Theatres: These are a few of our favourite things
It's tough for theatres right now, so here's a celebration of their unique attractions
By: Gary Naylor Dec. 22, 2021
It's as tough a time as can be for theatres, 2021 signing off with one last gut punch before 2022 offers an uncertain, if slightly more optimistic future. With credit card bills on one side of the front door and cold and rain on the other, it's easy to hibernate through January, February and March, but it's no exaggeration to say that theatre needs you (and Netflix doesn't).
We asked Broadwayworld reviewers to tell us about some of their favourite things about the unique pleasures of going to the theatre.
Aliya Al-Hassan and Gary Naylor both enjoy the views the sights from the terraces at the National Theatre (pictured above), Gary particularly delighted by a show that starts in daylight but, with dusk falling during the first half, London magically transformed for the interval drinks.
Jonathan Marshall scans for the sons and daughters of the 1980s Sloane Rangers from the Royal Court's upstairs bar balcony with Gary citing the view across the Green from Richmond Theatre's terrace, summer picnickers on the greensward as a reason to travel on the District Line.
Just coming and going to some venues is enough to fire the pleasure synapses for some of our reviewers. Emma Watkins channels her inner Ray Davies, gazing on a Waterloo sunset crossing the bridge after a winter matinée. Louise Penn sees something different every time she walks past the ever-changing graffiti in Leake Street en route to The Vaults and the attendant intoxicating smells remind Gary of his father's old workplace, applying new paintjobs to crashed cars.
Once inside the buildings, the bars hold attractions beyond the booze. Louise has a soft spot for the dog in the Lion and Unicorn, a tummy tickle for pooch her order. Aliya finds a cosy corner in Southwark Playhouse's bar to scan Deliveroo for some takeaway that they'll deliver to her table! At the Rose Theatre in Kingston, she eyes up the cakes displayed on the counter and the extensive wine list - who wouldn't!
Gary enjoys just about the best cup of coffee in London at the Union Theatre, accompanied by the finest playlist of 70s funk and soul you'll find on Spotify. Emma goes for an interval ice cream, pricey, but (if you believe her) sprinkled with theatrical magic that renders them calorie-free!
Sometimes, the spaces are shows in themselves. Aliya is a fan of London's largest theatre, the London Coliseum never failing to impress; the entrance foyer, the staircases, the mouldings, the ceiling and the brilliant layout a feast for the eye. Like Gary, she loves the Royal Opera House's foyer, with its lunchtime recitals, performances and concerts, all of which are completely free (the vegan rolls aren't, but they're worth it). Jonathan loves the rustic design, exposed brick, and soft lighting of the Royal Court with its inviting little book shop nestled in the bar that is always relaxed, warm and welcoming.
Aliya mentions that most neglected of theatre people, the front of house staff, her favourites greeting her at the Orange Tree, a team who have navigated the Covid regulations with great sensitivity. Bella Bevan has a different take on those on our side of the fourth wall, looking to catch the ushers being stagey off duty - surely never!
Theatres being uber-theatrey appeals to Aliya and Gary with the playbills and programmes displayed on the walls of the Harold Pinter Theatre, Greenwich Theatre and the London Palladium providing a lovely hit of nostalgia and provoking an almost involuntary exclamation of "Ooh wasn't he/she pretty/handsome when they were younger".
Gary has the last word with a venue that captures the energy, the excitement and the optimism that has seen theatre through times worse than this pandemic. Right at the end of the Piccadilly Line stands Chickenshed, whose shows for young people allied to its longstanding, thoroughgoing commitment to inclusivity, make the heart soar. Nothing else comes close to that feeling - go there and to the theatres mentioned and not mentioned above come 2022 and feel it for yourself.
Comments
Videos