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Post by Deleted on Feb 8, 2018 10:38:15 GMT
I haven't seen John but presumably a ghost would play the pianola in exactly the same way as a human would, by operating the pianola roll, not by treating it as a piano.
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Post by jek on Feb 10, 2018 18:19:51 GMT
Went this afternoon and rather enjoyed it - the performances in particular. It could be cut by 20 minutes or so I thought but other than that no complaints. I enjoyed the way that the ticking of the clock seemed to slow me down to the right pace to enjoy the production. We were in seats M5 and 6 in the pit and missed very little. Earlier in this thread people were asking about sitting in M1-4 as these were the Entry Pass seats. You will miss a bit there (although less than you would on the other side of the theatre) but I would have thought given the price of the Entry Pass tickets it is a no brainer (our tickets were £28 each).
And I have to say that, as an Archers fan, it was great to see Anisha from the Archers (Anneika Rose) in the play.
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Post by perfectspy on Feb 11, 2018 22:56:01 GMT
I saw John. A very long play, just like The Flick. I would describe Baker's works to be like Directors cuts, extending scenes for the theatre purists.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 22, 2018 1:13:23 GMT
Loved the way this took the typical fifties/sixties American play and subverted it; scooping out any forcedly narrative dialogue and replacing it with conversations that, initially, appear to be specks of different ideas, but which gradually come into focus as thematically linked. The setting is typical of playwriting of that era, as are the basic tensions, but instead of the sequential narrative here the effect is created by accretion instead, as though several transparencies are being laid one on top of another.
In a Wilder-esque touch, the “here’s an ending, for those that want an ending” is also a nod to its cousins of earlier decades, it appears on the surface to tie things together but, in fact, resolves nothing being a simulacrum of one. Like the dolls, it stands as a recognisable copy. Each character tells stories that don’t quite hang together, of husbands, sisters and families; they are similarly recognisable but just a little bit askew, they don’t completely add up. In fact, the whole production is like watching something that is travelling at a different angle, an angle that makes it so unsettling to watch.
Most unsettling moment, the weird language in the notebook. Something really unfathomable about that.
Lots to still think about.
EDIT: Plus Lovecraft, the second appearance of Cthulhu in a play at the NT in the last few years!
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Post by bramble on Feb 22, 2018 11:47:06 GMT
agreed plenty think about.well worth the effort.excellently acted.
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Post by wiggymess on Feb 22, 2018 12:00:47 GMT
Sorry to repeat questions on here, but just to clarify re intervals:
1st is around 15/20mins, 2nd has something worth staying in your seat for, and AFTER that has finished, there is around a 10 minute break?
Thanks :~)
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Post by crowblack on Mar 6, 2018 23:24:42 GMT
I'm just back from seeing Circle Mirror Transformation at Home in Manchester, which was excellent. I think it's a much better play than John - it comes in at around 1hr50 straight through, with far more engaging characters/situations and - well, just better overall really (no spoilers). It's only a short run, but maybe it'll travel (?).
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