Issue 3, 2007
Prompt Corner
We always say bad news comes in threes, but what a three...
Ian Richardson, 07.04.1934-09.02.2007, will be best remembered as a television actor - in Porterhouse Blue, Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy, Private Schulz, Bleak House, most recently as the voice of Death in Terry Pratchett's Hogfather, but above all as Francis Urquhart in the screen adaptations of Michael Dobbs' House Of Cards (1990) and its two sequels. However, he was an honorary associate artist of the Royal Shakespeare Company, for whom he played a variety of roles culminating in Richard II for John Barton in 1973 and Richard Ill in the newly opened The Other Place in 1975. He was most recently seen on stage in the National Theatre's production of The Alchemist which ran until November last year.
Steven Pimlott, 18.04.1953-14.02.2007, had just begun work on the Rose Tattoo for the National Theatre. The production will be taken over by Nicholas Hytner, who had known Pimlott and admired his work since they were both pupils at Manchester Grammar School. Pimlott worked extensively as a director of plays (from Murder In The Cathedral to And Then There Were None, including three plays by Phyllis Nagy), opera (Eugene Onegin, The Coronation Of Poppaea and Raymond Gubbay's 2004 Savoy Theatre Opera project) and musicals (Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Doctor Dolittle, Bombay Dreams). He was an associate director at the RSC, and from 2003 to 2005 ran Chichester Festival Theatre in a triumvirate with Ruth Mackenzie and Martin Duncan.
Sheridan Morley, 05.12.1941-16.02.2007, scarcely broke his stride after suffering a serious stroke a few years ago: he continued to write and broadcast on the arts for the BBC and as theatre critic of the Daily Express until the end of last year. He had also been a regular reviewer at various times and of various art forms for The Times, International Herald Tribune, Punch, the Spectator, the New Statesman and London Weekend Television, among many others. His books included biographies of his father Robert Morley and godfather Noël Coward as well as the official biography of John Gielgud. He devised and directed several theatrical and musical revues, and was above all an inexhaustible fund of anecdotes both illuminating and entertaining.
I hope and pray that I never have to write such another page as this.
Ian Shuttleworth | ian@theatrerecord.com
At the Back
No "At the Back" this issue
Contents / Reviews
London |
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BEATRIX POTTERS JEMIMA PUDDLE-DUCK AND HER FRIENDS Revival of Adrian Mitchell adaptation |
Unicorn |
11 Feb |
22 Apr |
140 |
THE DUMB WAITER Revival of play by Harold Pinter |
Trafalgar Studio 1 |
8 Feb |
24 Mar |
141 |
FANNY AND FAGGOT New play by Jack Thome |
Finborough |
1 Feb |
17 Feb |
120 |
GONE TOO FAR! New play by Bola Agbaje |
Royal Court Upstairs |
6 Feb |
17 Feb |
130 |
THE HARDER THEY COME Return of play by Perry Henzell, based on his film |
T R Stratford E15 |
7 Feb |
1 Mar |
120 |
JUMP New piece written by Chul-Ki Choi |
Peacock |
7 Feb |
14 Apr |
139 |
MACBETH - THE PROLOGUE New piece based on the play by Shakespeare |
(Dakh Ctr for Contemp. Arts) Pit |
31 Jan |
10 Feb |
114 |
THE MAN OF MODE Revival of play by George Etherege (NT) |
Olivier |
6 Feb |
10 Mar |
132 |
MISS JULIE Revival of play by August Strindberg |
Pentameters |
30 Jan |
17 Feb |
131 |
A MODEL GIRL New musical by Richard Alexander and Marek Rymaszewski |
Greenwich |
2 Feb |
24 Feb |
122 |
MORTIMER'S MISCELLANY Return of show by John Mortimer |
King's Head |
6 Feb |
27 Feb |
129 |
NOTHING BUT THE TRUTH New play by John Kani |
Hampstead |
5 Feb |
24 Feb |
127 |
AN OAK TREE New play by Tim Crouch |
Soho |
8 Feb |
4 Mar |
147 |
PEER GYNT Revival of play by Henrik Ibsen in translation by Terje Tveit (Dale Teater Kompani) |
Hackney Empire, Acorn |
29 Jan |
24 Feb |
115 |
PINTER'S PEOPLE Compilation of sketches by Harold Pinter |
T R Haymarket |
1 Feb |
23 Feb |
116 |
THE PLAYACTOR New play by David Hauptschein (Secret Life Th) |
Old Red Lion |
9 Feb |
3 Mar |
149 |
THE POLICE Revival of play by Slawomir Mrozek |
BAC |
7 Feb |
18 Feb |
148 |
RIPPER - THE MUSICAL New musical by Gerry Ware |
Actors' Church |
5 Feb |
10 Feb |
149 |
RURAL New play by Kenny Emson (Box Of Tricks) |
White Bear |
1 Feb |
18 Feb |
131 |
SAMMY!: A WORD THAT BROKE AN EMPIRE New play by Partap Sharma (Primetime TC) |
Watermans |
6 Feb |
18 Feb |
140 |
SIT AND SHIVER Return of new play by Steven Berkoff |
Hackney Empire |
29 Jan |
18 Feb |
112 |
STACY New play by Jack Thorne |
Arcola |
7 Feb |
24 Feb |
121 |
TUESDAYS! Return of dramatic serial by Adam Riches |
Albany W1 |
29 Jan |
6 Mar |
149 |
TYPO New piece devised by Liam Jarvis, Ria Parry & Ceri Tumbull (Theatre Trash) |
Tristan Bates |
6 Feb |
24 Feb |
140 |
THE WAR NEXT DOOR New play by Tamsin Oglesby |
Tricycle |
6 Feb |
3 Mar |
137 |
Regions |
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AS YOU LIKE IT Revival of play by Shakespeare |
Sheffield, Crucible |
7 feb |
24 Feb |
153 |
GHOSTS Revival of play by Henrik Ibsen in new adaptation by Frank McGuinness |
Bristol Old Vic |
30 Jan |
17 Feb |
150 |
THE LITTLE FOXES Revival of play by Lillian Hellman |
Perth |
2 Feb |
17 Feb |
156 |
MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING Revival of play by Shakespeare |
Belfast, Lyric |
31 Jan |
24 Feb |
155 |
OTHELLO Revival of play by Shakespeare |
Bristol, Tobacco Factory |
9 Feb |
17 Mar |
155 |
OUR COUNTRY'S GOOD Revival of play by Timberlake Wertenbaker |
Liverpool Playhouse |
6 Feb |
24 Feb |
156 |
RISK New play by John Retallack (Macrobert I Company Of Angels / Y Dance) |
Glasgow, Tron / touring |
8 Feb |
10 Feb |
157 |
TWELFTH NIGHT Revival of play by Shakespeare |
Northampton, Royal |
30 Jan |
17 Feb |
152 |
THE WEDDING DANCE New musical by Felix Cross (Nitro) |
Bolton, Octagon |
2 Feb |
3 Mar |
152 |