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Post by intoanewlife on Sept 19, 2022 12:30:50 GMT
There was no visibility problems for me on first night performance from left side of the stalls. No actors facing backwards etc I was left side middle stalls, on the aisle seat Row L... So they have actually changed it so people stand with their back to the audience...Jeepers! |
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Post by Jan on Sept 19, 2022 13:50:30 GMT
There was no visibility problems for me on first night performance from left side of the stalls. No actors facing backwards etc I was left side middle stalls, on the aisle seat Row L... So they have actually changed it so people stand with their back to the audience...Jeepers! "I went to the National Theatre but I had a terrible seat - it was facing the stage". See, it's not only Richard Bean who is shameless enough to recycle ancient jokes. |
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Post by intoanewlife on Sept 19, 2022 16:09:49 GMT
I was left side middle stalls, on the aisle seat Row L... So they have actually changed it so people stand with their back to the audience...Jeepers! "I went to the National Theatre but I had a terrible seat - it was facing the stage". See, it's not only Richard Bean who is shameless enough to recycle ancient jokes. I'm probably missing your joke totally here...but...I had a great seat...so did 3/4 of the theatre who could not see the lead actors faces for nearly 20 minutes... |
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Post by Jan on Sept 20, 2022 6:27:56 GMT
"I went to the National Theatre but I had a terrible seat - it was facing the stage". See, it's not only Richard Bean who is shameless enough to recycle ancient jokes. I'm probably missing your joke totally here...but...I had a great seat...so did 3/4 of the theatre who could not see the lead actors faces for nearly 20 minutes... No right, it wasn't a comment on your post at all which I should therefore have removed, sorry, just a random one-liner of the type Bean throws in as if it was his own. For example, in London Assurance (1841) Hytner employed him to "improve" the text and he put in the joke "My wife has run away with my best friend .... and I miss him". To be fair that one must be nearly contemporary with the text. |
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Post by Steve on Sept 21, 2022 16:45:06 GMT
I loved this. I love it's pace, the way it gradually builds to a terrific climax, and it's got some really top notch performances from Erin Doherty, Brendan Cowell, Mathew Marsh, Fisayo Akinade, Karl Johnson, Eileen Walsh and Tilly Tremayne. Some spoilers follow. . . On the downside, I really didn't get much from the bookended text, added to the play at the beginning and end, and I didn't get much from the rain either, although neither did those things detract, for me, from what was a remarkable drama. I also don't think this is as impactful as the Old Vic production, mainly because the in-the-round staging was so effective in that one: we were part of it, we were sitting in judgement, we were part of a spooky seance (everytime the "witches" moved as a pack screaming, I practically jumped out of my skin, fearing they'd break through the audience-line lol). By contrast, this felt contained by the stage, apart from the first row getting a bit wet in their ponchos from the rain, which ironically was more of a distancing device, to make us think about the show, rather than an immersive device, to make us feel we were part of it. The bookended new text also served as a kind of Brechtian distancing device as well. But wow, the drama wonderfully heats up to almost unbearably intense levels, in my opinion! The dark, soaking, spare staging serves to focus the mind on some incredible and incendiary performances. Erin Doherty is an actor who projects the inside out so effortlessly that I always feel the storm of her emotions, and it's no different here, where you can really empathise with her Abigail, just a young jealous girl squirming to survive unduly intense societal pressure. In fact, if you just watch the first half hour, you'd think she was the anti-hero of the piece. Her performance felt the polar opposite, to me, of Samantha Colley's Abigail at the Old Vic, who felt utterly frighteningly malevolent from the start. Brendan Cowell's John Proctor is a slow burn and better for it. At first, I felt like he was a light weight, he seemed so blase. Whereas at the Old Vic, Richard Armitage's John Proctor was growling intensity personified, from first to last, like a great oak being felled, you could mistake Cowell's Proctor for a man of no consequence, barely present, drowned out utterly by Doherty's steaming emotions. But Cowell builds his performance over the course of the play. He grows and grows in indignant conviction and emotional power until he towers in stature by the final scene. It's a slow build to glory, and his exit is beautifully done, even if the bookended text threatens to interrupt him. It doesn't succeed lol. Matthew Marsh's deep sonorous voice is a tremendous boon for his Supreme Inquisitor, Deputy Governor Danforth. It's like he's one part Darth Vader, one part Christopher Walken at his tuneful tricksiest and one part reasonable man, and you never know which one you're going to get. Marsh really impressed me at Hampstead Theatre, when he played the Apartheid monster, Eugene de Kock, balancing control, calm, wit and roiling rage, and he pulls off a similarly authoritative balancing act here, (un)balancing Danforth's easy authority with an internal mania, such that I was on edge watching him. Other great performances were Fisayo Akinade's deeply compassionate and reasonable Reverend John Hale, Karl Johnson's wittily-timed slow-reacting Giles Corey, Eileen Walsh's broken yet unbreakable Elizabeth Proctor and Tilly Tremayne's forthright, principled Rebecca Nurse. When I first saw the Old Vic production, I felt it was a 4 and a half, but when I saw it at the end of the run, I felt it was a five star smash! Seeing this one for the first time, I feel it's an 4 star drama, buoyed by brilliant performances, but as it comes together over time, I expect it to be a 4 and a half star smash by the end of the run. 4 stars from me, for now.  |
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Post by crowblack on Sept 21, 2022 17:20:30 GMT
I don't know how to do the link, but they have released several stills from the production.
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Post by BurlyBeaR on Sept 21, 2022 17:52:13 GMT
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Post by crowblack on Sept 21, 2022 18:07:37 GMT
Thanks, I hadn't seen most of these! Looks like they've gone for a more late 19th, early 20thc Prairie-type look than 17th century? |
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Post by bee on Sept 25, 2022 13:12:38 GMT
I saw this yesterday. I would largely agree with Steve's detailed review above, though I didn't love it as much as him, maybe 3 stars from me. Not sure I can really explain why, because it's good, but I struggled to get emotionally involved until right at the end when Proctor was being asked to confess. That scene was brilliantly done by everybody involved. Up till that point I was appreciating the quality of it without caring all that much.
The cast were all excellent, but a stand out for me was Fisayo Akinade as Reverend Hale, his transition from smooth confidence in the earlier scenes to horror and regret in the second half was well done.
No idea what the rain effect was for. It seemed a bit pointless and meant a lot of mopping at the front of the stage for no obvious reason.
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Post by jek on Sept 25, 2022 16:00:13 GMT
I saw the production of Brian Friel's Faith Healer at the Donmar in 2016 in which Es Devlin used the same rain curtain effect in a production which was also directed by Lyndsey Turner. It seemed very appropriate given the setting in an (often) rainy Ireland. My 21 year old daughter saw the second preview of the Crucible and was very taken with it - the rain but also the score by Caroline Shaw, who is a bit of a favourite in this household. From the production photos I am reminded of Lyndsey Turner's production at the National of Light Shining In Buckinghamshire.
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Post by crowblack on Sept 26, 2022 9:05:57 GMT
I struggled to get emotionally involved until right at the end I was wondering if the rain curtain is acting as an emotionally distancing 'moat'? And is that a deliberate distancing? |
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Post by bee on Sept 26, 2022 19:35:36 GMT
I struggled to get emotionally involved until right at the end I was wondering if the rain curtain is acting as an emotionally distancing 'moat'? And is that a deliberate distancing? That's an interesting thought. I don't know. It's a great looking effect, but I don't think it was ever used during any actual scenes, just at the start and when they were rearranging the stage between scenes. Since posting before I've been wondering if my lack of involvement was just a case of me knowing how things end for the "good" people in the play, and hence not wanting to invest too much in them to save myself some pain later. I suppose I'm still thinking about it two days later, so they must have been doing something right. Maybe it deserves 4 stars after all! |
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Post by oxfordsimon on Sept 26, 2022 20:04:26 GMT
A friend of mine who had never seen the play before was completely engrossed because he genuinely had no idea what was going to happen next. His companion who had seen it before was less impressed.
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Post by crowblack on Sept 28, 2022 23:14:27 GMT
5 stars from the Telegraph, "Erin Doherty confirms herself as one of our finest young actresses in a magnificent restaging of the 1953 American classic", though the review is paywalled.
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Post by jm25 on Sept 30, 2022 22:37:15 GMT
Saw this tonight and the staging was definitely the highlight, though I agree with others’ comments about there not necessarily being any need for the rain (beautiful though it was!). Could see everything at the back of the stage from my seat up in the Circle but did find myself wondering how well those in the stalls would see it.
Performance-wise, everyone was strong. Not being familiar with the original text (!), I did expect Erin Doherty’s Abigail to feature more than she did. At least I’ll know for next time!
The text itself felt a bit one note, though, and as good as this was in many of the production aspects, I can’t on balance say that I enjoyed it. It certainly felt every minute of the 2 hour 50 minute run time - which was in contrast with the 3 hour 15 minute Aida I saw at the ROH early this week which (for the most part) went pretty quickly!
That said, I’m conscious that this was my impression as someone coming to the play totally fresh. There were a bunch of (presumably GCSE) students in front of me and it did make me wonder how much more I’d have enjoyed it if it were a text I’d had the chance to study at school or even university, or even seen before. Probably would have got a bit more out of it.
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Post by crowblack on Oct 1, 2022 8:32:08 GMT
There's a wide range of newspaper and blog reviews for this - most four star, a couple of five star, the Guardian unenthusiastic and Variety disliking it.
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Post by alexandra on Oct 1, 2022 15:34:35 GMT
The Old Vic production was 3 hours 45 minutes when I saw it and with a 1930 start! And what year did it finish? A bit late, but this is an underrated post 😂 |
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Post by crowblack on Oct 1, 2022 17:15:41 GMT
Erin Doherty will be interviewed on Woman's Hour on Monday, I think.
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Post by Mark on Oct 1, 2022 21:44:33 GMT
Purposely kept myself away from reading about the plot or anything about the play and glad I did, because the suspense was great and I found it totally engaging. Scene 2 especially I thought was just brilliant.
Row C 20/21, right on the central aisle - brilliant seats for this.
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Post by andrew on Oct 3, 2022 19:16:56 GMT
I love The Crucible, it's so dark and intense, and this production lived up to that.
I thought the acting in this was almost perfect, Erin Doherty for starters was wonderful as everyone has described, she has got to be one of these talents destined to have a long long career starring in whatever she wants. Brendan Cowell remains one of my favourite actors, I still think back sometimes on how good he was in Yerma, and he brings a different type of intensity to this. At first I was reeling as what sounded like a fairly passable George W Bush impression was happening instead of what should be one of the great characters of American theatre, but he builds it so slowly into his final scene so as to be both as impressive as, and completely different to Richard Armitage's take from a few years ago. Eileen Walsh playing Elizabeth Proctor was heartbreaking, and my favourite ever take on Judge Danforth was put forward by Matthew Marsh, I relished every second he was on stage. My one beef was with Reverend Parris, who I just found a bit unconvincing, although I suspect this was a directorial choice.
The rain curtain is completely pointless, I think we're all agreed on it. It looks incredibly impressive, I don't begrudge it being there to be honest, but actually the rain has really nothing to do with this play and is just there to be dramatic. A foggy dark stage would probably have been equally effective, although less instagrammable. The rest of the design I quite liked, but I agree that from row B I struggled to see the little flashes of activity that happen from the rear of the stage. The idea is a good one, but there was usually a table in the way of it so I missed a lot that. I think with only a little bit of effort the action there could have been raised slightly higher and the platform removed for actors entrances and exits through the back of the Olivier stage when necessary, then it would have worked brilliantly. Lighting, sound, and the choral work all came together to create the intense, terrifying Crucible atmosphere I want (and without the weird ticking clock the Old Vic sound design used).
I didn't feel any of the length, this is exactly what I want to see from the National Theatre when they put on existing plays, I loved it.
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Post by theoracle on Oct 3, 2022 21:04:08 GMT
Very much enjoyed this! Fisayo Akinade as others have mentioned gave a highlight performance as Rev Hale and Erin Doherty brings a rage to the show which you can't quite take your eyes off. For me, the weak link seemed to be Brendan Cowell's John Proctor where for most of the show, one doesn't feel very much for his character. At times, it felt like he was playing for the audience over reacting to the drama on stage and I felt a slight disconnect there. Eileen Walsh was brilliant as Elizabeth Proctor and I must echo other's thoughts on the stage design. Very stylish and really sets the tone for the evening as you walk into the Olivier Theatre. The lighting design was great too and I really liked the choral elements as well.
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Post by NeilVHughes on Oct 4, 2022 7:13:57 GMT
Most excellent.
Moments of extreme tension, even though I had seen the play before I was transfixed throughout, a monster of a play. Like Cordelia in Lear one day you just wish Elizabeth gave a different answer.
Only slight criticism was that there was little or no spark between Abigail and John in that moment from which everything builds.
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Post by thistimetomorrow on Oct 4, 2022 23:42:55 GMT
Thoroughly enjoyed my first ever viewing of any production of the Crucible. I will definitely be making a return visit.
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Post by david on Oct 9, 2022 13:24:15 GMT
Watched this last night completing my double NT show day. Thankfully my B16 stalls seat was just far enough back not to get too wet with the rain effect. Despite it looking very impressive, i don’t think if it had got ditched it would have had a detrimental effect to my overall enjoyment. Though the only complaint I would have being sat here is that anything that happened at the back of the stage was obscured at times. This really was an excellently staged production of this classic play. With the absence of Fiasyo Akindale, we had Nathan Amzi as Rev Hale. I have to say, I have to agree with andrew with respect to Brendan Cowell. When he was speaking I really couldn’t get his George W Bush sound a like voice out of my head. It really was so similar. Despite this, I loved his acting, particularly in Act 2 during the trial scenes. This really is a wonderful cast that keeps you thoroughly entertained for the entire show. The simple set was incredibly effective alongside a fantastic light design. Alongside. “Blues For An Alabama Sky”, the Nash really have got in my opinion two brilliant shows that were definitely worth the 6 hrs spent on the Southbank yesterday. |
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Post by theatremiss on Oct 9, 2022 14:16:58 GMT
Gutted I couldn’t see this and Alabama at the NT yesterday. Two shows missed thanks to the rail strike and unable to see them before they close due to other commitments
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