1,119 posts
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Post by martin1965 on Apr 2, 2017 13:22:53 GMT
Was in NT shop yesterday and spotted diary of this production of an obscure play with a non english speaking director which starred Anthony Hopkins and Jim Dale and was an infamous flop in its time.
Apparently its only now been "declassified".
It was before my time but did anyone here see it?
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Post by Deleted on Apr 2, 2017 13:29:22 GMT
I can only find a reference to someone having seen it on a defunct Ron Perlman website (which has an expired domain so is unreadable other than the google summary), and these positive reviews on a Jim Dale fan site - www.jim-dale.com/r_uk_architect.htm"banks of moving searchlights assault the almost naked bodies of anthony hopkins and jim dale" Blimey! Edited to add - here's a full review from The Spectator -http://archive.spectator.co.uk/article/13th-february-1971/23/theatre Sounds awesome and surprising it isn't done more often by exhibitionist drama students. |
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Post by bordeaux on Apr 4, 2017 7:40:05 GMT
According to Daniel Rosenthal's The National Theatre Story: The Architect and the Emperor of Assyria by Fernando Arrabal, Spanish writer. Play written 1967, produced at the NT 1971, 28 performances from 3rd Feb to 10th July. Translated by Jean Benedetti and directed by Victor Garcia under a guest director policy which had brought Ingmar Bergman over the year before to direct Maggie Smith in Hedda Gabler. Victor Garcia was Argentinian; the play a two-hander. Laurence Olivier told Hopkins 'I think it's a load of rubbish, but Ken (Tynan) is very keen on it'. Garcia directed via an interpreter. Rehearsals were a 'nightmare' for Hopkins. Dale objected to being asked to perform naked and on Olivier's instructions the actors over-ruled Garcia and jettisoned huge sections of the text and stage business to cut a four-hour dress rehearsal down to a two-hour press performance that still baffled the critics.
1971 seems to have been a very difficult time at the NT with a number of flops (Scofield's The Captain of Kopenick a rare hit) until they were saved by the famous Blakemore/Olivier Long Day's Journey late in the year.
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1,119 posts
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Post by martin1965 on Apr 4, 2017 12:42:13 GMT
Yeah i knew all that. I was just curious if anyone here had actually seen it. I know it is a fair while back.
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Post by Deleted on Apr 4, 2017 13:19:19 GMT
Oh sorry, thought you were trying to start a discussion.
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5,688 posts
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Post by lynette on Apr 6, 2017 19:56:04 GMT
I missed this one. They should def revive. Youngish/olderish man concept. With macaroons. A hit, methinks.
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