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Post by eua78 on Apr 5, 2023 23:02:53 GMT
Now how do I even begin to talk about this play, the onstage seating is brilliant, you feel so close. I was in AA1, £25 probably because it’s on the end of a row, but the cast constantly walk past you so it’s worth the occasional bad view.
The acting was superb from the whole cast, but I wasn’t the biggest fan of the material, just when it’s getting better for Jude they strike him down again.
Multiple people ended up leaving at interval/during just due to how distressing scenes were, the onstage seats offer a brilliant insight into backstage, and how the effects work.
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Post by lonlad on Apr 5, 2023 23:15:05 GMT
Most of the press came during late previews but last night (Weds) was the official opening night and reviews are starting to appear online now. The play wasn't remotely my thing - a wallow in misery to no cathartic purpose - but the cast is excellent (Norton, Armin, and Varla especially) even if quite a lot of them have surprisingly little to do. How Norton will sustain this for five months is a major mystery - others might wonder why he would want to.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 5, 2023 23:41:21 GMT
The acting was superb from the whole cast, but I wasn’t the biggest fan of the material, just when it’s getting better for Jude they strike him down again. Yes. Whether or not someone can ever escape the abuse in/from their past is one of the Yanagihara's core questions. As the review in the Financial Times notes, "But in fact, we soon realise, we are trapped in one man’s deeply traumatised psyche." |
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Post by lonlad on Apr 5, 2023 23:48:35 GMT
Except that question above isn't actually addressed by the plot which instead seems, as it wends its gatheringly awful way, more like an arbitrary array of gratuitous cruelty and rotten luck.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 5, 2023 23:53:33 GMT
Except that question above isn't actually addressed by the plot which instead seems, as it wends its gatheringly awful way, more like an arbitrary array of gratuitous cruelty and rotten luck.
Respectfully disagree.
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Post by teamyali on Apr 6, 2023 0:21:15 GMT
Mixed reviews so far - 3 stars from The Guardian and Financial Times, 4 from The Stage, even 2 stars from The Times. It’s expected that this is a very divisive play, but puts bums on seats. There’s a chance they might bring this over to Broadway but with an all-American cast (Andrew Garfield comes to mind; he’s British-American though but given he’s busy with screen work these days so it’s a far chance). Hope they sustain this 5-month run at the Pinter and Savoy.
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Post by Fleance on Apr 6, 2023 2:02:21 GMT
Five stars from the Express, and a smattering of four stars from others, including the Mail Online.
(I wonder if there are those who disapprove of the play, without mentioning it as their reason, because it underscores the controversial issue of abuse by Catholic clergy.)
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Post by couldileaveyou on Apr 6, 2023 2:35:50 GMT
Five stars from the Express, and a smattering of four stars from others, including the Mail Online. (I wonder if there are those who disapprove of the play, without mentioning it as their reason, because it underscores the controversial issue of abuse by Catholic clergy.) Plays and movies which deal specifically with this topic - from Doubt to Spotlight - got rave reviews, so it's unlikely. |
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Post by karloscar on Apr 6, 2023 10:49:01 GMT
Indy is pretty brutal:
There’s a kind of confirmation bias that makes people assume that when they see a very long play or read a very long book, they’re engaging with a great work. In the case of A Little Life, I don’t think they are. If you want to be immersed in other peoples’ pain, go and spend four hours in A&E: it’s cheaper, just as agonising, and you can have a wee whenever you want.
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Post by A.Ham on Apr 6, 2023 11:17:12 GMT
More seats released for the Savoy, including additional Wednesday matinees - now on sale.
No onstage seating added just yet though so I assume that’s still to come.
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Post by A.Ham on Apr 6, 2023 12:06:59 GMT
Just received an email which says onstage seating at the Savoy Theatre will be released later this month from £35 (no £25 seats here it seems).
It’s worth signing up on the production’s website to get the alert when they go on sale - that’s how I got my onstage ticket for the HP.
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Post by solotheatregoer on Apr 6, 2023 16:13:41 GMT
Just received an email which says onstage seating at the Savoy Theatre will be released later this month from £35 (no £25 seats here it seems). It’s worth signing up on the production’s website to get the alert when they go on sale - that’s how I got my onstage ticket for the HP. That's strange. I signed up for alerts but I didn't receive any e-mails about the on stage seating being released. I ended up booking a stalls seat in July now that they have added additional matinees. |
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Post by A.Ham on Apr 6, 2023 17:53:23 GMT
Just received an email which says onstage seating at the Savoy Theatre will be released later this month from £35 (no £25 seats here it seems). It’s worth signing up on the production’s website to get the alert when they go on sale - that’s how I got my onstage ticket for the HP. That's strange. I signed up for alerts but I didn't receive any e-mails about the on stage seating being released. I ended up booking a stalls seat in July now that they have added additional matinees. Yes, definitely odd - it arrived at lunchtime. Primarily highlighting the rave reviews and promoting the additional ticket release and matinees, but included a line to say the onstage seating is coming soon. |
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Post by stevemar on Apr 6, 2023 18:33:02 GMT
Mixed reviews so far - 3 stars from The Guardian and Financial Times, 4 from The Stage, even 2 stars from The Times. It’s expected that this is a very divisive play, but puts bums on seats. There’s a chance they might bring this over to Broadway but with an all-American cast (Andrew Garfield comes to mind; he’s British-American though but given he’s busy with screen work these days so it’s a far chance). Hope they sustain this 5-month run at the Pinter and Savoy. Yes, quite a disconnect between the critics themselves reflecting the reviews here also, though I think the public have been keener overall. In a way the current production is “critic-proof” given the almost sold out run, but it might affect a further Broadway transfer - who knows? Round up here www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-65199805.amp |
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Post by shady23 on Apr 6, 2023 19:22:56 GMT
Has anyone braved the standing tickets yet?
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Post by Being Alive on Apr 6, 2023 20:53:02 GMT
Has anyone braved the standing tickets yet? I have them booked for a week and a halfs time... |
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Post by interval99 on Apr 6, 2023 21:33:38 GMT
More seats released for the Savoy, including additional Wednesday matinees - now on sale. No onstage seating added just yet though so I assume that’s still to come. Many thanks A.Ham for posting this update. The matinees had wide range of seat options at all prices. Decided to go for aisle seat for leg room if going to be there for nearly four hours and feel happier about that than being stuck mid row which were the only seat options for the evening and were double the price. |
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Post by jr on Apr 7, 2023 7:29:43 GMT
Indy is pretty brutal: There’s a kind of confirmation bias that makes people assume that when they see a very long play or read a very long book, they’re engaging with a great work. In the case of A Little Life, I don’t think they are. If you want to be immersed in other peoples’ pain, go and spend four hours in A&E: it’s cheaper, just as agonising, and you can have a wee whenever you want. Haha I am a nurse and couldn't agree more. The fascination of people with this type of stuff when in real life they cannot stand a drop of blood or the slightest pain baffles me. Also agree with The Times' critic. I got halfway through the book and threw it away. I wasn't shocked, just bored to death (a different type of torture I am not willing to bear). I will skip this one. |
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Post by Deleted on Apr 7, 2023 9:24:04 GMT
I get that some do not like the book (or the play) and I think it was misguided to center Jude so much in the play that the richer experiences of the friends' quartet pales compared to their place in the book, but I highly doubt people go to a 4+ hour play because of a fascination with trauma.
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Post by theatregoer22 on Apr 7, 2023 19:11:50 GMT
Indy is pretty brutal: There’s a kind of confirmation bias that makes people assume that when they see a very long play or read a very long book, they’re engaging with a great work. In the case of A Little Life, I don’t think they are. If you want to be immersed in other peoples’ pain, go and spend four hours in A&E: it’s cheaper, just as agonising, and you can have a wee whenever you want. Haha I am a nurse and couldn't agree more. The fascination of people with this type of stuff when in real life they cannot stand a drop of blood or the slightest pain baffles me. Also agree with The Times' critic. I got halfway through the book and threw it away. I wasn't shocked, just bored to death (a different type of torture I am not willing to bear). I will skip this one. I'm one of those people who is terrified of blood and anything that might hurt, but I found the book really moving and loved the main characters and now I can't wait to see the play. |
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Post by Jon on Apr 7, 2023 19:23:43 GMT
The blood oddly didn't bother me because from the stage, it looked very fake!
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Post by shady23 on Apr 8, 2023 23:42:44 GMT
I had a standing ticket booked for yesterday but was feeling very tired and thought it would be a real struggle so optimistically entered the Today Tix lottery in hope I wouldn't have to.
I got a notification shortly after 9.30 that I'd won so gave my standing ticket away and went down to the box office to pick up my ticket. I haven't read the whole of this thread so don't know if this is a regular dayseat allocation but I was shocked and also very happy to be allocated a seat in the front row of the stalls. The view was incredible and barely restricted at all.
I felt so mentally drained afterwards but also that I had witnessed something very special indeed. I thought the cast were fantastic buttery, admittedly, it was very hard to watch at times dues to the subject material.
How they manage to perform this twice a day I do not know.
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Post by FJ on Apr 14, 2023 14:07:24 GMT
Hope this is ok to post here admins, I've just posted in Noticeboard but as it's very last minute I'm just posting here as well.
I've won the TodayTix Lottery for A little life tonight but my friend is unable to join now! so I have a spare ticket if anyone wants to join me last minute?
7pm start at the Harold Pinter Theatre, £25, feel free to message me if interested!
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Post by A.Ham on Apr 14, 2023 17:50:51 GMT
The official play account has just tweeted to announce onstage seating for the Savoy goes on sale Weds @ midday.
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Post by theatrefan77 on Apr 14, 2023 22:54:04 GMT
Look forward to seeing this tomorrow in the onstage seating
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