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NEWS: National Theatre At Home screens two versions of Frankenstein plus Antony & Cleopatra

In London theatre, Native, News, Online shows, Plays, Press Releases, Video by Press Releases

After the popularity of its lockdown streamings of One Man, Two Guvnors, Jane Eyre, Treasure Island and tonight’s Twelfth Night to coincide with Shakespeare’s Birthday (23 April 2020), the National Theatre has announced its next two At Home titles: Danny Boyle’s 2011 monster hit Frankenstein and Simon Godwin’s production of Shakespeare’s Antony & Cleopatra.

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What if every day were #Shakespeare400 and London Marathon?

In Features, London theatre, Musicals, Opinion, Plays, Reviews, Video by Terri PaddockLeave a Comment

Snippets of Hamlet, Henry V, As You Like It and Julius Caesar delivered by some of my favourite actors – including Alex Jennings, Michelle Terry, Ashley Zhangazha, Jamie Parker and Will Keen – is an enrichment to any Sunday. Why must it come down this weekend? Why not make it a permanent Bankside installation?

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Photos and podcast: Why we should edit classics like Hamlet and Marlowe’s Tamburlaine

In Features, Interviews, London theatre, Opinion, Photos, Plays by Terri PaddockLeave a Comment

When Lazarus Theatre artistic director Ricky Dukes invited me to host a post-show discussion at Tamburlaine, the uproar around the Barbican Hamlet’s “To be or not to be” seemed like the perfect, topical jumping-off point: Should we or shouldn’t we ‘tamper with’ the classics? Or, given the scarcity of actual practitioners (as opposed to newshounds) prepared to argue that we shouldn’t, put another way: what do we gain by tampering with the classics?

Press pass: Critics finally (officially) get their say on Cumberbatch Hamlet

In Features, London theatre, News, Opinion, Photos, Plays by Terri PaddockLeave a Comment

As one critic stated upfront: the press night is a major anti-climax. Nevertheless, while the verdicts don’t make a blind bit of difference to the box office on a production that sold out in record time a year ago, it’s time to take pause and review the reviews for #HamletBarbican, a.k.a. the Benedict Cumberbatch show. […]

REMINDER: £10 Ticket Lottery for Hamlet Closes Tomorrow

In by Matt MerrittLeave a Comment

Sonia Friedman
Productions
, in partnership with Sky Arts, has allocated
100 £10
tickets, spread throughout the auditorium for every performance of Lyndsey
Turner
’s production of Hamlet
starring Benedict Cumberbatch in
the title role at the Barbican Theatre from 5 August 2015.

60
of the Sky Arts £10 tickets will be sold in advance via the Barbican website in
an on-line ticket ballot and 30 will be available each day as day-seats. The
final 10 will be sold via a select number of charities who work with
under-privileged young people. In total, there will be over 8,500 £10 seats made
available for this production during the run.

From
10am on Friday 29 May and until 10am on Tuesday 16 June 2015, the general
public will have the opportunity to enter the lottery ticket ballot by visiting
http://hamlet.barbican.org.uk to apply for up to 2
tickets.  On
Friday 19 June 2015 the successful applicants will be notified by email with
further information about how to purchase their winning tickets from Monday 22
June onwards.

In addition, from time to time, small numbers of tickets in
other price bands will be released for advance sale online, please visit http://hamlet-barbican.com/ for
up-to-date information.

Phil Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts, said: “We
are delighted to be supporting this fantastic scheme with Sonia Friedman
Productions. At Sky Arts we firmly believe that the Arts should be accessible
to everyone – and it is wonderful that this hotly anticipated production of
Hamlet will be open for so many more people to share.”

The
Hamlet
cast also includes Leo Bill as
Horatio, Sian Brooke as Ophelia,
Anastasia Hille as Gertrude, Ciarán Hinds as Claudius, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith as Laertes and Jim Norton as Polonius.  Full
casting to be announced soon.

As a country arms
itself for war, a family tears itself apart. Forced to avenge his father’s
death but paralysed by the task ahead, Hamlet rages against the impossibility
of his predicament, threatening both his sanity and the security of the
state. 

Hamlet is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions and will
be presented by the Barbican for an exclusive 12-week run, concluding 31
October 2015.  Set Designs are by Es Devlin with costume designs by Katrina Lindsay, video by Luke Halls, lighting by Jane Cox, music by Jon Hopkins,
sound by Christopher Shutt and
movement by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.

In
addition to regular performances, there have been four education matinees
scheduled exclusively for school and university groups (aged 14+ and in
full-time education only) on 10 and 30 September and 7 and 21 October 2015 with
100 tickets priced at £10, 300 tickets priced at £25 available for each performance,
and the remainder at £35.

As previously announced, Hamlet will
be broadcast to cinemas around the world on Thursday 15 October 2015 as part of National Theatre Live
the National Theatre’s ground-breaking project which broadcasts plays live from
the stage to over 550 cinemas in the UK and over 44 countries
internationally.  Details of all screenings, including encore
performances, can be found at ntlive.com

Sky
Arts is the UK’s only dedicated television channel for the arts and the
definitive destination for music, arts and culture. Showing a wide range of
programmes across a number of genres, it has an ambitious line-up of original
and creative programming featuring some of the UK’s biggest talent. This is
supported by a comprehensive on demand service with over 1,000 hours of
dedicated arts and music programmes launching from June. 

Sky
Arts is passionate about making the arts entertaining and accessible and
through its Sky Academy Arts Scholarships uses the power of TV and creativity
to help young people unlock their potential. The scheme offers financial and
mentoring support to five emerging young artists every year and has already
helped set over 20 talented young artists on the path to successful careers.

LISTINGS INFORMATION            

Theatre:               Barbican Theatre, Silk St,
London EC2Y 8DS

Dates:                   5 August 2015 – 31
October 2015

Performances:      Monday
– Saturday 7.15pm, Saturday matinees 1.30pm

Opening
night:      25 August at 7pm

Box
Office:            020
7638 8891

Website:               www.hamlet-barbican.com

REMINDER: £10 Ticket Lottery for Hamlet Closes Tomorrow

In by Matt MerrittLeave a Comment

Sonia Friedman
Productions
, in partnership with Sky Arts, has allocated
100 £10
tickets, spread throughout the auditorium for every performance of Lyndsey
Turner
’s production of Hamlet
starring Benedict Cumberbatch in
the title role at the Barbican Theatre from 5 August 2015.

60
of the Sky Arts £10 tickets will be sold in advance via the Barbican website in
an on-line ticket ballot and 30 will be available each day as day-seats. The
final 10 will be sold via a select number of charities who work with
under-privileged young people. In total, there will be over 8,500 £10 seats made
available for this production during the run.

From
10am on Friday 29 May and until 10am on Tuesday 16 June 2015, the general
public will have the opportunity to enter the lottery ticket ballot by visiting
http://hamlet.barbican.org.uk to apply for up to 2
tickets.  On
Friday 19 June 2015 the successful applicants will be notified by email with
further information about how to purchase their winning tickets from Monday 22
June onwards.

In addition, from time to time, small numbers of tickets in
other price bands will be released for advance sale online, please visit http://hamlet-barbican.com/ for
up-to-date information.

Phil Edgar-Jones, Director of Sky Arts, said: “We
are delighted to be supporting this fantastic scheme with Sonia Friedman
Productions. At Sky Arts we firmly believe that the Arts should be accessible
to everyone – and it is wonderful that this hotly anticipated production of
Hamlet will be open for so many more people to share.”

The
Hamlet
cast also includes Leo Bill as
Horatio, Sian Brooke as Ophelia,
Anastasia Hille as Gertrude, Ciarán Hinds as Claudius, Kobna Holdbrook-Smith as Laertes and Jim Norton as Polonius.  Full
casting to be announced soon.

As a country arms
itself for war, a family tears itself apart. Forced to avenge his father’s
death but paralysed by the task ahead, Hamlet rages against the impossibility
of his predicament, threatening both his sanity and the security of the
state. 

Hamlet is produced by Sonia Friedman Productions and will
be presented by the Barbican for an exclusive 12-week run, concluding 31
October 2015.  Set Designs are by Es Devlin with costume designs by Katrina Lindsay, video by Luke Halls, lighting by Jane Cox, music by Jon Hopkins,
sound by Christopher Shutt and
movement by Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.

In
addition to regular performances, there have been four education matinees
scheduled exclusively for school and university groups (aged 14+ and in
full-time education only) on 10 and 30 September and 7 and 21 October 2015 with
100 tickets priced at £10, 300 tickets priced at £25 available for each performance,
and the remainder at £35.

As previously announced, Hamlet will
be broadcast to cinemas around the world on Thursday 15 October 2015 as part of National Theatre Live
the National Theatre’s ground-breaking project which broadcasts plays live from
the stage to over 550 cinemas in the UK and over 44 countries
internationally.  Details of all screenings, including encore
performances, can be found at ntlive.com

Sky
Arts is the UK’s only dedicated television channel for the arts and the
definitive destination for music, arts and culture. Showing a wide range of
programmes across a number of genres, it has an ambitious line-up of original
and creative programming featuring some of the UK’s biggest talent. This is
supported by a comprehensive on demand service with over 1,000 hours of
dedicated arts and music programmes launching from June. 

Sky
Arts is passionate about making the arts entertaining and accessible and
through its Sky Academy Arts Scholarships uses the power of TV and creativity
to help young people unlock their potential. The scheme offers financial and
mentoring support to five emerging young artists every year and has already
helped set over 20 talented young artists on the path to successful careers.

LISTINGS INFORMATION            

Theatre:               Barbican Theatre, Silk St,
London EC2Y 8DS

Dates:                   5 August 2015 – 31
October 2015

Performances:      Monday
– Saturday 7.15pm, Saturday matinees 1.30pm

Opening
night:      25 August at 7pm

Box
Office:            020
7638 8891

Website:               www.hamlet-barbican.com

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NEWS: Full casting announced for Benedict Cumberbatch’s Hamlet at Barbican

In London theatre, News, Plays, Press Releases by Press ReleasesLeave a Comment

Rehearsals begin today (15 June 2015) for Lyndsey Turner’s production of William Shakespeare’s Hamlet with Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role. Joining Cumberbatch are Barry Aird (Soldier), Eddie Arnold (Danish Captain, Servant), Leo Bill (Horatio), Siân Brooke (Ophelia), Nigel Carrington (Servant, Cornelius), Ruairi Conaghan (Player King), Rudi Dharmalingam (Guildenstern), Colin Haigh (Priest, Messenger), Paul Ham (Official), Diveen Henry (Player Queen, …

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NEWS: £10 tickets for Benedict Cumberbatch’s Barbican Hamlet now on sale

In London theatre, News, Plays, Press Releases by Press ReleasesLeave a Comment

Sonia Friedman Productions,in partnership with Sky Arts, has allocated 100 £10 tickets, spread throughout the auditorium for every performance of Lyndsey Turner’s production of Hamlet starring Benedict Cumberbatch in the title role at the Barbican Theatre from 5 August 2015. 60 of the Sky Arts £10 tickets will be sold in advance via the Barbican website in an on-line ticket …