Sitting In The Cheap Seats

Florian Zeller ’s name is fast becoming a byword for gripping, fascinating and often brilliantly funny theatre. Productions of The Mother and The Father have racked up critical raves and when The Truth opened at the Menier Chocolate Factory it was greeted with equal fervour.

Like most of Shakespeare’s tragedies  Macbeth  works best when viewed on the strength of the relationships between its characters. Sure the blood and guts murders are ways to get bum on seats but even with a literal thunderstorm overhead foreshadowing the tumultuous effects of Macbeth’s actions it all boils down to a marriage made strong by the pursuit of power.

We’re very excited today to hear that full casting has been announced for Danielle Tarento  and Thom Southerland ’s next musical collaboration. With Titanic, Grey Gardens and Grand Hotel the pair have proved they have an undeniable knack for making chamber productions of sweeping shows and focusing on character. Read on to find out who they’ve cast to bring Rodgers & Hammerstein ’s lost treasure to life!

It’s been a while since we last shared a roundup of the news, but there’s been a lot that has caught our eye this past week and, well… sharing is caring! So, without further ado, here’s our favourite news from the past week.

Anarchy! It’s not what you expect from a Shakespeare play… even one that has been performed in as many ways as A Midsummer Night’s Dream has been tackled. Emma Rice ’s debut piece in her first season as Artistic Director for the Globe throws the rulebook right out of the window though with performers wearing head mics, set dressing seemingly hanging from the sky and a distinctly non-reverential approach to William’s words.

Can I start with a confession? I never really “got” Titanic … Sure, Maury Yeston’s music and Peter Stone ’s book had the requisite bombast, but I’d never seen much evidence of the heart. Leave it to Thom Southerland and  Danielle Tarento to prove me wrong again as they did with Grand Hotel last year… Maybe next time I’ll have learned my lesson!

Shakespeare’s Globe ’s Wonder Season is in full swing on Bankside, with the theatre becoming more and more of a fantasy world. I have to confess that The Taming Of The Shrew would not have been one of the plays I’d have picked for such a whimsical programme, but this production has a magic of its own!