January 2010 Archives

I want to move to the Nation. Mark Ravenhill’s adaptation of Terry Pratchett’s ’ wisely hilarious excursion through ideas of community, identity and belonging’ is playing in rep at the National until the 28th of March and having seen it on Wednesday night, I am a convert to what is billed as ‘family’ theatre.

Yes, the show is colourful and imaginatively staged, with a huge scale production that will capture children’s imagination- but it will also keep all us fully grown cynics on the edge of our seats. Pratchett’s fantastical story is brought to life with disturbing puppetry (grandfather birds gnawing on the carcasses of dead sea-farers and our heroes sucking on the teats of a huge drunken sow) and a dynamic ensemble.

Most impressive was the versatility of the actors- in their voices, physicality and technical craft. For example, Jason Thorpe’s potty-mouthed man-sized parrot is personified with aplomb and makes you realise just why you did all those lessons rolling around on the floor pretending to be a walrus/kangaroo/iguana.

This versatility is something that I think is going to take a real concerted effort to develop and maintain as an actor. You never know when that dream job might require you to whip out that guitar that’s been gathering dust by the side of the wardrobe or for you to knock out a couple of backflips after you’ve spent the last two weeks eating puff pastries and perfecting the optimum vegging position for televisual enjoyment.

It’s always best to get straight down to business in any circumstance, and so it was with delight and utter compliance that I held the tape measure against my thigh on Tuesday afternoon in a costume room at the New London theatre. This was of course for an inside leg measurement, and not some slightly obscure way to attract partners or stand out from the crowd - I’d be using anything but a tape measure for that, but that’s not for here. Gosh. I’ve almost become a tangent after that little diversion.

Anyway, it was great to go back to the theatre and see backstage and meet a few more of the company. As a child I was always fascinated with the off stage part of theatre and even now, when working in the business, the general backstage area, the rigging, the props store, the quick change area etc… continue to provide hours of exploring and intrigue. We often forget the huge effort of so many that goes entirely unseen and we’d of course be up a rather proverbial creek lacking the necessary paddle without them. On the plus side, you can look forward to seeing me in a very comfy pair of high waisted trousers with a good flat cap very soon.

Now it doesn’t get more ‘finger on the pulse’ than this, but as I write, it is with huge sadness that we learn that Hairspray has posted its closing notice. It has of course had a relatively long run in town, but too post a notice so soon after a new cast change is always heartbreaking, and somewhat out of the blue with the show continuing to do well and proving a hit with audiences. To all the cast and crew, I hope your last 8 weeks are a massive hoot and you go out with a bang! With the state of some of the current west end offerings, you’ll forever remain the nicest kids in town and have defied the Shaftesbury flop - well done to everyone involved.

In the same week as one of theatreland’s top shows decides to pack its bags, the official news was released that London theatre has defied the recession - hoorah! With box office takings breaking the £500 million mark, I can’t think of a better reason to pop open a bottle of bubbly and dance around the living room to your favourite Lloyd Webber classic. Although one slightly irksome thought did creep into my mind just as Duncan James hits the third successive key change in I Believe My Heart - surely box office takings will rise when people are expected to pay £67.50 to see Christine belt out another hummable yet humdrum ballad in Phantom 2? Surely these prices are too much.

I’m all for a scale of seating prices and we are all free to pay however much we like/can afford, but we only have to look at the Donmar’s ticket pricing for their West End season or the National’s Travelex scheme to see what works in terms of costing and can provide an opportunity for everyone to see a wide range of theatre in a relatively good seat. I for one certainly won’t be forking out nearly £70 for Mr Lloyd Webber, despite my love for his previous repertoire (I can sing the entire score of Joseph. And I do. Frequently.) and I don’t much fancy perching on a stool up in the gods so I guess his latest offering might just pass me by. A shame really; I was looking forward to a good waltz.

Onwards, and into the second big chill of the year. My flip flops have begrudgingly been put back in the wardrobe and I will once again don scarf, gloves and a winter bonnet to brave the shivers in Bristol this week. And if you do get snowed in, rained off or sunburnt this week, always remember that bad weather always looks worse through a window.

I am trying to squeeze a fair amount of detail into a short space this week as I rush to prepare to leave for Italy tomorrow for a job I know very little about! It is rumoured that large amounts of teenagers are involved - should I be scared?! Do I need to stock up on all the Italian coffee and chocolate I can get my hands on the minute I land? (That’s for comfort eating and drinking you understand. I would pack some comfort chocolate in my bag but I have discovered that I have a somewhat stingy weight allowance on my checked baggage and can only afford to pack air.)

I have been spoiled theatrically this week as I finally found I had time on my hands to watch some shows. I began on Monday with Legally Blonde, and as it has been covered extensively recently I will simply say that it was so refreshing to see a show on the West End with so much energy. I am sad to say that so many West End musicals I have seen have been lack-lustre - is it kinder to assume that longer running shows have become stale rather than the performers themselves lacking in some sort of quality? Regardless, Legally Blonde was packed with more energy than any other musical I have seen recently, and as for Sheridan Smith - Wow! One of the best stage performers I have ever seen. This musical absolutely has to be seen! If you are in London, it is worth checking out the Savoy Theatre’s “ticket lottery”. (You may be able to snap up top price tickets for £10!)

On Tuesday I watched Nina Conti’s “Talk to the Hand”, (after bumping into her in Starbucks and acting like a crazed fan). Performing for just a handful of people, Nina tried out some new material and new characters. (For those who still don’t know, Nina Conti is a fabulous ventriloquist - check out her website here). Unfortunately, some of her new material involved playing a game with the audience… and unfortunately I did not understand the game and unfortunately the microphone was pointed at me. And instead of saying anything, I gawped stupidly. Who would have thought I had any actor training?! Nina then called special guest John Culshaw to the stage, at which point I realised that I may have been sat next to him in Starbucks while talking on the phone loudly and excitedly about saying “hello” to Nina Conti. This is only slightly embarrassing.

If you’re interested in catching one of these performances, check out the gigs section on Nina’s website and be sure to book your tickets in advance.

On Wednesday I headed for Winchester to follow Image Musical Theatre’s “The Jungle Book” for a few days. I had seen the show several months ago but it was good fun to sing along with the songs again, although I suspect the children in the audience did a better job of this than I did!

I look forward to attempting to both blog and update my website from Italy over the next few weeks. For those who are sticking in London, I hear that Anna Moody is currently offering two for one headshots. (So if you and a friend both want new headshots and come along together, you are effectively paying just half price each.) Check out Anna’s portfolio on her website.

There is a secret to be found in the backstreets of London town. You will see signs if you look for them. You may hear word from those that have been there before. It’s happening somewhere near you, in a darkened room above a tavern in which unsuspecting drinkers are oblivious to the fact that just up those stairs and through those doors lies another world. This is not Doctor Who’s Tardis. This is pub theatre.

Having recently been transported back to Dicken’s London (again, not through a Tardis but, you know, through the magic of theatre… I wasn’t actually transported… ah, nevermind) I reflected once again on how valuable these spaces are to London’s theatre community. These little hubs offer a multitude of opportunities for actors, writers and theatre companies as well as reasonably priced tickets and the luxury of a glass of rosé whilst you digest your drama. Yes, I know I said a draught but ‘Dickens and a glass of rosé’ doesn’t make for a good title. No alliteration.

Reading Natalie Woolman’s recent article in The Stage, I was saddened to learn that the Lion and Unicorn’s fringe theatre is ‘facing an uncertain future’ after ‘the company that owned the venue went into administration’. It would be a great shame if this space was lost, but heartening to hear that Giant Olive’s co-founder George Sallis would be campaigning to continue their stay, even if the pub was sold to another company. Particularly given the strength of their current offering to fringe theatre…

“Hello, my name is David and I’m going to be doing Richard III from Richard III by William Shakespeare.” Alarm bells bounce off the wall and hit me like an Acme hammer. I applaud any young person for even considering showing Richard III at an audition and quite remarkably, this chap was actually rather good, but it immediately opens up a minefield of pitfalls which even most accomplished actors would prefer to do without.

Yes, we started the NYT casting auditions in Newcastle last week and they got off to a great start. A run of 21 speeches in the afternoon did leave me slightly bleary eyed, but the members were great and really stepped up to the challenge.

But back to Richard, and perhaps my pet hate at auditions - ‘mad’ acting. For as long as I can remember, I’ve never seen huge worth in an audition speech that involves split personalities, long drawn out screaming or talking to a variety of cuddly toys, animals, cheeses or similar. I find these speeches are often chosen to shock or appear ‘out there’ and often fail to show the true talent of the actor. Of course, there is always truth in madness and if the actor can access that and find an emotional connection, thumbs up: potentially a very moving audition. However, the majority choose to shout, scream and bang things, throwing in the occasional switch between manic laughter and wailing to show variety. This type of audition will eventually send me mad and I arrive home in a cold sweat, banging walls and playing Shirley Bassey unnecessarily loud on a record player.

So I got to thinking about the ideal audition speech. And yes, this acting game does involve some element of ‘pretending’, but we can all give ourselves a helping hand and choose a speech which will help us and not play against us.

• Choose something close to your playing age and life experiences. A 16 year old girl should not be attempting a Talking Heads number about endless days in a dog chewed armchair waiting for Meals on Wheels to bring her favourite Lancashire hotpot.

• Shakespeare does not impress by default. Yes, he is one of the world’s greatest playwrights, but don’t be fooled into stumbling over “Happy be Theseus!”. All that glisters is not gold, so choose a text you are comfortable with and is within your playing ability.

• Speak up. If the panel can’t hear, you’ve failed before you’ve begun. Make sure you’ve warmed up vocally and you speak with appropriate volume for the space in which you perform.

Good luck to all those auditioning for NYT in the next few weeks. Give it your best and above all else, please enjoy it!

As the start of rehearsals edges ever nearer, I’m being warned about the physical nature of the show and just how exhausted I will be. This, teamed with a rather stressful house hunt, has sort of rearranged my housing priorities - large bath, ample wine storage and plenty of room for a rather marvellous snug made up of many bean bags, cushions and comforting throws! And of course some very understanding housemates who will hopefully be uncannily good at massages - yes, you two, get practicing….!

Wow - what a week! I am writing this at the end of an extremely lazy and chilled out weekend. I think all four of us were insanely tired after the last week with rehearsals and our very first performance.

Finally putting the show in front of theatre full of people really solidified some of the jokes and highlighted the slow areas. It was a shame we were so tired and so after a good rest we are all geared up for great week and some great shows.

We also start touring properly as of next week. First stop ‘Horn’ and then moving onto Zwettl and the first day of full driving is down to me. What a fun driving lesson it was, although whose idea was it to drive on the right hand side of the road? I’m looking forward to the day when right hand side driving feels normal, until then I think I’ll have someone watch my left.

It is three weeks since finishing “Beauty and the Beast”, and I am still recovering! Having fallen ill in the final shows, it has taken me three long weeks and a break from all things work-related (including blogging - sometimes we all need a break from it all!) to fully recover from the exhaustion, and although the sore throat has finally subsided, the accompanying cold is persistent! I packed my bags and left the country for two weeks after Christmas, relieved to have an excuse to turn off my phone and ignore my e-mails.

I arrived back to the UK to find the screens once again inundated with reality television. Celebrities dancing badly on ice, celebrities we haven’t heard of shacking up together, and this dreadful new concept: Popstar to Operastar. The wonderful Katherine Jenkins spends her life training and yet still cannot sing in operas until her voice is fully mature, but we claim to turn pop singers into opera singers overnight. I hope the show does not belittle the discipline of classical singing. On the other hand, perhaps the programme will highlight just how much work goes into this type of performance.

As there is nothing to distract me on the television, I will be spending most of the week preparing for my next job in Italy. Although I know little about the job (I was offered the job with very little information to go on and an immediate response required so I threw caution to the wind!), I understand that there will be a lot of workshops involved for the first couple of months and little to no performing. After a hectic run of a musical, the brief break in performing is welcome, although I look forward to the next theatre project. (And cross my fingers, as always, that there will be a next one!)

In-between packing my bags, I have a fun-filled week ahead of me. I look forward to seeing “Legally Blonde” tonight, and am thrilled to be catching the preview of Nina Conti’s “Talk to the Hand” tomorrow night. If you don’t know who Nina Conti is, check out her website, where you can watch the odd clip and find out all about her sidekick “Monk”. (Monk is a dirty-minded, foul-mouthed monkey. If you are easily offended, maybe give this one a miss!)

…and for the love of all that’s jolly, never ever bring a song to an audition that you “haven’t found time to sing through with a pianist yet”. This is a sure fire route to a “thank you, that’s all we need to see today”. Having sat in on some auditions this week for a new musical, I was amazed at the number of people who weren’t fully prepared. And just in case you’re heading into an audition soon, if all else is disastrous, please be nice to the accompanist!

On a lighter note, a bright pink note if I’m honest, it was wonderful to see such a supportive crowd at the opening of new musical Legally Blonde last night. Overflowing with kitsch and a rather large dose of camp, the cast are fantastic and more than deserved the extravagant Gala party after no less than 6 press performances!

I’m heading off to Newcastle this afternoon to start the NYT 2010 casting auditions and very much looking forward to meeting the potential casts of our 2010 season. It’s always a treat to see the up and coming talent and NYT are always fortunate to have some brilliantly creative young people in their membership.

And I’m also looking forward to starting rehearsals in a few weeks. It’ll be great to get back into a show and will be nice to be in London. Something very different again so will keep the blogs going along during rehearsals and see how I get on.

Short and sweet this week, what with auditions, house hunting and snow, but hope all is well and no one has fallen foul of the ice adorning many roads and pavements. On a personal note, next time it snows, I must remember that I shouldn’t practice my Legally Blonde cheerleading routine on an icy street. Perhaps big but definitely not clever.

The weather last week was enough to freeze the proverbials of a brass monkey; but through all the snow, the wind and biting cold I was sitting and praying for it all to pass in order to allow my flight to Vienna to depart with no disruption.

We had a superb rehearsal week with no weather troubles and have created a wonderful piece of theatre. There is something about multi-rolling that allows so much creativity. Playing four contrasting characters - one of which is outrageously Italian - is such fun, made even more so by a smashing cast.

There was obviously a lot of speculation as to whether or not we would even get to Austria and come Saturday when all Easyjet flights from Gatwick were cancelled I wasn’t holding out much hope. A promising Gatwick Express train journey and with the snow easing up, though, we were able to fly with no problems and arrived in an equally snowy, but slightly warmer (surprisingly) Vienna.

Thanks this week go to all those lovely people at IdeasTap and Old Vic New Voices! Yesterday afternoon those of us who struggle to scrape enough coppers from under the sofa to fund a Domino’s delivery, had the chance to get first peek at this season’s hot ticket at the Old Vic. The Open Dress rehearsal for John Guaré’s Six Degrees of Separation (starring Lesly Manville, Anthony Head and recent RADA graduate Obi Abili) was a treat. Great performances, great script and even for those of you that have seen the 1993 film with Will Smith, the story of the Manhattan elite who are taken in when they take in an enigmatic dinner guest will catch you off guard.

And the catch…. There was none- all free! Wahey!

Ideastap and resources of its kind were a real discovery to me. “There’s no such thing as a free lunch,” said Milton Friedman. “City folk are all horrible and will try and fleece you at every given opportunity, so watch yourself, young lady,” was the maxim that was inscribed on a hammer and battered over my head by the cynics in the shire before I packed my bag for the big city.

Cock eyed optimists, keep the faith!

It’s at times like these when I jump for joy and thank the good lord I am British. We beg for snow and with blissful childlike glee, build snowmen, have friendly snowball fights, go sledging - and then reality comes bounding over the snow-capped hills with a nasty smirk on his face. After the snowmen have part melted and lost carrot noses, Billy has been hit square in the eye with a snowball that was uncannily rock- shaped and the car refuses to budge, the moaning begins and certain areas of the country grind to a halt. Marvellous!

I just hope it doesn’t affect too many theatres this time — there is nothing worse than having to climb a beanstalk for the sole 22 people that made it through blizzards and snow drifts to see “that one from CITV”. Very frustrating. So I hope all those affected can muster up one final push to get through this year’s panto season.

And so here we are. 2009 is well and truly ‘so last year’ and 2010 has come hurtling into play quicker than a Labour leadership bid. And I wonder what it has in store for us?

With the resurgence of plays making a long overdue return to the West End and some wonderful musical revivals in the pipeline, not to mention Sondheim’s 80th birthday celebrations we are in for another great year in theatreland. Obviously we’ll have to contest with another glittery BBC casting reality show not to mention the myriad of C List ‘celebrities’ joining various casts to boost ticket sales, but lets keep chins up and hope for the best.

Next week sees me start a mini roadtrip as we begin the 2010 Casting auditions for the National Youth Theatre. It’s always a brilliant few weeks, and a real privilege to see the next generation of talented youngsters who will no doubt be making waves in a few years time. There’s still time to apply for both a Casting audition if you are already a member and indeed for the intake auditions of you wanted to become a member of NYT. Check out the NYT’s website for more details at www.nyt.org.uk.

As I prepare to get friendly with a gym membership and begin Operation Get Fit (not too catchy, I’ll work on it), I was very happy to be put out of the waiting game this week. And despite the agonising over analyzing and subsequent over drinking to numb the analyzing, sometimes… it’s worth the wait.

From audition until the first day of rehearsal the fact that I was soon to be a paid actor never really registered with me. In fact, I was in the mindset of returning to drama school for another show where I would get a grade and a pat on the back as opposed to an actual wage.

However, now that I’m here that old fellow called ‘Acting’ is once again by my side and like and old pair of slippers is fitting quite comfortably.

Apologies for the tardy bloggery. This last couple of weeks have been wonderfully hectic, as I’m sure they have been for you too! Being the Queen was a thoroughly enjoyable experience (I may well consider it as a plan B should the acting not pan out…)

Every year the Barretts head en masse to the Wycombe Swan to see their pantomime, which is always entertaining and has become something of a custom. This year, the clan deviated from tradition and instead of booking up the front row and investing in foam fingers, they made the trip to Chorleywood to see our family musical Alice in Wonderland (oh, it’s a bonus to have a large family when you’re working profit share). In years gone by, I would sit next to my youngest cousin and hold her hand as she hid from the baddie in terror. How deliciously naughty I felt when it was I who was making her squirm! No remorse here, it serves them right for sitting in the front row. Mwahahaha!