Tired for the rest of the day, then. This evening, with nothing on Meetup, my £3.60 club finally came up with something I fancied doing - so I headed to a play called Reading Gaol, at Theatre N16. There's a lot of interest in Oscar Wilde at the moment, for some reason. Speaking of the club that can't be named.. I had my account suspended by them (again!) last week - got one of those useless emails asking me to email to discuss, while not bothering to tell me what the problem was. Turned out they were miffed that I didn't have a UK phone number! When I suggested that they could just discuss this stuff with me, rather than resorting to suspending my account all the time, I got the rather snippy response that they found they got a quicker response this way! I see their customer service is still bottom of the barrel.. anyway, account now reactivated, with a note to say they won't be getting in touch in the event of last-minute availability or cancellations! As for Meetup - Anthony's Cultural Events and Walking Activities then announced a trip to Romeo and Juliet, free, outdoors at Westferry Circus.. too late, sorry man!
Tottenham Hale, ugh. Nothing against the place - it's just so far! I enthusiastically had a spurt of work this evening - which, of course, meant I left later than intended. It'd have been quite tight for the bus - so I ended up on the Tube, which although pretty hot, was quite uncrowded by the time I set out - the show had a late start. Now, I remembered being to Theatre N16 before - so I was a bit befuddled not to recognise the station. A real one-stop-shop, by the way - Tube, train and bus all in one!
It's not far at all to the theatre - just around the corner, in fact! although I was glad to have time to consider my route - there are a lot of corners in the vicinity. Coming into the theatre, I found myself following a couple obviously bound for a play.. and then found myself somewhere I definitely hadn't been before! I'd have remembered this place:
More photos of the bar here. Anyway, when I later looked up the website of the place I had been before - yes, it's the same company! However, it turns out they moved.. used to be based above the Bedford, in Balham. Which is near where I used to live, a couple of years ago. Well, of course I favoured going to things near me - so I ended up going three times while I lived there! And all with the same £3.60 club (£3, back in the day). Mind you, this does explain the N16 in the name - I thought it was odd, for a company based in South London - but it turns out they started in Stoke Newington, and their sojourn in Balham was just the way things panned out. They're now back where they belong.
Back to this evening, and the couple in front of me had found a desk that turned out to be the bar, rather than the box office! So they went and asked someone else - who revealed himself as "the roving box office". And explained to them that, when it was showtime, he'd pull back the doors of the warehouse at the back, which is where the show would happen. So I got that explanation for free, being right behind them. We also had to have our hands stamped. Then we moseyed off back to the bar, where my wine came in a tumbler - which is just fine; now that our office is back providing wine again, I had my glass there in a tumbler too! They seem to have done away with wine glasses. (Hey, given that we're in Shoreditch, I'm surprised they don't give us jam jars to drink from!)
A kind of tent covers much of the seating area - there's also an area you can lounge in. Very nice for hot weather. I took some photos, then found a seat in the shade to finish my drink - just in time for the "roving box office" to pull back the door to the warehouse with a rattle and call us all in.
This is where it gets unnerving. The space is large - high-ceilinged, largely empty - and dark. Five intimidating-looking people stand in a line, barring you from the stage area. Silent. The audience lined up nervously along the side, unsure what to do with themselves. Then the guards - for that is what they are - call out the names of five "prisoners", who come forward meekly from amongst our ranks. We can then take our seats - folding seats line both sides of the central space, a few marked with black and yellow tape; we are instructed not to sit on those.
Woah, it's intense! Not recommended for anyone with problems with flashing lights - lighting plays a big part in this. The stage area is rarely lit completely - mostly, they rely on handheld torches and small lights that they turn on and off - and they create fabulous effects with these, very creatively. It ends up being very claustrophobic, as you can usually not see more than a small section of stage. The guards take a back seat from now on, the prisoners carrying the show - in between reciting bits from The Ballad of Reading Gaol, each tells us something of his life in prison - how he got there and how it affects him.
The low lighting allows us to focus on each individual performer. And you can expect some interaction - don't worry, no-one's required to say anything or get up on stage themselves. But you can expect people to come and speak to you directly, look at you pointedly.. The recitations are beautifully done, the individual stories varied and compelling. I didn't end up giving them a standing ovation - it didn't seem like the setting for it. But I did feel like it! This is the best play this club I'm in has offered for ages.. highly recommended! Runs till the 3rd - much better than your average theatre offering.
Back by bus, direct. And boy, was I glad it'd cooled down! Tomorrow, back with Up in the Cheap Seats (UITCS), for Exit the King, at the National. Closer than today's.
On Wednesday, London Literary Walks again - this time it's Little Italy. Now, I've done this area before - but I bet he'll come up with something new.
On Thursday, back with London Science Events at the Royal Institution - this time, it's Synthetic Intelligence. Last Tuesday's organiser can't make it now - so I guess none of us will be meeting.
On Friday, back with UITCS again, for Pity, at the Royal Court - which I missed last week, when the same group was doing it with another organiser. Delighted to make this - also delighted to avail of a terrific Time Out offer of £12 tickets for Band B seats - the official price for Band D is £14, so this was great value! Sadly, now sold out.
On Saturday, back with them again, for the very last performance of Spun, at the Arcola. Second in a row with a theme of terrorism - this one is about the London bombings. Beforehand, we're headed for dinner at the Stone Cave, a Turkish place - and afterwards, to the Aqua 7 wine bar.
On Sunday, back with Walking in London, and Katie of Look Up London! Delighted she has a new walk - Smithfield & Clerkenwell: Guts & Glory. It's actually cheaper on her own site than on Funzing - unless you're getting one of those common 10% discounts!
Next Monday, I'm taking myself to the Proms, at the Albert Hall, for the first time in ages. This one is An Alpine Symphony.
And finishing off the month, I'm finally back with North London Friends, for Give My Regards to Broadway, Upstairs at the Gatehouse. Completely sold out now, I believe.
No comments:
Post a Comment