One bespectacled, anxious-looking Virginia Woolf in a sensible brown skirt and dreary cardigan is never enough, so Michael Grandage’s production of Orlando at the Garrick Theatre generously opens with a whole pack of Woolfs – nine of them – in Neil Bartlett’s new version of the author’s classic whimsical-feminist fantasy.
‘Definitely a show that’s been revived at the right time’: ORLANDO – Garrick Theatre ★★★★
Thought to be inspired by Virginia Woolf’s romance with Vita Sackville-West, Orlando depicts a boisterous protagonist whose journey spans five centuries and two genders. Its awareness of gender politics and expectations as well as the way is defies them is really something special, and it’s astounding that Woolf wrote such a groundbreaking piece of work in 1928 and that it remains so relevant now.
Northern Stage finds inspiration in Peaky Blinders & Great Gatsby for its production of A Christmas Carol
Northern Stage is taking its inspiration from Peaky Blinders for a new production of Charles Dickens’ classic story of ghosts, greed and goodwill, A Christmas Carol.
MEDEA, WRITTEN IN RAGE – Touring
Nothing becomes Medea (or at least this version of her) as much as her entry into the world. Into a liminal space shrouded in smoke, summoned by a clarion call from the ether, an unknowable shape emerges.
Text of the Day: The Plague
Random and topical thoughts and quotes gathered by My Theatre Mates contributor Aleks Sierz, first published on www.sierz.co.uk.
REVIEW ROUND-UP: The Plague at Arcola Theatre
Neil Bartlett presents an updated version of Albert Camus’ story of living through crisis and fighting despair. But what have critics been saying about it?
THE PLAGUE – Arcola Theatre
As Brecht also observed tellingly at the end of The Resistible Rise of Arturo Ui, 1941, shortly being revived at the Donmar, things come round again. Just when you think humans may have learnt something from history, off we go again.
THE PLAGUE – Arcola Theatre
In the unnamed town that the five characters inhabit, any hope or joy is promptly quashed and left in a pool of despair on the floor, just like the mysteriously dying rats that plague the streets. It’s not a fun evening, but nonetheless makes for a formidable and incredibly disquieting piece of theatre.
THE PLAGUE – Arcola Theatre
There is an appealing simplicity to the narrative of Camus’s 1947 novel: originally set in Oran, in French Algerian, the book tells the story of a devastating infection that starts off slowly but eventually leads to social and economic crisis as the city gates are closed and its people become prisoners.
NEWS: Camus’ Plague & Greg Hicks as Richard III headline Arcola’s spring/summer
London’s Arcola Theatre has announced another overtly political programme for its new 2017 spring/summer season, including Neil Bartlett’s new adaptation of Camus’ The Plague and a new production of Richard III starring Greg Hicks.