Nation at the National Theatre, London
Lizzy Taylor
the rest of the family on 21st November. Would anyone here be able to
use her ticket?
Lizzy
GaryN
$da0f...@news.zen.co.uk:
I would be interested. Can you drop me a line on
garyatciderspacedotorgdotuk to let me know where to meet and how much I
will owe you. I'm taking friends to see the Studio Theatre Club premiere
of UA on the 20th so Nation on 21st seems appropriate.
gary
--
"I really like this jacket
but the sleeves are much too long"
Motorhead - 'Back At The Funny Farm'.
Lizzy Taylor
> I would be interested. Can you drop me a line on
> garyatciderspacedotorgdotuk to let me know where to meet and how much I
> will owe you. I'm taking friends to see the Studio Theatre Club premiere
> of UA on the 20th so Nation on 21st seems appropriate.
Well, we made our way down from the North to London on Friday evening
and after spending most of Saturday at the Science Museum we headed to
the South Bank for Nation. After a bit of confusion due to the various
bars on level 2 being disconnected from each other I found Gary and we
went in to see the play (or most of it in Gary's case as last the last
bus was not at a co-operative time :-( ).
On entering the auditorium it was good to see the theatre full of adults
and children. The staging was imaginative and for the most part
successful. The dialogue engaging, although of necessity some of the
nuances of the book were lost - you just can't get everything from a
book of that length into 2 1/2 hours of theatre.
The parrot was great fun (boobies!) and there were wonderful moments of
comedy and drama throughout. I was especially impressed with the
underwater scenes which I felt worked very well. All in all a
successful adaptation, particularly to such an open stage.
The boys (12 & 9) really enjoyed it and the younger one is now inspired
to read the book himself, although they have been warned not to repeat
the parrot's lines to their grandparents!
Would we go to see it again? Is a frog's arse watertight?
TBH we probably wouldn't go to London for it again as the costs do mount
up fast but if it tours I'd be there buying tickets like a shot.
Lizzy
GaryN
> GaryN wrote:
>
>
>> I would be interested. Can you drop me a line on
>> garyatciderspacedotorgdotuk to let me know where to meet and how much
>> I will owe you. I'm taking friends to see the Studio Theatre Club
>> premiere of UA on the 20th so Nation on 21st seems appropriate.
>
> Well, we made our way down from the North to London on Friday evening
> and after spending most of Saturday at the Science Museum we headed to
> the South Bank for Nation. After a bit of confusion due to the
> various bars on level 2 being disconnected from each other I found
> Gary and we went in to see the play (or most of it in Gary's case as
> last the last bus was not at a co-operative time :-( ).
I was sorry to have to leave before the end but as it turned out I was
quite glad that I did. I made the crossing to Embankment tube station
in the dry but the walks from Victoria to the bus stop, Oxford High
Street to Rose Hill bus stop and the nearest bus stop to home were
accompanied by large numbers of incontinent felines and canines! I only
just caught the last bus in Oxford going my way at 11:50 and the
alternative of walking 2.5 miles in a downpour was less than preferable.
> On entering the auditorium it was good to see the theatre full of
> adults and children. The staging was imaginative and for the most part
> successful. The dialogue engaging, although of necessity some of the
> nuances of the book were lost - you just can't get everything from a
> book of that length into 2 1/2 hours of theatre.
I did feel that the stage seemed a little "cluttered" at times,
distracting from the storyline a bit - just because you've got it
available it doesn't mean you have to use it. OTOH I'm used to the STC
minimalist approach to scenery and had been to see UA the night before
so I suppose I was comparing the two.
> The parrot was great fun (boobies!) and there were wonderful moments
> of comedy and drama throughout. I was especially impressed with the
> underwater scenes which I felt worked very well. All in all a
> successful adaptation, particularly to such an open stage.
I thoroughly enjoyed it and thought the actors did a superb job. I did
feel that the adaptation could have been a little better, there were
times when I wondered "If I hadn't read the book would I know what was
going on?", but overall a good evening out.
> The boys (12 & 9) really enjoyed it and the younger one is now
> inspired to read the book himself, although they have been warned not
> to repeat the parrot's lines to their grandparents!
>
> Would we go to see it again? Is a frog's arse watertight?
>
> TBH we probably wouldn't go to London for it again as the costs do
> mount up fast but if it tours I'd be there buying tickets like a shot.
>
> Lizzy
I'd probably go and see it again to see how it worked in a different
theatre. I suspect that the play as stands would need further
adaptation. Obviously it's far more difficult to perform a play adapted
from a book than it is to perform a play written initially as a play.
Thanks for the invite Lizzy, a pleasure to meet you, your partner and
sons.
gary
--
"History is written by the winners which is why French history books are
blank from cover to cover"
The Pub Landlord.