A German Life-Bridge theatre

Yes, of course Maggie Smith was so compelling but I definitely had a sense of "is that it?" afterwards.

Saw this on Tuesday - 5 stars, absolutely incredible performance from Her Royal Highness Maggie. I don't care whether she was acting the forgetfulness or genuinely losing her place, because she was riveting. The material is indeed pretty average, but in her hands it is elevated to a captivating and thought-provoking evening during which a woman in a chair conjures up vivid images of a time and place that is miles away from anything I've ever known. For me, the most intriguing aspect was the ambiguity of whether she genuinely felt guilt-free about the part she played or whether she simply buried the guilt for her own protection. After all, she goes to great lengths to tell us how intelligent and hard-working she was, but then claims that many things simply passed her by because it 'wasn't her place' to know them or because she was simply 'too stupid' to notice. And then there's the whole 'I had no choice' argument, which is another kettle of fish...

Report from last night. This was a rather fascinating story and I'd be keen to read a fuller account in a book someday.

I've only ever seen Maggie Smith on stage once before, in The Lady from Dubuque. She owned the stage then, as she did for A German Life.

As a play, this is powerful, but slight. I suspect, without a star name attached, it would struggle to attract an audience. But the performance, the mannerisms, the seeming forgotten moments and stumbles, were all masterfully done.

I did get the impression that a lot of the audience didn't really want to be there. I was in the top level, 2nd row, one of the high £15 seats. A bargain! A clear view (there was a rail, but you didn't even need to lean forward due to where Dame Smith was positioned on stage) and much closer than the rear Stalls. Clear sound too (obviously helped by amplification). But, you could see every phone screen lighting and every sneaky photograph being made. And, you could hear every cough.

I heard one gentlemen complaining as he was leaving about the lady next to him continually checking her emails on her watch. It must be a time for announcements to remind people to turn their smartwatches off, just as they do for phones.

My other annoyance is the usual one about the small number of people who decide to laugh loudly at the most inappropriate times. I just can't understand about how hearing about the death of Jews prompts that type of reaction in people.

For one actor to hold my attention for 1 hour 40 minutes without a break is quite a feat. I can't see this production as anything other than deserving of a load of awards.

Making us laugh at times in this piece is part of the dramatist’s brilliance. It breaks the tension which was tangible I thought and it makes us think. Wry laughter here I thought not a bad thing.

Saw this Monday evening with my 2 American friends. They wanted to see a Star on a stage – box ticked. I don’t know if the play meant anything to them other than that impressive performance by Dame M. I had mentioned earlier that the forgetfulness was part of the performance, the dithering thing likewise. I hadn’t mentioned the stage creeping forward; pointed it out just as we were leaving, neither had noticed. It is a slight piece but interesting - I'd been to Berlin in February this year, my first visit. Tied in nicely with the information amassed by the performance.

A pretty good audience, I saw a few lights from watches from my Gallery 1 Seat 54 (very comfy, little bar to lean on without disrupting view of Seat 53, excellent view). Most irritating was the staff member sat next to me on the little Staff seat “policing” the audience in her outdoor rustling coat. Leaning forward, leaning back, rustle, rustle, rustle. Before the show started the woman across the aisle had asked if the cold air blower could be turned down as it was blowing full blast and blooming cold! It wasn't ....

And as I put in the survey the Bridge sent to me after the show, there really must be another way of informing people that cameras must not be used rather than the waving of arms, pointing at the attending patron etc prior to "curtain up". Yeah, if you are a regular theatre goer you know, but for the people that don’t go often or are tourists, especially attending a show with a name such as the Dame, it’s inelegant, rude even, to point and gesticulate, with other audience members looking at the inadvertent wrong doer.

I didn't notice until halfway through the play when the flickering light on the bookshelf momentarily caught my attention. I was focused on Dame Maggie and not what was around her.

Am I weird for looking around at the set a few times during a one woman show? I can't stare at one spot for 90 minutes, but maybe it's part of the cursed syndrome of the mobile phone generation. I hadn't read about the set before seeing the show, but I'd noticed a change by about 20 minutes probably. Then I thought it was quite fun.

Presumably there were people who watched Maggie slide right past their heads. Imperceptibly slowly. Hopefully they noticed they'd started off facing one way and ended up facing the other!

I noticed the 'exterior' lighting changing as the afternoon turned to evening, and noticed the interior lights dimming as well, but completely missed the movement of the set.

I’m mystified how anyone can say this is deserving of “All the awards”. I found it a very hard thing to sit through- her every (strangely placed) pause made me feel like she’d forgotten her next line and as a result I never became engrossed. My main focus was watching the slowly shifting set.

She’s a marvel... she’s a legend and I adore her ..but this is not award worthy. I have full admiration for the huge risk she’s taking every night though going out there all on her own but let’s not all get carried away.

Actual person on BBC4 10 o’clock tonight in the interview they made off her when she was very old.

For anybody who didn't get to see this, it's being adapted into a film. Other characters will feature but in the main it will be a filmed version of the monologue.

www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatre-news/news/a-german-life-starring-maggie-smith-to-be-adapted-into-a-film