almeida theatre – The Cultural Exposé

Something you should see… The Merchant of Venice at Almeida Theatre

Laura Thornley — Wed, 10 Dec 2014 12:17:23 +0000

If given an opportunity to imagine the perfect modern day setting for the money-driven and most controversial of Shakespeare’s plays, no doubt Las Vegas would be one of the first places on people’s minds. Independently well-known for taking its own metaphorical ‘pound of flesh’, the Vegas setting brings this modern version of The Merchant of Venice up to date and exposes the fickle, financially-driven, ‘comedic’ chaos against the gawdy backdrop of infamous sin city. This modern day reworking comes from the Royal Shakespeare Company and has already enjoyed critical praise during its tour in 2011. Rehoused now under the Almeida theatre and under the watchful eye of their creative director (and director of this Royal Shakespeare production) Rupert Goold, this production will

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no doubt further cement the Almeida as one of the most interesting theatres in London. If you are a Shakespeare traditionalist you may want to brace yourself. Not only is this version swapping its canals for desert, it’s also repositioning Antonio as a homosexual gambler in love with Bassanio and Portia as the prize on a TV show named Destiny. But, this is what Goold does and with astonishing success. His much-praised version of Macbeth from 2010 was relocated to the Soviet Union and the witches presented as hospital nurses. The reworking of these old tales re-establishes them and their relevance to a different time. The character of Shylock, who is continually at the centre of debates around anti-Semitism, becomes a casino owner with a servant who is an Elvis impersonator. His treatment and eventual (spoiler!) trial exposes the farcical system that makes these judgements in the first instance, and where better to make this point than in a town renowned for debauchery, excess (of all kinds), yet filled with chapels? Goold’s hyper version of this strange and controversial play is a must-see and runs until 14^th February 2015. (Words: Laura Thornley) For more info visit: http://www.almeida.co.uk/event/themerchantofvenice

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Something you should see… Little Revolution

Laura Thornley — Wed, 20 Aug 2014 12:00:26 +0000

Playwright Alecky Blythe has an orthodox style when it comes to getting her stage production storylines together. Unlike the traditional form of playwriting – pencil and paper and a vivid imagination – she instead takes her starting point as a real life event, one you’ve probably heard of in the news. She then embarks on a journey to interview and to draw out the story of the people this real life event is affecting. She records their stories with a Dictaphone and the play stems from here. Little Revolution is no different, taking this same style of verbatim theatre. Using the London riots of summer 2011 as her starting point, Blythe has created an atmospheric theatre production that traces events from the days the trouble began up until the present day aftermath. The success of Blythe’s previous verbatim theatre production sets her latest play up to be something very special indeed. London Road took its starting point from the small town of Ipswich where the bodies of 5 women where found. It follows the residents of the street that had struggled to deal with the presence of curb crawling and how they dealt with being at the epicentre of these dreadful crimes. The play received critical acclaim, 5-stars across the critics review and won Best Musical at the Critics Circle Award. Having interviewed participants, residents and onlookers of the London riots Blythe has enlisted actors to play each individual. The actor embodies and quotes their real life counterpart, verbatim. The finished article is an extraordinary form of documentary theatre. A fascinating, creative way to deal with the latest, most dramatic news events as they unfold. Not to be missed. (Words: Laura Thornley) On from 26th August – 4th October. For more info visit: www.almeida.co.uk/event/littlerevolution

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Something you should see… American Psycho: A New Musical Thriller

Laura Thornley — Tue, 10 Dec 2013 14:50:09 +0000

The festive season seems to have well and truly arrived, a fact clearly confirmed thanks to the inexhaustible droves of shoppers trawling central London on a mission to find the perfect gifts. As if in ode to this, the Almeida theatre’s annual Christmas theatre production has arrived, in the form of everyone’s favourite capitalist psychopath, Patrick Bateman.

The Almeida is well known for their testing Christmas productions. Forget sentiment and mulled wine, this fringe theatre likes to go left-field at Christmas, and there isn’t much more hard hitting than Brett Easton Ellis’ American Psycho. Set in the 1980s in the cut-throat financial world of New York, the story follows Patrick Bateman: a banker with it all – money, designer clothes, status – but his sordid secret life is enough to put even Jack Torrance to shame.

For those who are a little shy of the musical theatre, don’t be put off by the unusual pairing. The creative team behind this production are among the most talented on the scene right now and eternal perfectionists when it comes to making a serious musical. Duncan Sheik writes the purely electronic musical score echoing the synth obsession of the 1980s. Rupert Gould, in house art director at the Almeida, directs the stage play written by Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa, well-known for his musical Spiderman on Broadway. Taking the lead as Bateman is the recently abdicated Doctor Who, Matt Smith. An unusual choice? Well, perhaps not in so far as Bateman is as alien to humanity as it gets.

As music is key to the film, then a musical interpretation seems a natural step; and it couldn’t be in better hands. For all those who need an anecdote to the rampant consumerism of Christmas, there could be no better event. (Words: Laura Thornley)

On until January 25th, 2o14. For more info: www.almeida.co.uk/event/americanpsycho

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