My Night with Reg – Turbine Theatre

[couldileaveyou]

[oxfordsimon]

Casting is key to this one. I love the play but only with a strong cast

[partytentdown]

That's a very dramatic poster for quite a subtle play.

[princeton]

I agree about the casting - it's very much in the handle with care category. It's a play which looks deceptively simply on the page but which is very easy to get wrong.

I do find it fascinating that Paul Taylor Mills is positioning it as though he's rediscovered a rare masterpiece - whereas it was actually in the West End only six years ago - in Rob Hastie's pretty much pitch perfect Donmar then Apollo production.

[oxfordsimon]

The poster is clearly trying to evoke It's a Sin vibes

But does feel over dramatic for what is a bittersweet piece of writing laced with tragic moments.

I directed it many years ago and would love to return to it but only when I know I could find the right local cast.

[alicechallice]

I concur with the thoughts on the delicacy of the casting... nothing under 7 inches will do. Particularly following the difficult year we've all just had.

[robertb213]

May 14, 2021 10:35:45 GMT alicechallice said:

I concur with the thoughts on the delicacy of the casting... nothing under 7 inches will do. Particularly following the difficult year we've all just had.

I just spat out my coffee! Thank you for making my morning! 🤣🤣

[princeton]

I'm trying to suppress the cynic in me feeling that this an opportunist piece of producing to cash in on It's A Sin - and that artwork isn't making that easy. Fingers crossed that the director didn't sign off on the poster. The last thing which is needed is a high-concept neon-strewn production (and usually I love a high-concept neon-strewn production). I still, however, remain hopeful.

It's a Sin and My Night with Reg exist in the same universe but there are probably more differences than similarities, not least in the style of writing.

[oxfordsimon]

The key for me with this play is to understand Elyot's love of French cinema.

Rohmer's Ma Nuit Chez Maud is a clear influence.

It is a lot more complex and nuanced than that poster would suggest

[partytentdown]

May 14, 2021 10:08:43 GMT princeton said:

I agree about the casting - it's very much in the handle with care category. It's a play which looks deceptively simply on the page but which is very easy to get wrong.

I do find it fascinating that Paul Taylor Mills is positioning it as though he's rediscovered a rare masterpiece - whereas it was actually in the West End only six years ago - in Rob Hastie's pretty much pitch perfect Donmar then Apollo production.

All of his casting announcements feel like lifetime achievement award acceptance speeches, to be fair.

[ThereWillBeSun]

May 14, 2021 13:44:29 GMT partytentdown said:

May 14, 2021 10:08:43 GMT princeton said:

I agree about the casting - it's very much in the handle with care category. It's a play which looks deceptively simply on the page but which is very easy to get wrong.

I do find it fascinating that Paul Taylor Mills is positioning it as though he's rediscovered a rare masterpiece - whereas it was actually in the West End only six years ago - in Rob Hastie's pretty much pitch perfect Donmar then Apollo production.

All of his casting announcements feel like lifetime achievement award acceptance speeches, to be fair.

Yawn. Agreed. 

[Being Alive]

And he always casts the same five people in everything...

No Julian Ovenden, no me.

[robertb213]

Dominic Andersen shared PTM's post on Instagram earlier....anyone who saw Heathers already knows he can fill a pair of pants, maybe you'll soon be seeing more!

[craig]

May 14, 2021 10:35:45 GMT alicechallice said:

I concur with the thoughts on the delicacy of the casting... nothing under 7 inches will do. Particularly following the difficult year we've all just had.

Omg! 😂

[alicechallice]

May 15, 2021 18:49:59 GMT craig said:

May 14, 2021 10:35:45 GMT alicechallice said:

I concur with the thoughts on the delicacy of the casting... nothing under 7 inches will do. Particularly following the difficult year we've all just had.

Omg! 😂

I’m not convinced for a second that you were thinking anything different...

[Dr Tom]

I don't think I've seen Dominic Andersen in a serious role. But he would certainly draw the crowds in.

[couldileaveyou]

[robertb213]

Just seen that this production is doing a week at Curve in Leicester, 21-25 September 2021, if anyone wants to catch it.

[crabtree]

The last London revival was so perfect, and elegant and poignant and understated....wonderful stuff. I saw scottsboro Boys in the afternoon - what a glorious day of theatre.

[craig]

Has anyone seen this? Trying to decide whether to take my boyfriend to see it or not and will do so if it's a decent version.

[theatrefan77]

It's a really poor production IMO. I have great memories of the Donmar version which was superb, but this one left me cold. Paul Keating and Stephen K Amos were the only saving graces in the cast. The rest were really weak or maybe just poorly directed. The Guardian pretty much sums up what I thought of it

www.theguardian.com/stage/2021/jul/30/my-night-with-reg-review-turbine-theatre-london-aids-kevin-elyot

[craig]

Thanks for your thoughts.

The Donmar version really was fantastic. I think we'll give this a miss.

[oxfordsimon]

The set looks like a rip off of the Donmar design. I know the script is quite specific in what is needed but that looks too close for comfort

I think I read somewhere that they have lost some performances to isolation issues

[theatrefan77]

Yes, the set looks similar to the Donmar's which is not necessarily a bad thing. I was quite pleased when I entered the theatre and saw it, but then the play started...

[crabtree]

Sadly no Julian Ovenden in this one......