Ruth Wilson as Hedda My colleagues among the London critics are divided by Ivo van Hove’s new National Theatre production of Hedda Gabler, in an un-gimmicky, plain new version by Patrick Marber – except that they all agree in their high praise of Ruth Wilson’s performance in the title … [Read more...]
Archives for December 2016
A.A. Gill R.I.P.
(photo Evening Standard) Adrian Gill would have been pleased and amused by the way his too-early death, aged only 62, has been noticed. It was repeatedly announced in the national BBC radio and TV news yesterday (10 December) ; and today his own newspaper, The Sunday Times, has a magazine cover-feature on his cancer, which he wrote himself last week, plus a front page story, and no … [Read more...]
Robert Rauschenberg: Art that contains multitudes and overcomes gridlock
Though London is in pre-Christmas gridlock, making it difficult to go anywhere that can’t be reached on foot, there are some important shows to be seen, including the remarkable Beyond Caravaggio at the National Gallery (until 15 January if you can get through the traffic to Trafalgar Square). Though it has only a handful of the naughtiest-painter-ever’s pictures, it is a wonderful … [Read more...]
The Tempest-Tost Find a Home (at Stratford-upon-Avon)
In 1993 I was lucky enough to see Simon Russell Beale, then a sprightly 32-year-old, play Ariel in Sam Mendes’ Royal Shakespeare Company production of The Tempest. Last week, at the RSC in Stratford, we saw the 55-year-old Russell Beale’s Prospero, directed by Gregory Doran. This new staging has been done in collaboration with Intel, and is replete with digital bells and whistles, which … [Read more...]