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Post by theoracle on Sept 10, 2019 9:32:35 GMT
It seems like the perfect time to start a new thread. First time for me seeing anything by Annie Baker so super excited. Reviews for YS productions all seemed positive so it will be interesting to see what the National does with this material. I was particularly psyched after seeing Hadley Fraser posting this: http://instagram.com/p/B2Mn_aoBAJq |
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Post by NeilVHughes on Sept 10, 2019 9:44:43 GMT
Of all the plays I have booked in the run up to Christmas this is the most anticipated.
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Post by tmesis on Sept 10, 2019 11:26:57 GMT
I'm looking forward to this. The Flick was excellent but I found John very tedious and disappointing.
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Post by Mark on Sept 10, 2019 15:21:54 GMT
^Phew, pleased it was not just me, tmesis. Wouldn't have known they were by the same writer. Oh see I absolutely loved John. Looking forward to another. |
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Post by David J on Sept 10, 2019 16:19:33 GMT
It certainly takes a skill to write a long, slow moving play that keeps your interest. I like the way Annie Barker writes but it certainly needs a good pay off
The Flick I felt succeeded with a satisfying ending that spoke to me personally. Enjoyed watching John but it just ended on a disappointing note considering what the characters did up until then. I didn't need to sit through 3 hours and 20 minutes for that.
Still I'm going to see The Antipodes. Annie Barker is certainly not to everyone's tastes but to me the journey is more important watching her plays, which are at a different pace to everything else.
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Post by crowblack on Sept 10, 2019 16:35:48 GMT
John was one of the few times I've been tempted to walk out of a play, but I loved Circle, Mirror, Transformation so I'm looking forward to this.
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Post by lonlad on Sept 10, 2019 22:14:21 GMT
I thought JOHN was even better than CIRCLE MIRROR and this one was pretty nifty in NY as well -- challenging but nothing wrong with that, and the London cast blows the NY one away, at least on paper.
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Post by crowblack on Sept 11, 2019 7:55:41 GMT
I thought JOHN was even better than CIRCLE MIRROR I saw last year's production of 'Circle' in Manchester and it was excellent (same director as Dance Nation and the latter - a couple of months later at the Almeida - very similar in style, and cast including 'Fleabag sister'). I liked the older characters/cast in John but not the younger, and their storyline was obvious from the off. Also - maybe this is a class/'region' thing - but I didn't find the decor 'weird': I know a few people with houses like that and they're not considered odd. If that element doesn't unsettle you I suppose a lot of the play's impact is lost. |
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Post by katurian on Sept 11, 2019 16:05:08 GMT
I'm a huge fan of Baker's work and found The Flick, Circle Mirror and John all wonderful, so I am looking forward to this. I had already read the play and would say it goes further into the strange territory that John did (which I like, those moments in John were some of my favourites) while maintaining her sharp eye for the nuances of ordinary people and the existential anxieties of modern life.
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Post by djdan14 on Oct 18, 2019 20:53:50 GMT
Running time updates on the Nash website - 1 hour 55 mins no interval.... this somewhat dents my interest unfortunately.
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Post by londonpostie on Oct 18, 2019 21:43:53 GMT
opps
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Post by Forrest on Oct 18, 2019 23:15:42 GMT
Running time updates on the Nash website - 1 hour 55 mins no interval.... this somewhat dents my interest unfortunately. I've noticed people writing comments like this pretty often, and I honestly don't understand it... Why would 1:55 without an interval be an argument not to go see a play? I don't have a ticket for this yet, somehow it keeps stubbornly not fitting into my budget, and would absolutely love to see it. I've seen a recording of John at the NT Archive - which I know is not quite the same (in my "defence" I wasn't living here during the run of the original production) - and absolutely loved it. And from the description this seems like something I'd also enjoy, plus, as a huge Broadchurch fan would love to see Arthur Darvill on stage. Fingers crossed that I manage to get tickets still, somehow. I'm counting on NT's Rush Fridays. |
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Post by samuelwhiskers on Oct 18, 2019 23:21:09 GMT
I adore Annie Baker’s work, but like many people I simply can’t sit in one position in a small chair for two hours without discomfort.
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Post by Forrest on Oct 19, 2019 0:33:11 GMT
I adore Annie Baker’s work, but like many people I simply can’t sit in one position in a small chair for two hours without discomfort. Understood. Yes, makes perfect sense. I thought there was perhaps something else I simply wasn't getting. |
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Post by crowblack on Oct 19, 2019 8:55:05 GMT
Fingers crossed that I manage to get tickets still, somehow. I'm counting on NT's Rush Fridays. Keep checking the website - if you click 'update' regularly on dates you want to go I've found returns always pop up at the NT, specially as the dates get closer (some seem to pop up in the evening too, so keep checking then). I've just swapped an expensive but far back ticket - all that was left when advance booking opened - for a cheaper but closer side view. |
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Post by Forrest on Oct 19, 2019 9:31:53 GMT
I definitely will, thanks for the tip crowblack!  |
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Post by crowblack on Oct 19, 2019 10:11:35 GMT
I definitely will, thanks for the tip crowblack! I've just looked and there's a lot of availability throughout the run on the website today. It might still be worth doing Friday Rush too - I got a £10 front row for John through that, and returned my side seat, though given the layout there may not be £10 stalls for this. |
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Post by crowblack on Oct 19, 2019 10:27:10 GMT
I definitely will, thanks for the tip crowblack! Friday rush tickets for this coming preview week have some £15 front row stalls - the same seats seem to be priced £27 for other previews. |
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Post by Forrest on Oct 19, 2019 10:39:19 GMT
OMG, It's so sweet of you to check, too! I'm actually waiting for the post-preview performances, after press night, because I want to practice my reviewing skills on this (I try to write a little on theatre, sometimes, it's a learning curve kind of thing and I'm really new to it), and I feel bad reviewing previews because they are still a work in progress. But yes, I went to check, they seem to be adding more seats as the dates approach - now there are quite a few £15 tickets available for the first previews, front row ones, which were not available before. I will be sitting patiently at my laptop come Friday at 1! (And will make sure to do a heavily celebratory charged post if I get lucky, of course!) |
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Post by londonpostie on Oct 19, 2019 13:09:06 GMT
My previous "opps" post was to also mention there are front row preview tickets for £15 - next Thurs and Sat, for example.
It's by Annie Baker so that's ample for me.
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Post by foxa on Oct 21, 2019 21:15:06 GMT
Someone on Twitter has just posted that 'Antipodes' is 2 hours 10, no interval. Have tickets (that I paid too much for) for Friday and love Annie Baker, but... Had a dismal theatre-going week last week so not in the most positive mood about this.
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Post by foxa on Oct 21, 2019 21:22:27 GMT
BUT....then I just read the NY Times review of the NY production which sounds really good. And also has the most hilarious correction at the end: 'Correction: April 24, 2017
An earlier version of a capsule summary for this article misspelled the name of the play. As the article correctly noted, it is “The Antipodes,” not “The Antidopes.”
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Post by londonpostie on Oct 21, 2019 21:28:37 GMT
I also looked at the NYT and, I think, one 'Stage' review. Twitter OMG aside, it was 115' in NY, it'll be the same here after a few previews, imo.
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Post by theoracle on Oct 22, 2019 8:04:16 GMT
I was at the first preview last night! It was a mad, profound, hilarious and sad evening. Annie Baker asks us a lot of questions and allows us to find our own stories. The quietly explosive text is performed fantastically by the ensemble cast. The intimate space of the Dorfman was used well but it felt quite clearly like a preview. As they’re all sitting around a table a lot, the blocking could have been better in order to allow audiences to see all of of the cast more. It will be interesting to see how critics will react to this as it is really quite a unique piece.
The first performance came just under 2hrs despite signs saying it would be 2hrs 10mins. The cast and the writing is brilliant as it all whizzes by and in a way I quite like the fact there is no interval as you are fully immersed throughout the whole show. Definitely would recommend!
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Post by wiggymess on Oct 22, 2019 9:34:47 GMT
I was at the first preview last night! It was a mad, profound, hilarious and sad evening. Annie Baker asks us a lot of questions and allows us to find our own stories. The quietly explosive text is performed fantastically by the ensemble cast. The intimate space of the Dorfman was used well but it felt quite clearly like a preview. As they’re all sitting around a table a lot, the blocking could have been better in order to allow audiences to see all of of the cast more. It will be interesting to see how critics will react to this as it is really quite a unique piece. The first performance came just under 2hrs despite signs saying it would be 2hrs 10mins. The cast and the writing is brilliant as it all whizzes by and in a way I quite like the fact there is no interval as you are fully immersed throughout the whole show. Definitely would recommend! Thanks for this. Could I please ask regarding seating - do the seats at the side of the stage seem good or obstructed? thanks! |
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