All went fine until I got to Stratford Station - now, I'm used to coming off the Jubilee Line here, so it confused me to come off the Central Line, and I didn't know which way to turn. Note to self - in future, take the "Town" exit, not the "Westfield" one.. anyway, when I eventually emerged, I coaxed some help from my rapidly dying phone, and figured it out. Did waste a few minutes, though.
Collected my ticket, and headed to the bar - where the organiser was sat, all on his lonesome, where he had been for the past 45 minutes or so, poor chap. Well, another joined us after a bit, and we eventually went in. He hadn't been in this theatre before, and we remarked what a beautiful theatre it is, and in what good condition - and remember, no government funding. I also noted that I've only ever been in the Stalls, here:
Well now, I never heard of this before, but apparently it's been running for 15 years. It's a competition, the judges up in the Dress Circle, their ranks packed with agents and casting directors. The mc was an entertaining lady, making sure we enjoyed the evening - no fear, the audience was packed with friends and family of the performers. Indeed, I was deafened whenever someone known to the guy beside me was mentioned - the roar that he let out fair challenged my right eardrum.
Three rounds - the youth round, for under-18s, was started by the baby of the night, a 12-year-old. She was followed by older competitors, 16- and 17-year-olds, and the worthy winner - Alexander Uzoka - was announced before the interval. Next were the 1-minute rounds; a couple of competitors here had actually written their own pieces! and the mc made sure to give them a shout out. I do think it helped them to be more natural. The winner - Georgia Taylforth - runs her own theatre company, as it turns out. The last competitor of this section - Mia Lysandrou - might be a masterclass winner: but I know the Shakespearian piece she recited, and I felt that her presentation was technically good, but completely flat. As the results for the youth round were calculated, we were entertained by three members of Shoot from the Hip.
After the interval, the 3-minute round - the "heavyweights", as the mc called them. And now we were in for a treat, as they really got their chance to shine! The pieces were mostly dark in tone - again, we had people writing their own! Very impressive. Several strong contenders here - standouts included Amer Patel, Jordan Moore, Sophie Couch, and Taz Skylar, who gave a performance of great emotion. This time, as the results were calculated, we were entertained by a terrific "neo-soul" duo, fronted by Louise Golbey. Truly a delight to listen to. Back to the acting, and special mention went to the only middle-aged participant, Annabelle Lanyon, who gave a tender representation of a woman visiting her son in prison. The winner, however, in a tough field, was Georgia Frost, with a self-penned piece - who was, of course, also the overall winner.
Well, this was just a fantastic evening! Highly recommended, very entertaining, and such a terrific opportunity for up-and-coming actors, in what is a very tough profession! Look out for their Christmas show, when apparently the regional winners compete against each other.
On the way home - having cut through the shopping centre - experienced my first platform (in Stratford Station) where the train doors open on both sides, it being a single track! By the time I eventually got home, it was too late to blog - wouldn't normally matter, but they were filming in the office reception area this morning, and I wanted to get in before they started, so as not to have the office manager glaring at me. Tonight, Up in the Cheap Seats is at Sadler's Wells for a performance by Ballet British Colombia. Goodee, this one I can walk to. And, as it happens, last night's organiser is coming to this as well, on his own. Well, he's welcome to join us.
Tomorrow, Let's Do This is off to a jazz evening at Two Temple Place. Beautiful venue - should be a lovely evening.
On Thursday, Walking Victorian London is running a walk around Il Quartiere - Tales from Italian Clerkenwell. Excellent - I've had my eye on that for a while.
On Friday, Helen's in town, so we're headed for lunch, somewhere TBD. In the evening, I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again.
And on Monday, London Dramatic Arts was going to Caroline, or Change, at Hampstead Theatre. As usual, too expensive for me, and I got my own ticket, at about half the price. She was only going with one unnamed guest, and now doesn't seem to be going at all..
No comments:
Post a Comment