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News: Royal & Derngate and Atlantic Screen Music announce new album Incidental: Music For The Stage

Royal & Derngate Theatres and Atlantic Screen Music have announced the release of a contemporary classical and electronic music album INCIDENTAL: Music For The Stage featuring original compositions for theatre inspired by some of the most famous plays and novels in the English Language. The charity compilation album will contain original music from stage productions by composers such as White Lies, Anne Dudley, These New Puritans, Rachel Portman, Valgeir Sigurðsson, Isobel Waller-Bridge, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds and Renell Shaw alongside spoken performances from actors including Judi Dench, Amanda Seyfried, David Harewood, Felicity Jones, Giles Terera, Patricia Routledge, James Norton, Sharon D Clarke, Iain Glen, Lesley Sharp, Stephen Fry, Indira Varma, Maxine Peake, Roger Allam, Anton Lesser and Simon Russell Beale.


Together they will raise vital funds to support Northampton Royal & Derngate Theatres’ reopening, helping the venue to recover from the devastating impact of the pandemic and to continue to produce their award winning Made in Northampton productions. The album is available to pre-order at incidentalmusicforthestage.com or pre-save on Spotify, Bandcamp, iTunes, Deezer and Tidal here. To launch the project today, two singles from the album are being released: Rachel Portman’s prologue to A Tale of Two Cities featuring Judi Dench and White Lies’ prologue to Cat on a Hot Tin Roof featuring Amanda Seyfried, both of which are available to listen to here and to download here. Continue reading “News: Royal & Derngate and Atlantic Screen Music announce new album Incidental: Music For The Stage”

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Film Review: The Banishing (2020)

Not even the presence of John Heffernan and Jessica Brown Findlay can save The Banishing from its rather punishingly dull fate

“That poor, poor woman”

I did want to like The Banishing, starring as it does fave-around-these-parts John Heffernan and Jessica Brown Findlay in its cast. But Christopher Smith’s film reveals itself as a rather staid entry into the British horror canon, offering little to make it stand out on any creative level.

A haunted house would-be thriller set in the 1930s, it follows the travails of a young family who move into a creaking, creepy house in Essex as Heffernan’s Reverend Linus takes on a new parish. His wife Marianne (Brown Findlay) and daughter Adelaide soon find themselves hearing things that go bump in the night but the truth is something much more troubling is afoot. Continue reading “Film Review: The Banishing (2020)”

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Trailer released for The Banishing

Sound the #Heffklaxon! John Heffernan stars with Jessica Brown Findlay and John Lynch in The Banishing – the new horror film from Christopher Smith

In the 1930s in the heart of England, a young reverend and his family move into a manor house, which soon proves to have a horrifying secret. When a vengeful spirit haunts the little girl and threatens to tear the family apart, they are forced to turn to black magic or risk losing their daughter forever.


The Banishing will be released in cinemas and on digital platforms March 26th 2021, courtesy of AMC Networks’ Shudder, in partnership with Vertigo Releasing

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UK theatre casting news – November update

Theatre Royal Bath will reopen on 3 December with a revised performance schedule for Oleanna and Copenhagen, the final two plays in the theatre’s Welcome Back Season.

David Mamet’s provocative  drama Oleanna, directed by Lucy Bailey will star Rosie Sheehy  and Jonathan Slinger, who replaces John Heffernan in the role of John. The play will now run in Theatre Royal Bath’s Ustinov Studio from 3 December to 22 December and again from 4 January to 16 January 2021. Reduced capacity at the Ustinov Studio will allow for an audience of 60 persons per performance.

The November run of Michael Frayn’s multi award-winning  Copenhagen has been postponed until the new year when it will play Theatre Royal Bath’s Main House from 20 January to 6 February 2021.  Directed by Polly Findlay it will star Haydn Gwynne, Philip Arditti, and in a change to original billing of Michael Gould, Malcolm Sinclair. Continue reading “UK theatre casting news – November update”

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News: Almeida and Turbine reopen, Oleanna cast

The Almeida has announce their new programme of socially-distanced theatre for Christmas 2020 and into 2021:

Nine Lessons And Carols: stories for a long winter, a new production created by Associate Director Rebecca Frecknall, Chris Bush and a company of six actors – Naana Agyei-Ampadu, Katie Brayben, Toheeb Jimoh, Elliot Levey, Maimuna Memon and Luke Thallon.

The Maladies, performed by the Almeida Young Company (18-25), written by Carmen Nasr.

Hymn, a new play by Lolita Chakrabarti, featuring Adrian Lester and Danny Sapani. Continue reading “News: Almeida and Turbine reopen, Oleanna cast”

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News: October UK theatre news update

We’re beginning to see the fruits of some more of the lockdown programming that has seen theatres across England respond in a variety of impressive ways

Nottingham Playhouse’s Unlocked Festival continues to rocket up the must-see list as it announces more details. Their local writing commission has ended up with two winners – Wayward Thread’s Hand Me Down and Lapelle’s Factory’s Shuck, both of which will now receive work-in-progress performances as part of the festival.

Casting has also been announced for James Graham’s Bubble, which will star the marvellous Pearl Mackie and the equally marvellous Jessica Raine. They join the likes of Mark Gatiss and Jade Anouka reading ghost stories on
Halloween, new work from Naomi Obeng and a concert starring Rosalie Craig, Sandra Marvin and Jodie Prenger. Continue reading “News: October UK theatre news update”

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Film Review: Official Secrets (2019)

Keira Knightley is excellent in the all-too-relevant Official Secrets, a film full of theatrical talent 

“Just because you’re the Prime Minister doesn’t mean you can make up your own facts”

I’m not quite sure how I managed to let Official Secrets pass me by late last year, given how thesp-heavy its cast is. Practically every scene is filled with familiar faces of much-loved actors, so getting to catch up with it now was a real pleasure. Based on the book The Spy Who Tried to Stop a War by Marcia & Thomas Mitchell, Gavin Hood’s docudrama is eminently watchable  and a salutary reminder of how far governments are willing to (over)reach in the face of uncomfortable truths.

It is based on the true story of Katharine Gun, a low-level GCHQ employee who leaked a secret memo that exposed the lengths that the US and UK were willing to go to in order to secure backing for their invasion of Iraq in 2003, in the face of the lack of any tangible WMDs. She copies the memo for a media friend, a front-page scoop follows and thus the consequences of breaching the Official Secret Act are brought to bear. Continue reading “Film Review: Official Secrets (2019)”

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Not-a-TV Review: Dracula

Three feature-length episodes of a new take on Dracula prove an indulgence too far

“One can have too much of a good thing”

I found episode 1 to be a bit of a drag and the subsequent two parts of Dracula were no better, worse in fact, as Mark Gatiss and Steven Moffat’s adaptation of Bram Stoker’s iconic novel takes the daddy of all vampires to places (and times) new for no good reason at all. Dolly Wells’ casting as the continuation of the Van Helsing bloodline had some great moments due to some witty writing and her wonderfully dry interpretation but there’s only so much the charismatic Claes Bang could do with the lord of darkness himself.

 

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fosterIAN awards 2019

 WinnerRunner-upOther nominees
Best Actress in a PlaySarah Niles/Natalie Simpson/Racheal Ofori,
Three Sisters		Marieke Heebink,
Medea		Adjoa Andoh,
Richard II
Sharon D Clarke,
Death of a Salesman
Claire Foy,
Lungs
Leah Harvey,
Small Island
Chris Nietvelt,
De Kersentuin
Best Actor in a Play
Lucian Msamati, ‘Master Harold’…and the boysCary Crankson,
Country Music		Tobias Menzies,
The Hunt
Daniel Monks,
Teenage Dick
Wendell Pierce,
Death of a Salesman
Matt Smith,
Lungs
Zubin Varla,
Equus
Best Supporting Actress in a PlayMonica Dolan,
All About Eve		Jackie Pulford,
Karaoke Play		Ronkẹ Adékoluẹjo,
Three Sisters
Janni Goslinga,
De Kersentuin
Pippa Nixon,
The Ocean at the End of the Lane
Cecilia Noble,
Faith Hope and Charity
Gemma Whelan,
Pinter Seven
Best Supporting Actor in a PlayNick Holder,
Faith Hope and Charity		Hugo Koolschijn,
De Kersentuin		Rupert Graves,
Pinter Five
John Heffernan,
Pinter Seven
Martins Imhangbe/Natey Jones,
Death of a Salesman
Arinzé Kene/Sope Dirisu,
Death of a Salesman
Ken Nwosu,
Three Sisters
Best Actress in a MusicalAudrey Brisson,
Amélie the Musical		Kirsty Findlay/Bethany Tennick,
Islander		Lucie Jones/Katherine McPhee,
Waitress
Miriam-Teak Lee,
& Juliet
Samantha Pauly,
Evita
Joanna Riding,
Follies
Zizi Strallen,
Mary Poppins
Best Actor in a MusicalJamie Muscato,
West Side Story (Curve Leicester)		Keith Ramsay,
Preludes		Andy Coxon,
West Side Story (Royal Exchange)
Jordan Fox/Michael Vinsen,
[title of show]
David Hunter,
Waitress,
Charlie Stemp,
Mary Poppins
Oliver Tompsett,
& Juliet,
Best Supporting Actress in a Musical
Cassidy Janson/Melanie La Barrie,
& Juliet 		Jocasta Almgill/Emily Langham,
West Side Story (Royal Exchange)		Laura Baldwin/Marisha Wallace,
Waitress
Tiffany Graves/Gabrielle Lewis-Dodson,
The Boy Friend
Claire Machin/Claire Moore,
Mary Poppins
Rebecca McKinnis/Lauren Ward,
Dear Evan Hansen
Carly Mercedes Dyer/Victoria Hamilton-Barritt,
The View UpStairs,
Best Supporting Actor in a MusicalDavid Bedella,
& Juliet		Jack Butterworth,
The Boy Friend		Ricardo Afonso,
Jesus Christ Superstar
Rob Houchen,
The Light in the Piazza
Samuel Holmes,
Curtains
Cedric Neal,
The View UpStairs
Jez Unwin,
Amélie the Musical
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2019 Best Supporting Actor in a Play + in a Musical

Best Supporting Actor in a Play

Nick Holder, Faith Hope and Charity
Holder chooses his stage performances carefully and sparingly and in returning to Alexander Zeldin’s work, he impressed once again on the stage of the Dorfman.

Honourable mention: Hugo Koolschijn, De Kersentuin
Such a memorably heartbreaking performance, the final image of the prostrate Frits (Firs) lying across the stage is seared on my mind.

Rupert Graves, Pinter Five
John Heffernan, Pinter Seven
Martins Imhangbe/Natey Jones, Death of a Salesman
Arinzé Kene/Sope Dirisu, Death of a Salesman
Ken Nwosu, Three Sisters

8-10

Toby Jones, Glass. Kill. Bluebeard. Imp.; Ira Mandela Siobhan, Equus; Colin Morgan, All My Sons

 

Best Supporting Actor in a Musical

David Bedella, & Juliet
All about the accent, Bedella’s commitment to playing Lance entirely straight just adds to the delight that he brings to an already delightful production. 

Honourable mention: Jack Butterworth, The Boy Friend
Such dancing. SUCH DANCING!

Ricardo Afonso, Jesus Christ Superstar
Rob Houchen, The Light in the Piazza
Samuel Holmes, Curtains
Cedric Neal, The View UpStairs
Jez Unwin, Amélie the Musical

8-10
Jack McBrayer, Waitress; Caolan McCarthy, Amélie the Musical; Dale Rapley, Gypsy