve never been disappointed. This production was no different. A very modern tale of consent, it takes place in a traditional university with a Chapel being the centrepiece. I’ve been slightly confused by the cast showing on the Almeida site, I saw Lia Williams in the role of Jo Mulligan, the first female Master of the college. I see that she then withdrew from the role due to illness. I’m sure her replacement is very good but I very much enjoyed Lia in the lead role. The play is based around a ‘fresher’ who is assaulted after she’s passed out drunk. The way her allegation is treated by the Master raises the hugely relevant issue of consent. An important play in so many ways and another excellent production from the Almeida. (49)
19th June – People, Places and Things – Trafalgar Theatre. I’d heard such goos things about this one I decided I had to see it! I had a couple of surprises when I rocked up, firstly I was a week too late for my ticket, which was a nuisance, but happily they had another ticket they could sell me and it was a much better view. The second was the layout of the theatre, I hadn’t realised it’d been totally remodelled and now looks more like a classic theatre. As for the play, well, wow! It was amazing, Denise Gough won an Olivier first time round for her role and bus surely be a firm candidate for another if possible. Here’s a description from the Trafalgar Theatre site “Emma was having the time of her life. Now she’s in rehab. Her first step is to admit that she has a problem. But the problem isn’t with Emma, it’s with everything else. She needs to tell the truth. But she’s smart enough to know that there’s no such thing. When intoxication feels like the only way to survive the modern world, how can she ever sober up?” This is not one for the faint hearted the noise at times definitely made me jump! Another truly thought provoking play. (50)
Favourite Musical Performance – A cheat one in a way here, but when Bradley Jaden is in the mix, it has to be him!
Favourite Drama Performance – Denise Gough in People, Places and Things.
365 Happy Days 