Category Archives: General

Emperor and Galilean at The National, Olivier Theatre

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You probably haven’t heard of the play ‘Emperor and Galilean’… I hadn’t before I booked tickets a few months ago. This epic historical drama by Henrik Ibsen was written between 1868 and 1873 and was described by the playwright as his most important work, and yet very little is known of it. In fact the National are the first to take on the brave task of staging it in English.

The play instantly poses many tricky challenges: the original work comes in the form of two plays, consists of ten acts lasting over eight hours in total and the drama takes place over dozens of years and spans thousands of miles of land. The National commissioned Ben Power to write a new adaptation of the piece. Power overcomes all these tests in his engaging adaptation, condensing down Ibsen’s masterpiece into a more manageable three hour performance.

The drama follows the life of Julian, ruler of the Roman Empire from AD361-363. As the nephew of the Roman Emperor Constantius he is under constant restraints in Constantinople. An intelligent young man he is desperate to escape and explore, and when his older brother, Gallus is assigned the role of Caesar, Julian is free to go to Athens. Discovering the allure of worshipping ancient pagan gods, Julian leaves behind belief in Christianity, and consequently his devoted friends too. Personally he struggles constantly with the Christian-Pagan debate, seeking advice and approval fromthe elderly Maximus. Eventually he is crowned Emperor, abolishing Christianity in flavour of Paganism.

It certainly is a tour de force – a cast of over 50, and at least 10 scene changes it is quite a sight to behold. Jonathan Kent has done a brilliant job directing this play, presenting us with a performance that is fluid and imaginative and surprisingly easy to understand. In fact this version of ‘Emperor and Galilean’ is not even very Ibsen-esque, and I enjoyed it a great deal more than I expected to.

Andrew Scott takes on the vast role of Julian and is on stage almost non-stop for the whole performance. The emotional energy he brings to the role is impressive – he gives a passionate and intense depiction that is needed to make such a complex character convincing. Also admirable is his ability to transform and mature so effectively, growing from the pale scrawny teenager, to a great Emperor decades later. Brilliant too is the interaction between Julian and his three friends, his genuine anguish when he decides to leave them is terribly moving and affecting. There is strong support for Scott from the rest of the cast: Nabil Shaban as the cruel Emperor Constantius, and Ian McDiarmid as a menacingly persuasive Maximus. John Heffernan as Peter and Jamie Ballard as Gregory both provided some light against Andrew Scott’s shade, as two kind but feeble friends of Julian. Not every actor was to my taste though. James McArdle was irritatingly limp and monotone as preacher Agathon and Genevieve O’Reilly was ridiculous as Helena, the quiet girl who, after eating a poisoned peach, rips her clothes off and wriths insanely across the stage.

It is a deeply poignant play, and Power’s version only emphasises this more, highlighting the powerful man’s struggle with himself and his beliefs. A few stunning performances and some awesome visuals create an overwhelming performance that deserves a large round of applause at final curtain call – certainly more than my audience gave it, who pathetically seemed to be half asleep by the end.

Emperor and Galilean continues until 10 August 2011, book here.

Devil’s Festival at The Print Room

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After a successful first year The Print Room present to you The Devil’s Festival, an eclectic mix of dance, music, theatre and art projects. This two week summer bonanza brings together all aspects of the creative world in some exciting contemporary pieces, celebrating the inspiring new work of talented young artists, choreographers, and performers. I went along to the final invited dress rehearsal to check it out before anyone else.

It was pouring with rain, and visitors to the Print Room were huddled in their tiny foyer pleased to be somewhere dry. First up in the rehearsal was the dance piece, ‘Kanaval’ choreographed by Hubert Essakow. The routine is inspired by the photographs of Leah Gordon and the film The Devine Horsemen, some of which are on display elsewhere in The Print Room vicinity. It is performed by Benny Maslov, Benjamin Ord, Hannah Rudd and Fukiko Takase and is the longest of the four featured festival pieces. There is something instantly aggressive about the movement and gestures we are watching, the dancers are almost animalistic. It is striking and in some places quite harrowing to watch such force, but I found it moving and gripping, and was hugely impressed with the dancers’ unfaltering stamina.

The next two plays were’Swan Song’ by Anton Chekhov and ‘Fewer Emergencies’ by Martin Crimp. The Chekhov piece is only 18 minutes long, and the playwright claimed to have written it in just one hour and five minutes. The play shows a brief encounter with aging actor, Svetlovidov and is pretty much a monologue, an afterthought of his life in the theatre and his love of the stage. Malcolm Rennie gives a stunning performance as Svetlovidov, nuanced and believable and carefully thought through. Despite its brief length it felt like we were being given a real insight into this characters life.

The second dramatic piece is a short play from trendy and fiercely modern playwright Martin Crimp. Don’t expect to understand it, I couldn’t, we listen to bursts of conversation excerpts that are entirely abstract and bizarre. The acting here is impressive too, with particularly convincing performances from the two girls Emma Dallow and Nicola Harrison.

Finally we are treated to Petra Jean Philipson’s incredible sound and light installation. While we wait in the foyer a huge white tent is put up in the theatre, filled entirely with white fluffy pillows. We are invited inside, but not until we have slipped into more appropriate outfits: all in one white paper boiler suits complete with hoods and booties! After everyone stopped giggling and got over the novelty of the idea it was quiet and contemplative in the tent. ‘Of the things we do not see’ is an experience that is supposed to heal your body using creative stimuli. Amazing Mongolian singing and music sooths you gently and the vibrations melt peacefully into your body. It is an amazing concept and the 20 minutes of meditation were not enough for me, I soon fell asleep and would have been quite happy to spend the night in this wonderfully calm structure.

The Festival is on now, for two weeks until Saturday 2 July. Only on Saturdays will all four pieces be available to see, on weekday nights the shows will alternate, each pair showing every other night, book here.

Hot on the Highstreet Week 57

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This Monday, with the sales well under way I thought I’d indulge in showing you all a few of my favourite designer buys, all of which have mercifully slashed prices. Working very close to Harvey Nichols, Harrods and Selfridges, the sales are an inevitably tempting time for me. Lunchtimes are spent pining after reduced garments, debating and trying to justify how and if I should buy those (usually unattainable) items.
Of my many favourites, here are my top five:
Marlene Birger leather waistcoast: Danish designer Marlene Birger takes inspiration from the classic styles of the 50’s and 60’s for her timeless, elegant and easy-to-wear designs. The waistcoat, pictured above, is now selling in certain retailers for a snip of the full price. This gorgeous, sleeveless, studded jacket is an absolute steal and will last you forever – only improving with wear. I bought the last one in Harvey Nichols, with a few studs missing – they sold it with a staggering 70% off. Buy online on the M.B website here for £389, originally £635.
T by Alexander Wang collection: if you haven’t checked out the Outnet website yet I would urge you to. Their selection of designer clothes and accessories are permanently discounted – mostly half price but often you can find a very reasonable 70 % off bargain! T by Alexander Wang is the fabulous diffusion line devoted to the ‘model off duty’ look, with relaxed tees and slouchy urban style jackets and trousers. It is cheaper and more comfortable than Wang’s main collection. I love the zip-up hoodies and thin racer back tops – they dress down an outfit and are very snug.
Tibi silk outfits: another point to the outnet for their variety of Tibi clothes. Tibi is a New York based designer that focusses on bright colours and vibrant prints. I particularly love the lemon yellow carnival silk shorts, loose and soft for the summer, but with a vital injection of colour, they are now reduced to £82.50 from £165, but here.
Paul Smith ties: thanks to Liberty’s colourful flowery prints, it is now cool for guys to wear feminine patterns… and where better to adopt this look than Paul Smith, the eccentric menswear icon. Last season’s beauties can be found at many department stores as well as the P.S outlets, with some ties selling at half the original £75 pricetag. The perfect gift to give your man a little bit of flower power. Buy in store at Harvey Nichols.
Missoni for Havaianas flip-flops: always fancied yourself a striped piece of Missoni but never had the cash? Your luck might be about to change…Missoni have teamed up with the popular flip flop company Havaianas to create a few pairs of must have summer sandals in wacky techicoloured prints… I am desperate for a pair. There are not in the sale, but at £45-60 I doubt you’ll find Missoni anywhere else cheaper. Buy on Net-a-porter here.
Resist the temptation of designer all season so that you can reward yourself in the sales. I think these items and designers are worth investing in.