In retrospect, we look naïve. The afternoon of Friday 13 March 2020, I was signing a deal with a regional theatre. That evening, I welcomed a packed press night audience to Jermyn Street Theatre, the West End studio which I run, to see
The Tempest, starring Michael Pennington as Prospero. By Saturday, as France slid into lockdown, I was rethinking my planned Parisian getaway, and our reviews for
The Tempest were coming out.
Sunday saw plans made and remade at breakneck speed, leading up to the now infamous moment on Monday, a couple of hours before curtain-up, when the prime minister advised the public not to go to theatres - invalidating insurance at a stroke. We performed to sixteen people that night. The next day, we crept back into an eerie West End to film and audio-record the production. That night, on an empty train home to Cambridge, I wondered when I would return to London. A fortnight? Six weeks? The answer was July. I also wondered how long it would be before an au
Culture Crawl 627 “All Sonnets All The Time”
Riverside Theatre is spending the month of April diving into the sonnet, a poetry form most identified with Shakespeare, but that still is in use today. Artistic Director Adam Knight says the virtual production of “Sonnets From An Old Century,” Available to watch April 16-25, is the most complex thing Riverside has ever attempted, as the play takes place in a 3-dimensional virtual space that in real life would be nearly the size of a football field!
Also taking place is “The Sonnet Project,” a collection of in-person events taking place in a variety of locations throughout the month.
Staging a new season
Hancher Auditorium in Iowa City is streaming the Jazz at Lincoln Center lecture series, “United We Swing: Jazz and American History.” The series begins March 24 with Louis Armstrong and the Explosion of Swing, and continues with a different topic each Wednesday through April 28, tracing the history of jazz and the ways it intertwines with democracy. (Photo courtesy of Hancher Auditorium) The Gazette
Just as spring brings a mix of sunshine and showers, area arts presenters are bringing a mix of in-person and online events to usher in the season. Here are some of the upcoming ways they’re continuing to connect with viewers at home and afar.