On the way to the Tate Modern for their Futurism exhibition and after finishing my Mister Whippy (threw away the flake) I popped into the Globe Theatre to see what they had free in the next 36 hours. Helen was the only free show and at 7 this evening. Romeo and Juliet is booked out for the season! So I chose Helen and the fantastic girl behind the counter gave me the best seat in the house (C40) which is front and centre.
She also discounted it from £40 to £20. I knew nothing about it going in. After a few minutes I thought I’d skip out halfway as I was knackered but as the show got going I didn’t want to. Helen is played by Penny Downie and she’s energetic and playful and you can see the audience hang on to her every reaction. Paul McGann who played I in Withnail in I plays Menelaus and feck me he has not aged one day since Withnail. I thought he was one of the younger McGanns actually.
The play itself is so so story wise but it’s a comedy and is highly playful and interactive with the audience. I heard some girls bitch after about it lacking meat, pah. It was was the most fun I’ve had at the theatre in ages and ages. The ending reminded me of the Monty Python Alien in Life of Brian but you know, funny. A cute touch too was the cast came out and danced in sync for the ovations. Very cool and very obviously they needed a good bit of choreography.
This wsa my first time in The Globe. It’s beautiful. Smaller than I would have imagined. A few shots from the iPhone of it:
Anything on in the Globe is worth going to. Who’s been?
It’s quite an experience alright – lovely setting. I saw The Merchant of Venice there 2 or 3 years ago, which I’d studied it for the Junior Cert, which was good because I knew what was going on 😉
Just imagine, back in the day, the space where the crowd is standing would have been dirt/mud/whatever based on what the weather was like. Kind of like a music festival… wellies anyone ?
I <3 the Globe. Been a number of times. Merchant of Venice was my first, Lear my second and Rome and Juliet my third. Much Ado About Nothing was fantastic there too.
My favourite memory of the Globe? Sitting, watching Merchant, surrounded by people, the schoolchildren and all the tourists, and being transfixed at the costumes, the dialogue, the acting. Then I looked beside me and I saw a schoolgirl, about 11, possibly on her first visit to the Globe being utterly transfixed and intent on the copy of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire open on her lap.
It's an experience I'd recommend to anyone. Minus a novel.
It’s a fantastic building. I got the guided tour last year when I was over in London, though I didn’t get to see anything being performed, as they were in between shows