Communicating Doors, Alan Ayckbourn, The Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough

Alan Ayckbourn outside the Stephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough

For some time now I have wanted to visit the Stephen Joseph theatre in Scarborough.  For two main reasons firstly it is the artistic home of one of our great writers Alan Ayckbourn and secondly through Ayckbourn’s influence it has become a hot bed for new modern theatre and the encouragement of new writers.  My first venture to the theatre was to see his 1994 play ‘Communicating Doors,’ a time bending farce exploring the journeys of three women through a time warp that has locked itself into their hotel room.  The plot line you would be forgiven for having a sense of disbelief, but the quality of the writing and the acting, create a compelling sense of intrigue and has universal resonance in the 2010 version.  As Ayckbourn himself writes in the programme notes,

‘’Communicating Doors was one of the earlier plays when, encouraged by my first experiences in writing my Christmas ‘family’ pieces which generally tended to be set in fantastic and undreamt worlds, in my adult work I stepped cautiously outside the four walls of the real house or the actual garden fence. Into the realms of heaven knows where…..’’

Though Ayckbourn’s reputation is based primarily on his ability to write entertaining comedies, most critics agree that his plays convey serious themes concerning the failures and tragedies of ordinary life as well as the moral and cultural decline of society.  This play is no exception with the main protagonist Poopay (Phoebe), being led into a hotel room as a dominatrix expecting to provide a service for an ‘older’ gentleman, who then gets led into a world of murder, violence and intrigue through the influence of Julian, a malevolent henchman who has influenced Reece to commit murder and kill two of his wives.  Reece who is an old man when the play starts wants to put things right and attempts to get Poopay to sign a confession as a witness which is subsequently discovered by Julian.  The story further unfolds when Poopay hides in a cupboard and discovers it takes her back to a night some 30 years previously, where his second wife Ruella is to be murdered.  The farcical nature of the plot continues when Ruella having been convinced by Poopay of what is likely to happen then goes back a further twenty years to inform Jessica, Reece’s first wife of what will happen to her and how they could work to change the terrible possibilities of events.

As previously mentioned the fantastical the plot line does however create many questions and and offers several themes for exploration.  Ruella’s insistence on honesty, decency and persistence sets off the action and brings the story to a suprising conclusion.  The play suggests these verities will always triumph, even if it takes time to make it happen.  Poopay is a creature of circumstance, but the play suggests that growth and change are possible when circumstances change.  Reece is a man easily led by stronger personalities, suggesting that people are creatures of their associations.  If we are fortunate to live with honesty, decency, and persistence, we take on those attributes.  Running underneath these themes Ayckbourn offers us a quick glimpse of a bleak future, a world full of Julian’s – greedy, selfish and willing to cause murder and mayhem to reach their own ends.

Laura Donnington as Poopay and Liza Goddard as Ruella in rehearsals

Ayckbourn in his book ‘The Crafty Art of Playmaking,’ also stresses on the importance of casting and this play is a testimony to this.  The acting is flawless with particular mention to Laura Doddington as Poopay and Lisa Goddard as Ruella, both beautifully playing off each other as we see the relationship between them develop throughout the play.  Goddard is an acting tour de force, and perfectly coveys the feisty Ruella and her insistence on justice.  Reece played by Ben Porter, both young and old is a difficult part, but he manages to convince us of his tremendous old age as well as the young honeymooner when the play goes back in time.  Jessica played by Laura Howard is excellent and plays the slightly ditsy character very convincingly.  Harold played by Jamie Kenna plays the hotel security guard with great aplomb.  This leaves us with Julian played by Kim Wall who plays the covert and malevolent Julian with extreme and believable menace. An excellent performance.

Alan Ayckbourn directs the cast in rehearsal.

The play, however, does for me, have its faults, with a twist in the plot at the end that doesn’t quite work and suspends disbelief in a world which already is asking us to believe the absurd.  The time changing theme gets a little too complicated and confused in order to create *SPOILER ALERT* the happy ending that Ayckbourn envisaged.  Having said this the play for the most part delivers giving us the suspense, comedy and farce that Ayckbourn is known for as well as the moral questions he has us asking at the end of the play.  Ayckbourn himself writes,

‘’Communicating Doors also contains my other strongly held belief that your own good fortune often resides in the people you meet on the way. It’s good luck to have met them : it’s good sense knowing the ones to listen too.’’

I couldn’t have written it better myself, but there again I’m not Alan Ayckbourn.

Glastonbury – From the Armchair (Not impressed!)

I am not a festival goer.  I do not feel the need to pitch my tent, sleep in and around the great unwashed, to do my ablutions in God forsaken places, get a spiritual high from the new age clap trap that festivals have to offer or listen to mostly overhyped second rate music.  I do not need the festival ‘experience’ to get my rocks off. Fact.  However, I do enjoy watching from the perspective of a BBC camera man who with his access most areas pass that enables me to see the band playing from the stage, the excellent sound quality of a surround sound system and the rather marvellous view of the mass of people enjoying their festival experience.  I look forward to the Glastonbury weekend and  the BBC’s mostly excellent coverage.  And so like many a football fan who doesn’t truly support their team I am an armchair festival goer.  I enjoy the comfort of pressing the button  on my electrically controlled Jimmy Saville reclining chair and putting my feet up, nursing a good burgundy and knowing the satisfaction that there is a clean bathroom downstairs if needed.

I say ‘mostly’, for the reasons mentioned above. However, I definetely do not like the rather facile and self congratulatory frontline presenters such as Edith Bowman and Reggie Yates (I almost couldn’t  be bothered to look up his surname), whose psychophantic interviewing techniques are enough to make a grown man cry and vomit at the same time.  Something I feel I can legitimately comment on and as such know what a wretched experience it is.

I also acknowledge that I am a middle aged man who would fit quite nicely into the format of  the TV show ‘Grumpy old men’, so this has to be taken into consideration.  However, please do not tell me that ‘younger’ people get a kick out of Reggie constantly referring to Edith singing or doing ‘funny’ dances or indeed Edith Bowman virtually placing her nose up the back passage of the overhyped Florence of Machine fame. I do however enjoy the ruminatons of Radio 2’s Mark Radcliffe and the rather fantastic Lauren Laverne so ying balances yang and the world continues on it’s inevitable parallel axis(!). The late night slots always remind me of the irrepresible John Peel with his knee length khaki shorts, his oversized wellies and welcomed sardonic asides.  Much missed, much loved.

John Peel R.I.P

Apologies for this less than cutting edge on the hour review of this years Glastobury I’ve just basically not had time, but now I do I feel there are rants to be ranted even from the comfort of an armchair and the benefit of the internet.  My first question is what in the name of the great god music has happened to the British music scene?  Was this the best Michael Eavis could do for the 40th anniversary?  Have you seen the line up on all stages and it’s less than inspiring listing?  Has the festival turned middle aged? Should children under the age of 10 be banned from the festival? Please in the name of all things sane don’t tell me that Florence and the Machine are the future of British music!

So in the words of Dylan Thomas….’To begin at the beginning’, let us look at this years listing for the festival. Here’s the link to the Glastonbury site http://www.glastonburyfestivals.co.uk/line-up-poster/.  Please peruse the Pyramid stage followed by the Other Stage (Awful name by the way Michael) and then followed by the John Peel stage (Good name but does it do him justice? Grave, spinning, in the, comes to mind).  Let me start with the example of the Pyramid stage and Friday night.  Gorillaz jaw droppingly good I thought, although they did get a bit of a roasting from the press, because it was thought they didn’t have that many sing-a-longs! Is this what quality live music is judged on nowadays.  The fact that the audience can’t do karaoke? For me this was the highlight of the festival with the host of guest stars and the wonderfully eclectic mix of musical genres that has surely placed Gorillaz as one of the most inventive and intelligent band of this era.  Lots of  interesting special guests such as Sean Ryder, Paul Simonon, Mick Jones, Lou Reed etc.but my particular favourite was Mark E. Smith from The Fall, brilliant. 

However please look at the tawdrid listing before the headline act and tell me all is well in the British music scene.  Dizzee Rascal should be the 4th act in the toilet tent not a second headliner at Glastonbury.  Giving us the ridiculous England World Cup song and renditions of ‘Bonkers’ from his last album.  To misquote Noel Gallagher, no hip hop at Glastonbury please.  Snoop Dogg exacerbated this with a cuss filled set of his at best mediocre career.  It comes to something when you’re biggest success on stage is ‘Jump Around,’ by Cypress Hill, not even your song Snoop.  Before Snoop we were asked to sit through Willie Nelson and his out of tune ramblings. I’m sorry it may not be cool to say this but he was absolutely awful. Then before him, a earth shatteringly boring set from Corinne Bailey Rae.  I like eclectic, but good eclectic not bad eclectic which is the equivalent of listening and I say listening to paint dry.  Again perhaps a little unkind on the beautiful Corinne and her present situation (husband dieing of an overdose), but the show was dire. 

Rather than waste my time on all the other stages I suggest you have a browse at the festival’s music and tell me where British Indie music is going to and is this the thin end of a very small wedge?  Which brings me to my biggest bug bear of the weekend.  Florence and The Machine.  Why in the name of all things reasonable is this woman a pop star?  She can’t sing,  she wails out of tune and her music is completely uninspirational.  Kate Bush would be spinning in her grave…what?….oh sorry she’s not dead is she? Well I’m sorry my love but ethereal and fantastic are Ms. Bush’ domain. You really are not worthy to tie Kate’s red ballet shoes.  Dismissed. 

Florence - the picture says it all

And so I finish this review partly because I can’t be bothered writing any more and partly because I am very disappointed in the direction of where music, both live and recorded, are going at the moment.  Everything seems…well so predictable.  I long to be inspired by music again.  I long to remember the day when I first heard Joy Division,  Echo and the Bunnymen, The Teardrop Explodes, The Smiths, Happy Mondays and The Stone Roses.  This was cutting edge stuff.  The real Cool Britannia not the tepid, fame seeking wannabees we seem to be breeding now. I long to hear something radical, something exciting, new and fresh.  Tony Wilson died nearly three years ago and let us hope and pray that the British music scene didn’t die with him. Hot Chip….My arse.

A Day in the Life – On this day………

Wednesday June 14th 1967

On this day in 1967 The Beatles started to record what was to become the song that most embodied the summer of 1967, ‘All you Need is Love.’ 

On the 18^th of May 1967 it was announced that the Beatles had agreed to be one of the two British representatives in a television programme set for live world-wide broadcast during the evening (UK time) of Sunday 25^th June, the first ever global satellite link up. They had agreed to be shown in the studio, recording a song composed especially for the occasion.

The first 33 takes of ‘All you Need is love’ – the basic rhythm track and a little vocal work – were taped between 10.30pm and 3.00am this night at the Olympic Studio in Barnes, with George Martin producing and Eddie Kramer as balance engineer.    

In his book,’ Revolution in the Head,’ Ian MacDonald discusses the structure and the substance of  the song.  He mentions that it is ,’One of the Beatles less deserving hits,’ and believes that The Beatles were ,’now doing substandard work: paying little attention to musical values and settling for lyric, first thoughts on the principle that everything no matter how haphazard, meant something and if it didn’t- so what?’ He argues that their attention to detail so evident during the recording of ‘Sergeant Pepper,’ had most evidently been left behind in the recording of this song.  His criticism of the song continues when he mentions,’drug sodden laziness,’ and that the song represented, ‘the rot setting in.’ 

Whilst MacDonald’s review is interesting what he fails to mention is that this song was written primarily for the satellite link up and also that it was a representation of all the philosophical good feeling that flower power and the sixties embodied.  The phrase, ’All you need is Love,’ has become an iconic statement representing a global acknowledgement of almost religious significance.  In post Christian western society the song symbolises a humanistic hymn to positivity and love.  In my opinion Lennon’s lyrics are cleverly ambivalent creating the desired atmosphere of celebration and optimism that the recording was attempting to achieve.  Certainly the carnival atmosphere in Studio One, Abbey Road, on the 25^th of June is evident when The Beatles revealed the song to a global audience.  See below. 

Whilst it certainly could be argued that after Sergeant Pepper the Beatles lost the discipline and harmony that they achieved during this ground breaking album, there can be no doubt that the Beatles still produced revolutionary recordings to follow. Not long after John Lennon and The Beatles recorded the superb ‘I am a Walrus‘ another wonderful contribution to the psychedelic canon that was changing music on a day by day basis in the late 1960’s.  1968 brought us the incredibly diverse album ‘The Beatles’ better known as ‘The White Album’ and whilst the discipline and ‘laziness’ in the studio was definitely palpable the Beatles still continued to record records that are still part of our culture some 40 odd years later.  Judge for yourselves.

High Fidelity Corner – With Mark Ellen, Editor of The Word Magazine

Here’s my new feature.  It’s called ‘High Fidelity Corner,’ based on the novel by Nick Hornby in which the chief protagonist Rob Fleming uses his Generation X habit of making Top 5 lists to explain the breakup of his relationships, his favourite records, his favourite films, his five dream jobs etc., etc.  The feature will therefore be asking people who I know as well as people I admire what are their Top 5 favourite

• Songs
• Albums
• Gigs Attended
• Films

To start the feature off with an incredibly large bang I have contacted the editor of ‘The Word’ magazine Mark Ellen and asked him to provide me with his answers to the above.  He has very kindly responded.

Mark Ellen is the Editor of Word Magazine. He has written for the Record Mirror, the NME and Time Out before signing up as Features Editor of Smash Hits in 1981. He became editor in 1983, then edited the first 52 issues of Q Magazine from 1986, the first 15 editions of the revamped Select, and was then the launch managing editor of MOJO. He was the Editor in Chief of EMAP Metro and has won the PPA’s Magazine of the Year award for Q Magazine as well as the Mark Boxer Award in 2003 and the Editors Editor Award in 2005.

His broadcast experience includes long periods as writer/presenter at BBC’s Old Grey Whistle Test and VH1’s Talk Music and he’s now a contributor to Radios 2 and 4. He was one of the presenters of Live Aid in 1985. His journalism can be found in Marie Claire, Saga, the Financial Times, The Observer, GQ, Radio Times and the New Statesman.  The Word Magazine, under his tenure has won the ,‘Music Magazine of the Year Award’ in 2007 and 2008.  He is in short at the vanguard of music journalism, a man whose musical knowledge spans from the 1960’s to the present and a thoroughly decent bloke.

So what answers did Mark give, remembering that this man has seen thousands of gigs, listened and reviewed hundreds and thousands of records and watched a plethora of films during his succesful journalistic career.  The answers are really interesting and probably as expected extremely eclectic considering his vast experience. As Mark said in our correspondence, ‘These are my favourites today but tomorrow they’d be different.’

 

Top 5 favourite songs of all time

Oops (Oh My) by Tweet

Baltimore by Randy Newman

Heart Like A Wheel by Kate & Anna McGarrigle

Feel Good Inc by Gorillaz

Me And My Uncle by The Grateful Dead

5 favourite albums of all time

Moondog Matinee by The Band

The Hazards Of Love by The Decemberists

Musketeer by Larsen B

Flat Baroque And Berserk by Roy Harper

CB 200 by Dillinger

 5 favourite gigs attended

Gorillaz at the Roundhouse 2010

Bob Marley & The Wailers at Crystal Palace 1980

Little Feat somewhere in Victoria 1975

Bruce Springsteen & The E Street Band at Glastonbury 2009

Chemical Brothers at the Roundhouse 2010

5 favourite films

Some Like It Hot

Waiting For Guffman

Fargo

Anchorman

The Italian Job

Mark Ellen on the left, John Simms, middle and David Hepworth, right

So as expected a real mix, particularly in his music taste, from R&B, Hip hop, traditional folk, to obscure dub and indie.  It is interesting that Gorillaz feature a couple of times in his choice with,’Feel Good Inc.’ and their recent appearance at the Roundhouse in London, a band that virtually epitomises the word eclectic.  It is also relevant, although not totally suprising, that there are references to his passion for 1970’s music with the album choices of Roy Harper, The Band, Little Feat, Bruce Springsteen and Randy Newman.  As the Editor of a music magazine it is also no suprise that he has to keep his ears and eyes attuned to the latest sounds so the inclusion of The Decemberists, Larsen B and Tweet are also interesting selections.

Mark’s choice of gigs is also fascinating and it has to be said an envious list.  The gig that sticks out for me is Bob Marley and the Wailers at Crystal Palace in 1980 a band that at this time must have been at their zenith.

Having read accounts of the gig on the internet it must have been an amazing experiennce seeing Marley and his band at the top of their game just before he discovered his illness.  It also seems The Roundhouse is a venue that has recently been revamped and has subsequently inspired Ellen to enjoy both The Chemical Brothers and Gorillaz.  Springsteen’s Glastonbury gig in 2009 is also mentioned and it would be interesting to ask Mark why this Springsteen gig, has he been to any others and why this particular one stands out? Which could further lead on to discussions about venue, atmosphere, circumstance and reasons for attending. 

Looking through Mark’s choices has been a really interesting and educational experience.  I have listened to Tweet for the first time, Randy Newman’s ‘Baltimore’, Larsen B and Dillinger.  It is the first time I have heard Little Feat but having fired up Spotify I really have enjoyed some of their stuff and will explore further.

If you have ever had the pleasure of listening to ‘The Word,’ podcast (www.wordmagazine.co.uk/podcast or subscribe on itunes), you will have enjoyed Ellen’s joyous and witty humour with his real sense of the absurd.  This also reflects in the choice of some of his films such as,’Some Like it Hot,”Fargo,’ and ‘Anchorman.’  I also have not seen,’Waiting for Guffman,’ which from it’s description looks like a must see and another funny film, which again would seem to reflect Mark Ellen’s personality.

The High Fidelity game is a great ice breaker at parties but as you can see your musical and film tastes can give a real pointer to who you are and how you tick. Mark Ellen’s eclectic and varied tastes reflect a man who has been at the cole face of modern music over the last thirty years.  This is not just a job however, it is also his raison d’etre and he is in the fortunate position of earning a living out of something he so palpably loves. He is, it has to be said, a lucky git, but a very cool one at that. 

I will be asking other media personalities their favourites in the months to come and if and when I get a response it will be interesting to see what their choices are.  In the meantime I may also ask some of you what your Top 5’s are so watch this space and it could be you.

Do you take Plastic? – Gorillaz play Glastonbury

I’ve always had great sympathy for people with back ache or back problems, I mean I’ve had them myself.  It ain’t big and it ain’t clever, BUT for once I am thankful to the the great rock Gods in the skies, who have decided to temporarily (hopefully), in Bono’s case ,to cause him to suffer the pains and arrows of outrageous backache, in order to give us the Gorillaz to headline Glastonbury on Friday night 2010.  

Bono gets a twinge

It’s not that I don’t appreciate and to some extent enjoy U2’s music and performance.  I’ve been to see them live and they were excellent, perhaps the best live act I’ve seen in the stadium rock genre,(although the Rolling Stones may have pipped them to the post). It’s just that I’m getting a bit sick of them.  

I know this statement will cause consternation amongst die hard U2 fans but I think I have a good case.  Their last album was certainly a disappointment, (with certainly the most boring front cover in the history of rock, see above). The music revealed a proficient rock group who had started to run out of ideas.  The hype surrounding ‘No Line in the Horizon,’ and the excessive and unnecessary publicity the album created was nauseous to say the least.  I think the public started to detect a self satisfied smugness from the group, and certainly Bono, that has begun to cause us to turn on them.  Nobody likes a big head. 

I was recently listening to The Word podcast on itunes and the same attitude enschewed.  No one wished Bono any harm but the overwhelming feeling from the rock press as a whole was that Bono has begun to nauseate people with his advice giving to less successful bands and that the Rock gods have intervened.www.wordmagazine.co.uk/podcast

Mark Ellen and David Hepworth put the Rock world to rights on The Word Podcast

And so we discover who have replaced the Irish supergroup, the wonderful and eclectic Gorillaz, who are a perfect replacement for Glastonbury and it’s 40th anniversary celebrations.  Check out this brilliant youtube clip which is promoting the Gorillaz’s recent O2 gig in London. 

Apparently Damon Albarn offered the Gorillaz’s services after he had heard the news about Bono.  It is no secret that he found Blur’s headlining experience a thoroughly enjoyable experience and all I can say is thank you Damon for volunteering.  I like the idea of the Gorillaz.  They are something new.  Not only is their music highly enjoyable and listenable but they also are an extremely clever invention, which allows Albarn to play at being in a rock band, without the hassle but with all the extras attached. 

Gorillaz are perfect for Glastonbury with their host of guest stars to call on.  Paul Simonon, Mick Jones, Shaun Ryder, Mos Def, Bobby Womack, Mark E Smith etc., etc., with maybe an appearance of Lou Reed.  I also like the idea of the cartoon group with Jamie Hewlettt’s clever take on a modern rock band based on the excesses of the Rolling Stones with Murdoc, 2D, Noodles and Russell.  It is an inspired concept and the inventiveness of the multilayered music also helps. Gorillaz, Demon Days, Plastic Beach all albums that deliver in different ways.

As mentioned I don’t wish Bono or U2 any ill.  Bono is a great reinventor of himself and maybe some of the critcism from this will allow the group to take stock and grow.  However, I am really looking forward to Gorillaz performance at Glastonbury.  If all goes well I think it will be a memorable night.

A Day in the Life – On this day…..

May 27^th 1966 – Lennon meets Dylan

On this day 1966 John Lennon filmed a sequence in the back of a limousine with Bob Dylan as part of Dylan’s largely unseen “Eat the Document,” documentary chronicling Dylan’s latest European concert tour which he had hired D.A. Pennebraker (who had directed Dylan’s groundbreaking documentary, ‘Don’t Look Back’, in 1965).

As you can see Dylan and John Lennon were filmed riding in the back of a chauffeured limousine, driving in to central London-to the Mayfair Hotel in Stratton Street- from John’s house in Weybridge Surrey. Unscripted and with no direction the piece was long, incomprehensible and somewhat self indulgent, probably because of Dylan being obviously high and both Lennon and Dylan unwilling to let the cool shutters down. 

Lennon is obviously less high than Dylan and seems to be tolerating Dylan.  Dylan announces that he felt ill and needed to puke.  There is little wonder the sequence was cut down in the original film and Pennebaker’s documentary only had a week screening at a small New York cinema in 1969. In the finished film the long sequence is thought to have been edited down to 2 or 3 minutes.

Whilst this is hardly an auspicious meeting of the two men.  It is still a document of two of the most influential artists of the sixties.  Lennon had obviously been influenced by Dylan with songs such as, “You’ve Got to Hide your Love Away,” and, “Help,” whereas Dylan was undoubtedly influenced by The Beatles and his move away from folk to his ‘electric period’.

Tate Modern, London

Tate Modern is now 10 years old and after having been to the gallery a number of times I am beginning to understand and like it.Perhaps the best way I can express it is that it is like Turkey stuffing at Christmas in the fact that it is something I am beginning to appreciate the more I try it,(bizarre simile I know but I could not think of anything  better).

My relationship with the gallery surrounds it’s structure, in the fact that it has always been a little unclear to me, and I thought that it was based on some artistic metaphor which only the few were allowed to understand and enter. A little like a very exclusive art movement that was letting you observe what they did but didn’t want to tell you all the secrets. However, after closer inspection there is a really clever sense of structure which really fits into the whole of the gallery, the structure of the building and what the collections are trying to achieve.

The first thing that definetely hits you is the sheer vasteness of the Turbine Hall, the space is overwhelming and something Tate Modern’s curators have used to startling effect with such installations as Olaffur Eliason’s,’The Weather Project,’ or Anish Kapoor’s, ‘Marsyas’.  The effect allowing visitors to appreciate modern art on a huge scale.

As a nation it has taken us some time to come to grips with modern art and this also reflects in the Tate’s attitude to buying modern art during the 20th century.  As such when the Tate Modern opened it had gaps in the collection that other countries such as France did not have.  Tate Modern has therefore developed a much more transient approach to it’s modern collection as it acquires and moves its pieces according to the themes it decides to show.  This in itself is a very modern approach to showing art and has moved away from the traditional chronological approach that most gallerys adopt.

The main themes of the gallery therefore look like this,

Level 3 – Material Gestures

This focuses on abstraction, expressionism and abstract expressionism featuring work by Claude Monet, Anish Kapoor, Barnett Newman, Mark Rothko, Henri Matisse and Tacita Dean.

Level 3 – Poetry and Dream

The displays in this wing are devoted to surrealism and works exploring themes and techniques closely associated with the surrealists. 

Level 5 – Energy and Process

This focuses on Arte Povera with work by artists such as Alighiero Boetti, Jannis Kounellis, Kasimir Malevich, Ana , Mario Merz and Jenny Holzer.

Level 5 – States of Flux

This focuses on Cubism, Futurism, Vorticism and Pop Art. containing work by artists such as  Pablo Picasso, Roy Lichenstein, Andy Warhol, and photographer Eugene Atget.

The success of Tate Modern is a simple process of seeing how many people have gone through the doors over the 10 year period and the visitor numbers of 5 million a year have shown Tate Modern to be the most popular modern art gallery in the world.  There is a real sense that the British have finally got the whole process of modern art and like most things we have had to catch up on, like cookery for instance, we are now competing at the top of the world. 

Twenty or even ten years ago we were a nation who scorned modernity.  I admit to this myself and still sometimes adopt Tom Stoppard’s observation,

“Skill without imagination is craftmanship and gives us many useful objects such as wickerwork picnic baskets. Imagination without skill gives us modern art.”

However, having said this, Charles Saatchi, the YBA’s (Young British Artists movement) and Tate Modern has brought the nation kicking and screaming into the twenty first century and we are a nation who can now embrace modern art into our pysche and culture.

Happy Birthday Tate Modern.

Enron, Noel Coward Theatre, London

Whilst in London I had a number of choices of plays that I could see, the one that polarised my decision making was Enron.  Enron has been deemed as a huge success and keeps cropping up in various newspapers and magazines as the play to see, with lofty banner headings such as,

“Funny, inventive, exhilarating, entertaining. Not to be missed.” (The Times)

“It’s the gold standard show – that everyone wants to buy into.” (Time Out)

“This perfect gem is right on the money.” (The Observer)

“This will send the west end’s stock rocketing high.” (The Evening Standard)

So, on the face of it a must see event which has excellent reviews.  However, there were a couple of things which I was unhappy with.  The first was the subject matter.  In the current recession ravaged environment did I really want to see a play about the rise and spectacular fall of an American organisation in the 1990’s? My second misgiving was that I had mistakenly thought that the production was primarily a musical and therefore did I want to see a musical about the rise and spectacular fall etc., etc. However, the reviews and the feedback I had got from various sources persuaded me, if not a little reluctantly, to try it. 

Having made my decision and having seen the play, the hype, for once really did live up to its promise.  Lucy Prebble’s writing with the combination of Rupert Goold’s expert direction make this play an era defining experience.  The stagecraft of the production uses dance, music, technology and an ensemble of gifted performers to create the mood and atmosphere of the corporate disaster that was Enron.  The story of Enron is also a microcosmic glimpse into the unregulated running of a company, controlled by greed, which ultimately had a catastrophic effect on thousands of people’s lives. 

The play shows how the Texan energy giant, Enron, moved from a gold standard top 50 company to a bankrupt disaster with debts of $38bn. Chief instigator is Jeffrey Skilling: a charasmatic, ambitious and ultimately disillusioned leader who boldly announces,

 “We’re not just an energy company, we’re a powerhouse for ideas”.

His basic idea is to trade in energy as well as supply it. But, as his dreams expand to include video, internet and even the weather, the gap between stockmarket perception and reality grows ever greater. As profits fail to materialise, Skilling turns to his sidekick, Andy Fastow, to create shadow companies to conceal mounting debts. Once the market loses confidence, Skilling’s schemes are revealed for what they are: a fraudulent fantasy. Twenty one thousand staff in Huston, Texas were given $4,500 severance pay and 30 minutes to clear their desks after Kenneth Lay, the chairman, Skilling, the chief exec and other execs had urged Enron staff to invest their pensions in the stock of the company.  This house of cards was bound to fall and fall it did, dramatically.

The subject matter could therefore be deemed as a little dry but Prebble and Goold provide a combination of clever writing and expert direction to capture the universal themes of greed, avarice, vanity and incompetence. The shows energy and movement is a combination of excellent use of dance and stagecraft which contributes to the feeling of frenetic activity which is evident before the spectacular fall. 

There are a number of clever touches which includes the dubious contributios of the Lehman Brothers and Arthur Andersen accountants who ultimately became victims as a result of their associations.  Apart from a few questionable southern American accents the acting is superb with a particular mention to Samuel West as Skilling, Tim Piggot-Smith as Kenneth Lay, Tom Goodman-Hill as Andy Farlow and Amanda Drew as Claudia Rose.

I cannot really give the play justice, all I can say is it was not a traditional musical, but music and dance were included in the play, it was not boring, it was invigorating and thought provoking and ultimately left me wiser and more informed about the corporate world and man’s potential for greed.  Certainly not a con and well worth the time and money spent.

A Day in the Life – On this day……

For all you Beatles fans out there I will be starting a new feature called ‘A Day in the Life – On this day…’ , which will look at what The Beatles were doing during their career together, on that particular day.  So if say for instance the day I post the blog is the 12th May the selection may come from the 12th of May from any period from 1957-1970. 

So for instance on this day 12th may 1967, The Beatles were at Studio 2, EMI studios, Abbey Road recording ‘All Together Now,’ for the ‘Yellow Submarine,’ soundtrack. Depending on what they were doing I may even give a synopsis of the song they were recording or a gig they were playing etc. 

Again please feel free to contribute I know there are some crazy Beatles fans out there. I may be a Beatle geek but I know there are some who are even worse.  I have no problems with a bit of correction.  Ooooooh Matron!

The Habit of Art, Lyttleton, The National Theatre

Michael Billington’s review of ‘The Habit of Art,’ gives us a great insight into this new work by Alan Bennett.  As he says, the play does not have the ‘universal resonance,’ of ‘The History Boys,’ but for a play within a play based on the dotage of WH Auden and Benjamin Britten and their artistic challenges at this late stage in life, it is doused with the wit and humanity of Bennett and has become an unlikely smash hit at the Lyttleton at the National theatre. 

Here is a short preview of the play for NT Live on youtube where they have put a series of plays on youtube live.  The Habit of Art has already been on the site but it gives you a feel for the play.

Leo Benedictus’ piece in the Guardian also mentions the unlikely success of the subject matter,

‘I’m no Cameron Mackintosh, but a blockbuster play about rehearsals for a play about the old age of Benjamin Britten and WH Auden? It doesn’t quite ring up pound signs across my eyeballs.’

Smash hit however it is and this is down to the cleverness of Bennett’s writing, showing the frailties of the artist in later life, the curmudgeonly baseness of Auden and the fragile ego of Britten mixed with the petty goings on of the actors who play the parts in rehearsal.

Richard Griffiths although not physically resembling Auden brings his superb comic timing to the play; Alex Jennings plays the anal and prissy Britten excellently with superb performances by Frances De La Tour and Adrian Scarborough as the world weary stage manager and the pained writer.

Interestingly, the part of Auden/Fitz was to be played by Michael Gambon who probably resembles Auden closer. Due to ill health he pulled out.  It would have been interesting to see what Gambon brought to the play. However, Griffiths’ still pulls the part off superbly giving his slant on the actor in rehearsal and the poet in old age.

As expected from a Bennett play it is full of wit and cleverness and well worth a visit.  The only criticism I would have is that it ended with a whimper rather than a bang.  I think the ending where the stage manager turns off the lights at the end of the rehearsal lacked a crescendo and a natural arc, which probably points out that we were most interested in the play within the play rather than being able to fully identify with the rehearsals and the actors within it.  A tricky one to pull off, but overall the production works well. 

Please read Michael Billington and Leo Benedictus’ reviews in The Guardian as mentioned above.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/stage/2009/nov/18/alan-bennett-the-habit-of-art

http://www.guardian.co.uk/culture/2009/nov/18/alan-bennett-habit-of-art-reviews