Today's idea - Samuel Beckett's Endgame at @nvt_brighton #brightonfringe

Earlier this year Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen went around the country performing the sold out Waiting for Godot. Today another brilliant play by Samuel Beckett, the author behind 'Play' (which if you haven't seen I recommend ewatching the short film version starring starring Alan Rickman, Kristen Scott Thomas and Juliet Stevenson. it's very good.) comes to Brighton with "Endgame' as part of the Brighton Fringe.

"Hamm, blind and chair-bound, is attended to by the stiff and dutiful Clov. Hamm's parents, Nagg & Nell, legless from a bicycle accident, are relegated to living in dustbins, not even able to reach each other to kiss. Someone has fleas and a rogue rat is on the loose. Outside, all seems dead and 'something is taking its course', whilst inside, the four protagonists torment each other with apocalyptic visions of what may be occurring beyond the confines of their self inflicted prison."

Running until 22 May.
Time: 7:45pm
Cost: £9 (£8 members)
More Info: here

If nothing, watch Play. It's very good.

Today's idea - Brighton Festival does 'Icarus'

Tonight the New Venture Theatre presents its contribution to the Brighton Festival with 'Icarus'. Based on Ovid's Poem the myth of Icarus' flight and fall is explored by three performers within a promenade setting (no seating 'immersive' stuff). I like Icarus, and the adaptation sounds good. The plot's this:

"Imprisoned in the labyrinth of the Minotaur with his son, the inventor Daedalus creates wings out of feathers and wax in order to escape. He warns Icarus, his son to follow his route and not get too close to the sea or the sun, as either would destroy the wings. Playing with the winds in excitement, Icarus gets carried away, flies too close to the sun and falls into the sea, where he dies.

Following individual stories relating to Icarus’ parable, an emotional journey unfolds using strong visual and physical imagery. Set within the intimate space of the studio, audience members are invited to create their own pathway and explore different stories and perspectives and ultimately become part of the journey."

Director Saskia Ulrike Schilling draws on personal experience, saying she wanted "to look at the emotional voyage of Icarus and give him a voice," citing an interesting history. "I was born in the communist and socialist East Germany, then lived in the re-united capitalist Germany before moving to England; a journey exploring a freedom my parents did not experience and hence living their hopes and dreams combined with my own.”

They threaten the arrival of some darkness and strobe lighting during the play. In immersion [no seating] plays, I'm a sucker for this stuff.

Time: 7:45pm
Location: New Venture Theatre
Map: here

Reserve tickets: here
Runs until: Saturday 8th May (no performance 8th May)

Today's idea - Breaking The Code

Tonight I'm off to see Breaking The Code, and I recommend it, hoping it to be in the same performance as Frankly Outrageous, which we featured a couple of weeks ago.

"The fascinating but tragic story of Alan Turing: mathematician, 'Father' of computer science and a gay man in an intolerant era.

Compassionate and often amusing, the play explores the life of a man who broke two different codes: the Enigma Codes during WWII and the gentlemanly code of sexual discretion. By making little attempt to disguise his sexual predilections at a time when homosexuality is illegal, Turing is ultimately destroyed by the State he once saved."

It's showing at 7:45pm at New Venture Theatre, and costs £8.

Today's idea - See 'The Ugly One'

Yesterday on Brighton's Reverb radio I heard what essentially sounded like a segment involving the presenter reading a newspaper. I was confused as we don't have this segment of radio where i come from, but she payed nice music so it was okay. My point, is that this newspaper reading involved a mention of upcoming plays and entertainment type things. She mentioned 'The Ugly One', which was on my list to talk about and now it means that it must be talked about with slightly more gusto than normal.

'The Ugly One' comes out today at the New Venture Theatre and the blurb says thus of the plot:

"Lette, a happy employee of an electronics company, thought he was normal. But to everyone else, including his loving wife, he is 'unspeakably ugly'. When the extent of his ugliness is revealed he turns to a plastic surgeon for help. But after the bandages come off, he soon learns that there is such a thing as too beautiful."

It's a play involving eight characters played by four actors. Apparently the "role-changing becomes mind-bending as the characters proliferate and share names and faces. The last time I saw something like this was in a World War II play I saw with my school when i was 13. It was a professional acting 'troupe' and it was done really well. I rarely go to the theatre or such to see things in some form of acting (films and TV meanwhile, I am there) and I'd like to go again (because theatre is secretly fabulous, although maybe it's just me who doesn't know this.)

In good news, tickets cost £8, £6 on Tuesdays, and £9 on final night. This leaves you from between £1 - £4 from a tenner to spend on sweeties and wine and such good things.

Director Mike Stubbs says of 'The Ugly One': "This is a fantasy that relies on feeding the imagination of the audience. My aim is to create the world of cartoon comedy on stage where the only real thing is the laughter".

In other good words, they also call it "An evening of fantasy and farce that has the bounce and snap of music-hall cross-talk."

Find tickets and more info here, although I'd hurry as they might disappear soon. Opening night is tonight, and it closes on the 23rd. Which is soon, so chop chop!


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