Production – The Orbital

5Mar

By Emma CurrieNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

Wherefore Art Thou, Shakespeare Society

Shakespeare Society’s second term production of Romeo and Juliet was a pleasurable way to spend a Monday night. Set against the backdrop of the Irish Troubles, the play – conceptualised by Matt Bird and assistant directed by George Collins – brought to life Shakespeare’s famous love story. Niamh Smith and Sophie Barton played the eponymous couple, Smith acting with sensitivity and power throughout, notably in the tender reunion scene between the pair. The take on their love was deliberately sweet and chaste – not quite to my liking as it lacked some of the desperate irrational passion that drives them to their eventual deaths – however, they captured the youthful innocence of their love. Some of these tender moments sadly were swallowed up by the sound void that is the SU. Special ment...

13Dec

By Insiyah AdamjeeNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

When The Clock Strikes 00:00

Engaging, thought-provoking and transparent are some of the adjectives that come to mind thinking back on the brilliant performance at The Packhorse, ‘00:00’, a play put on from the 7th to the 9th of December by ‘from (a)basement theatre collective’. The plot involves an exploration into the lives of employees of the Network Rail and is a conversation starter for tough and heavy topics such as mental health, suicide and social conventions. The small cast of four manage to tackle these serious and controversial topics in an empathetic yet frank way, unapologetically showing the audience the truth of the lives and struggles of those who run the behind-the-scenes of England’s Rail system. The cast are not given names, but instead letters of the alphabet, which further reiterates how unreco...

5Mar

By Michele TheilNo Comments

Culture & Literature, Theatre & Performance

An evening with the King himself

Having never seen a Shakespeare Society production before, I was unsure of what to expect of Director Bethany Wilkinson’s adaptation of the infamous tragedy, King Lear. King Lear is one of my favourite plays in the world and, being quite a traditionalist with regards to Shakespeare plays, I hoped that the play would do it justice. In some ways, it definitely did. In others, it did not. Before the play officially starts, as audience members file in, the play has clearly already started, introducing us to Lear from the beginning. Jack Davies as King Lear, epitomises the idea of a ‘mad King’ by trailing around the hall, mumbling nonsense and cackling maniacally. He moves into audience members’ personal space, balling up paper and throwing it at key targets - me included. He is mad, obvious...

The Hustle and Bustle of a London Intern

2Jun

By No Comments

Lifestyle

The Hustle and Bustle of a London Intern

Spending two weeks away from egg-sized Egham to intern at a production company in London was the push I needed to dabble in the ‘real world’. I jumped out of bed on my first day as the alarm went off at 6:30am. I knew being late wasn’t going to cut it! Now, what was I going to wear to work? How casual is ‘casual attire’? I ended up going with a black and white striped shirt and black jeans and hoped for the best. Turns out casual attire is actually pretty casual… phew. I was given a laptop and a place at a desk straight away, really not knowing what to expect. It was my first time working in an office. I was asked to watch last year’s Victoria’s Secret Swim Special that they produced and come up with ideas for the next one – awesome. Then I was asked to do research on the new ...