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Assorted January news

Photo © Pip

Fionn Whitehead, star of Dunkirk and Black Mirror: Bandersnatch, will take on the titular role in an upcoming contemporary digital adaptation of the Oscar Wilde classic, The Picture of Dorian Gray.

The Picture of Dorian Gray, from the team behind the celebrated digital production of What a Carve Up!, is set to push the theatrical form like its predecessor; utilising elements found in radio plays, films, documentaries as well as traditional theatrical techniques.

Set in a profile pic-obsessed, filter-fixated world where online and reality blur, influencer Dorian Gray makes a deal. For his social star never to fade. For the perfect self he broadcasts to the world to always remain. But as his mental health starts to decline, as corruption and murderous depravity start to creep into his world, the true and horrific cost of his deal will soon need to be met.

The Picture of Dorian Gray, which runs for two weeks from 16-31 March, will reunite Henry Filloux-Bennett, writing the new adaptation, and director Tamara Harvey. Continue reading “Assorted January news”

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News: NT launches new streaming service National Theatre at Home

The National Theatre, in partnership with Bloomberg Philanthropies, has today launched  National Theatre at Home, a brand-new streaming platform making their much-loved productions available online to watch anytime, anywhere worldwide.

Launching today with productions including the first ever National Theatre Live, Phèdre with Helen Mirren,  Othello  with Adrian Lester and the Young Vic’s Yerma with Billie Piper, new titles from the NT’s unrivalled catalogue of filmed theatre will be added to the platform every month.

In addition to productions previously broadcast to cinemas by National Theatre Live, a selection of plays filmed for the NT’s Archive will be released online for the first time through National Theatre at Home, including Lucy Kirkwood’s Mosquitoes with Olivia Colman and Inua Ellams’ new version of Chekhov’s Three Sisters (a co-production with Fuel).   Continue reading “News: NT launches new streaming service National Theatre at Home”

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News: NT announces original film of Romeo & Juliet with Josh O’Connor & Jessie Buckley

The National Theatre converts its planned Romeo & Juliet with Josh O’Connor & Jessie Buckley into a TV adaptation, with an amazing supporting cast that includes Deborah Findlay, Lucian Msamati and Tamsin Greig

The National Theatre has announced it is creating a new filmed version of Romeo & Juliet for television, temporarily transforming the vast stage spaces of its Lyttelton theatre into a film studio to capture Shakespeare’s timeless play for a new generation of audiences.

Romeo & Juliet will be directed by NT Associate Simon Godwin (Antony and Cleopatra, Twelfth Night), adapted for screen by Emily Burns and with Jessie Buckley (Chernobyl, Judy) and Josh O’Connor (God’s Own Country, The Crown) as the star-crossed lovers. Continue reading “News: NT announces original film of Romeo & Juliet with Josh O’Connor & Jessie Buckley”

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Review: Macbeth, Big Telly Theatre

Not quite ‘when shall we three Zoom again’, Big Telly Theatre’s imaginative online version of Macbeth has some impressive moments

“Present fears are less than horrible imaginings”

With its cast members scattered across Belfast, Deal, Deptford, Dublin and London, it’s a remarkable achievement in and of itself that this production of Macbeth can exist at all in these Covid-19 times. But founder and artistic director of Big Telly Theatre Zoe Seaton has been quick off the mark to explore the creative opportunities of these constraints and this marks her fifth lockdown production.

And you can see how deftly experienced hands are shaping this new kind of experience. An inspired bit of pre-show business brilliantly skewers the government’s daily Covid briefings as it introduces its own version of track and trace which is implemented on some unsuspecting audience members. It also frames the world of this production as a plaything of the weird sisters, the ones who are truly in charge here. Continue reading “Review: Macbeth, Big Telly Theatre”

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News: Samuel Barnett, Janie Dee, Emma Williams and more join Bard From The Barn Series 3

The Barn Theatre’s third and final series of Bard From The Barn reveals a cast that includes Samuel Barnett, Janie Dee, Emma Williams, Seraphina Beh, Maanuv Thiara and more 

The Barn Theatre and Aaron Sidwell have announced the cast and creatives for the third and final series of their re-imagined Shakespeare series, Bard From The Barn.

The digital theatre series will return for a five-week series which reimagines William Shakespeare’s work to a modern-day setting. Continue reading “News: Samuel Barnett, Janie Dee, Emma Williams and more join Bard From The Barn Series 3”

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Review: Henry V / The Merry Wives of Windsor, Roman Theatre of Verulamium St Albans

A return to live theatre is well marked by these vibrant open-air productions of Henry V and The Merry Wives of Windsor at the Roman Theatre of Verulamium in St Albans

“Try and stay one box away from each other at all times”

As we try and search for a new normal in these uncertain times, it is reassuring to know that we can always rely on the unfailing unreliability of the British weather. After a scorcher of a week, the Maltings Open Air Theatre Festival finds itself opening into thunderstorms aplenty in the atmospheric surroundings of the Roman Theatre of Verulamium in St Albans. Plus ça change…

What has changed though is the basic reality of putting on a play. Social distancing rules supreme and it is fascinating to see how directors Matthew Parker and Adam Nichols are dealing with it in their respective productions of Henry V and The Merry Wives of Windsor. Continue reading “Review: Henry V / The Merry Wives of Windsor, Roman Theatre of Verulamium St Albans”

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The winners of the 9th annual Mousetrap Awards

BEST FEMALE PERFORMER AWARD:

WINNER – Laura Baldwin, as Dawn in Waitress
Sophie Evans, as Glinda in Wicked
Leah Harvey, as Hortense in Small Island
Miriam-Teak Lee, as Juliet in & Juliet

BEST MALE PERFORMER AWARD:

WINNER – David Hunter, as Dr Pomatter in Waitress
Laurie Kynaston, as Nicolas in The Son
Wendell Pierce, as Willy Loman in Death of a Salesman
Jac Yarrow, as Joseph in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat Continue reading “The winners of the 9th annual Mousetrap Awards”

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News: National Theatre at Home final phase

The National Theatre has announced a further five productions that will be streamed as a part of the National Theatre at Home series. Established in April to bring culture and entertainment to audiences around the world during this unprecedented period, National Theatre at Home has so far seen 10 productions streamed via the NT’s YouTube channel, with over 12 million views to date. These will be the final titles to be shared for free via YouTube in this period. However, future digital activity to connect with audiences in the UK and beyond is planned, with further details to be announced soon. 

The productions will be broadcast each Thursday at 7pm BST for free and will then be available on demand for seven days. Titles added to the programme today include A Midsummer Night’s Dream from the Bridge Theatre, alongside Small Island, Les Blancs, The Deep Blue Sea and Amadeus from the National Theatre.  Continue reading “News: National Theatre at Home final phase”