Category: theatre

The River “is a much anticipated return to London’s Royal Court theatre next month for Butterworth after his triumph with Jerusalem, but some fans have been infuriated by the theatre’s decision to sell tickets only on the day of the performance.” What will scalpers do? Get paid to queue up, of course.

“Producer David Cecil – who faces up to two years in jail if found guilty – was charged Thursday with two counts including one of ‘disobeying lawful orders’.” He was jailed last Thursday and released on bail Monday. “The groundbreaking play – titled The River and The Mountain – was performed at several venues around Kampala last month despite an injunction by Uganda’s government-run media council.”

“Box office takings have more than doubled to £18.1 million from £8.3 million in 2010/11, when the company had reduced operations due to the refurbishment of the Royal Shakespeare and Swan Theatres. Its audience almost doubled between the two seasons – up to 708,022 people in 2011/12. Percentage capacity remained static at 89%.”

“I have a secret; I’ve started to doubt that dramaturgy is a job.”

Lyn Gardner: “One of the advantages of the brochure is that it lays out everything that is available, including the shows and events you didn’t know you were interested in until you started browsing. An online brochure not only involves lots of scrolling, but requires you to actively click. It makes it easier to stick to what you know.”

“The Pasadena Playhouse, which survived a recent bankruptcy, is going into its new season flush with a massive infusion of cash and planning to expand its production calendar.”

“Following the financial and critical success of their London-to-Broadway productions of War Horse and One Man, Two Guvnors, executives at the National Theater of Great Britain announced on Thursday that they are opening their first office in New York next month to oversee future shows and deepen relationships with theaters and donors in the United States.”

“Sheldon Epps has renewed his contract as artistic director of the Pasadena Playhouse, and Elizabeth Doran will join him as its new executive director … Epps has led the company since 1997 and helped see it through the 2010 financial crisis in which the playhouse closed for eight months, then emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.”

Outgoing artistic director Michael Boyd “inherited a debt of £3 million, and a company that was so near to collapse that people were suggesting it should be merged with the National Theatre. But he has restored its reputation, taken it to a rebuilt home with a wonderful auditorium, and raised its profile worldwide. Under his directorship, the RSC has become once more a glory of British theatre.”

The Bristol Old Vic, “which in 2007 suffered a period of closure and a threat to funding, officially reopens this week after a year and a half’s makeover. As well-loved by architectural historians as by British actors, it has given up some surprisingly subversive secrets.”