Player Kings - Wimbledon / MCR / Noel Coward / Tour

[David J]

Was there as well last night.

The Roger Allam Globe Theatre production remains the best for me. I appreciate that this production wasn't aiming to be very humorous, especially with Falstaff is concerned, but it wasn't quite as engaging as that. Phyllida Lloyd's all-female culmination of both parts I'd prefer by virtue of it being shorter. Both I'd recommend watching on Globe Player of Digital Theatre.

There were elements of the 2014 RSC production I preferred, but Ian McKellen is better than Antony Sher. Less said about David Warner in the 2007 RSC production (though its nice to see Geoffrey Freshwater in this 17 years later after playing Shallow in that)

You're not wrong nottobe that Part 2 is the weakest compared to Part 1, which is a fault of the material I'd say. Though the deathbed scene and ending is touching as usual. I'm just glad they didn't have the B-Grade replacement antagonist after Hotspur and the business with the recruits during the Shallow scenes.

I thought Toheeb Jimoh was the highlight as Hal actually. Ian McKellen is great but I've noticed in his latest productions his habit of loudly drawing breath and smacking his lips in between sentences. Don't know if that's old age or an acting choice of his but particularly here it slows proceedings.

[Dr Tom]

First half, overpowering. Lots of loud music and bangs. Three totally unnecessary gunshots at the end. The BDSM scene gives a bit of welcome relief.

Second half, far subtler and more measured. Not everyone in the audience came back, but they missed the better performances.

Finished just after 22:15. Fairly full theatre, but some gaps.

I only booked as a spur of the moment decision this afternoon. Lots of decent seat options with dynamic pricing, but then I found they had Day Tickets, so got front row Dress Circle for £30. Perfect view. There are a lot of very dark scenes though, so can be hard to make out details and tell who’s talking. I hate to think what the upper levels are like. Sound mostly good, but diction quality is a bit mixed.

Glad I saw this, but can’t call it a must see.

[jaqs]

I was in last night. More empty seats than I expected, although imagine the thankfully called off tube strike put people off booking this date.

I was jealous of and fascinated by the older cast’s mobility. I can’t kneel and get back up unaided so was surprised to see it and was less on edge in the second half when a stick was being used.

Enjoyed it in the main, would have enjoyed it more if it was shorter.

[Jan]

Apr 8, 2024 21:33:47 GMT Dr Tom said:

First half, overpowering. Lots of loud music and bangs. Three totally unnecessary gunshots at the end. The BDSM scene gives a bit of welcome relief.

I literally don't recall any of that. Anyone seen it in Wimbledon and London ? How is it different ?


This publicity shot too - totally unrelated to anything I saw - looks like a much more interesting production to be honest.

[jaqs]

The loud music reminded me of Posh. I was glad it wasn’t every scene change.

[drmaplewood]

Agree its not essential but I'd not seen Sir Ian onstage before and enjoyed myself, plus the intimidating running time flew by.

[sfsusan]

Mar 13, 2024 13:17:28 GMT avfan said:

Only down side was the fact the show went up with still a massive Queue for the Ladies which my plus one was in.

I was worried about this but there was an usher at the entrance to the Ladies in the stalls and a FOH person came by to check in on him, so I got the impression they weren't going to start up again until it was cleared.  And they didn't (thank goodness)!

No pause between Parts "2 and 3".

Oh, and McKellen reached a hand out for help getting up the first time he sat on the floor, but in subsequent scenes got up by himself (not easily, but better than I could do at 10 years younger than him!).

McKellen gave an outstanding performance, exercising more restraint than I've seen him do in the past couple of years.  (Which to be fair, have mostly been star turns for him [his birthday tour, Mother Goose and Frank & Percy].)  During the first act, he wiped his nose and sniffed constantly and conspicuously, to the point where I wondered if he actually had a cold.  In the second act, he dropped that for the lip-smacking mentioned earlier.  I now wonder if he was hinting that Falstaff over-used "sugar" when he was carousing at the tavern, then switched to sack when he became 'respectable'.  

Also, for the person who wondered about a reference to BDSM, that was the first party scene at the tavern, with folks snorting 'something' off the back of a half-naked man being led on a dogchain, amongst other bad behavior.

Note about sound effects... even without the gunshots, some scenes are LOUD!  The party scene being the first.  The war scenes are noisy as expected (bombs going off in addition to gunfire) and most of the time the gunshots can be anticipated, but there is one that comes out of the blue.

My biggest disappointment was the fat suit McKellen wore.  Yes, Falstaff needs to be fat, but I thought it slipped over the border to grotesque rather than exaggerated realism.  Still, it's the best thing I've seen him do since Lear in 2017.

[theatrefan62]

I've just listed on the noticeboard a single aisle stalls seat for Saturday 11th may 230pm if anyone is interested

[topaz]

Another ticket on the noticeboard - stalls row P for Tuesday 28th May 6:30pm, a £30 U30s ticket for £20.

[n1david]

So I'm fairly late to this but thought I'd bump it back up the board as I thoroughly enjoyed it tonight. I was in two minds as my body was really aching after 90 minutes dancing to Pet Shop Boys at Koko last night and wasn't sure if I would be comfortable sitting for the extended running time. So glad I did go along, the first play absolutely barrels along and while the second part isn't as good, I didn't mind spending more time with these characters. Sir Ian is an absolute ham in this, but that's fine given that Falstaff is an absolute ham. As others have said, applause too for Toheeb Jimoh who is really making a name for himself after R&J.

Intelligently staged to keep the pace up, this production is running smooth as butter and it's an absolute joy to watch.

I was intrigued by the theory in the programme that Part 2 is is "the original spinoff", in that Shakespeare intended to just write Henry 4 and Henry 5, but there was such a good response to Falstaff that he decided to extend the Henry 4 story in order to bring the character back. It would certainly be an explanation why Part 2 is rather more poorly plotted...

[dlevi]

Gosh I wished I liked it. I thought it was God-awful. There was nothing about which engaged me. I think it was just a paycheck for Robert Icke there was no honest energy in the performance I felt as if everyone was going through the motions. Richard Coyle had some strong moments, and Sir Ian was having a good time but... I feel it will soon be forgotten.

[Fleance]

I liked the production and the actors very much. The scene that I found most powerful (perhaps this has been discussed here already) is the scene in which Prince Hal kills Hotspur. In Icke's adaptation, Hotspur is about to kill Prince Hal, but hears the horns, throws down his sword, and turns to leave. Prince Hal then rises up and stabs Hotspur in the back, killing him. That is not the heroic face-to-face fight to the death battle scene we are accustomed to. As a result, it makes Falstaff's taking credit for Hotspur's death less egregious. There is no heroism and glory here, for any of the characters, apart perhaps for Hotspur.

[kallyloo]

I was on St Martin’s lane last night and saw Sir Ian don a helmet as he was about to get on a bike taxi. I called Thank you Sir Ian, and the poor man genially shouted hello as it went on his head.
They make these national treasures of stern stuff. He’s 85, does a 3 hr 20min Shakespeare play, goes out and greets fans, then takes a motorbike through London home.👏

[gmoneyoutlaw]

Jun 7, 2024 9:32:51 GMT kallyloo said:

I was on St Martin’s lane last night and saw Sir Ian don a helmet as he was about to get on a bike taxi. I called Thank you Sir Ian, and the poor man genially shouted hello as it went on his head.
They make these national treasures of stern stuff. He’s 85, does a 3 hr 20min Shakespeare play, goes out and greets fans, then takes a motorbike through London home.👏

I'm in London in 12 days.  Love that Ian is on a motorbike and It brought me back to 2001 when I was talking to Dame Judi Dench (after a performance of The Royal Family) she introduced me to a young actress and said she was going to be a major celebrity, Emily Blunt, and than ended our conversation by getting on the back of a motorbike and drove off. She asked me about how the Americans were holding up after 9/11 and then repeated my comments on on media interviews.  What a wonderful person and the GOAT as a stage actress.

[Jan]

Jun 7, 2024 19:44:12 GMT gmoneyoutlaw said:

Jun 7, 2024 9:32:51 GMT kallyloo said:

I was on St Martin’s lane last night and saw Sir Ian don a helmet as he was about to get on a bike taxi. I called Thank you Sir Ian, and the poor man genially shouted hello as it went on his head.
They make these national treasures of stern stuff. He’s 85, does a 3 hr 20min Shakespeare play, goes out and greets fans, then takes a motorbike through London home.👏

I'm in London in 12 days.  Love that Ian is on a motorbike and It brought me back to 2001 when I was talking to Dame Judi Dench (after a performance of The Royal Family) she introduced me to a young actress and said she was going to be a major celebrity, Emily Blunt, and than ended our conversation by getting on the back of a motorbike and drove off. She asked me about how the Americans were holding up after 9/11 and then repeated my comments on on media interviews.  What a wonderful person and the GOAT as a stage actress.

Ive seen JD quite a lot of times on stage and I’ve never seen her be anything other than average and often miscast. Just out of interest which performances do you think qualify her as GOAT ? I didn’t see her Lady Macbeth for example, or any musicals she has done.

[harry]

Does anyone have general pointers of when to be on standby for gunshots and pyrotechnics. I’m usually fine with loud music and prerecorded loud sounds but live gunshots or explosions terrify me! Feel free to DM or spoiler tag if appropriate.

[BurlyBeaR]

Jun 7, 2024 20:16:43 GMT Jan said:

Jun 7, 2024 19:44:12 GMT gmoneyoutlaw said:

I'm in London in 12 days.  Love that Ian is on a motorbike and It brought me back to 2001 when I was talking to Dame Judi Dench (after a performance of The Royal Family) she introduced me to a young actress and said she was going to be a major celebrity, Emily Blunt, and than ended our conversation by getting on the back of a motorbike and drove off. She asked me about how the Americans were holding up after 9/11 and then repeated my comments on on media interviews.  What a wonderful person and the GOAT as a stage actress.

Ive seen JD quite a lot of times on stage and I’ve never seen her be anything other than average and often miscast. Just out of interest which performances do you think qualify her as GOAT ? I didn’t see her Lady Macbeth for example, or any musicals she has done.

The tv version is on YouTube, restored to HD quality. It’s on the Shakespeare Network channel. 

[kathryn]

Saw this today on a Rush ticket.

On the whole I enjoyed it, but I think I have officially seen the Henrys too many times now as my brain was doing compare-and-contrast with other productions most of the time and I didn’t feel properly absorbed by it.

Stand out bit for me was the ‘Sack’ advert - McKellan turning in a properly twinkling Falstaff there. It reminded me of ‘Captain SirTom Moore Gin’. I felt that twinkliness could have been used a bit more liberally throughout the play - I didn’t quite feel the affection between Falstaff and Hal.

I wasn’t keen on the ending of the Hotspur fight.

[critchyboy]

We’ve just had to leave the theatre this evening. At approx 20:15 Ian McKellan fell straight off stage and we were evacuated immediately. I sincerely hope he is OK.

[Rory]

Jun 17, 2024 19:19:57 GMT critchyboy said:

We’ve just had to leave the theatre this evening. At approx 20:15 Ian McKellan fell straight off stage and we were evacuated immediately. I sincerely hope he is OK.

That's awful. I really hope he's OK.

[critchyboy]

The show has been cancelled. Sir Ian is receiving treatment and an ambulance has been called.

[jm25]

How awful. Hope it's not too serious.

[ceebee]

Hope he's okay. Sounds nasty. I was planning on seeing it this Saturday. Best wishes to Sir Ian.

[n1david]

That's not good. I know he's a trouper but it has to be a worry for the rest of the run and the tour. Fingers crossed no serious damage has been done.

[oxfordsimon]

Twitter is full of journalists trying to get eye witnesses to come forward

Very ghoulish