Two weeks have shot by, and we are now approaching our final week at the Belgrade. My second home over these past months. Being hurled back into the maelstrom of a buzzing London is going to be strange. I am certainly going to miss my country cottage hideaway.
The owners of my bijoux residence, Tim and Sandy Ruffet, came to see the performance on Saturday evening, it was their first visit to the Belgrade Theatre. Firstly, they were blown away by the building, and then the play. It is impossible to prepare anyone for what they are about to see on stage. It is a thriller after all, and every twist and turn reveals something new, culminating in the extraordinary, and visually sobering ending. On Friday’s performance, the denouement was greeted by an enormous gasp from the audience, and total silence as the lights on stage faded to black. Perfect!
I am also going to miss Turmeric Gold, the award-winning, dining rooms of India on Mediaeval Spon St. I have to confess to having been there practically nightly with Sarah and Sophie for an after show dinner, looked after beautifully by the manager Jay and his attentive staff. In London, you have to pay a Raj’s fortune for such an experience.
Most of all, I am going to miss the BABYLONE company. My after dinner companions, Sarah and Sophie, the Belgrade crew members. Where is Tim? I am already missing Hamish, who has very bravely left us to get on with it. The warmth of the building is a reflection of his personality. He commands with charm and tranquillity, and the odd glass of red. I love that man! And then, there is my fellow rogue and vagabond upon the stage, whom I have shared a second life with, as well as a dressing room, Peter. He is the primary reason I am up here. His tenacious believe in the beautiful writing of BABYLONE, and his determination that an English speaking audience shouldn’t miss out on a unique piece of theatre. We have had plenty of laughs.
But, this is not goodbye; I hope it is merely, au revoir. I am going to confide in you. Andrew Fishwick paid us a special visit on Friday and things could be moving in the right direction for a transfer to the West End. Another West End producer and theatre owner came to see the show incognito, and loved it. In 2010 we will be playing at…………………….. Now, that piece of information I am not allowed to divulge. New York next? Blimey!
So, this is your last week to catch a piece of riveting West End/ Broadway theatre at a third of the price, at your very own Belgrade Theatre in Coventry. That is a first for all involved. I am humbled, proud, and just a little excited. Let’s see what our last week in Coventry has to offer. I have not been disappointed yet.
JPL ;-)
So, what happened at Press Night? The great and the good were gathered, eventually. Our lighting designer, Mark Jonathan was darting along the tunnel from dressing room out to the foyer, very reminiscent of the white rabbit in Alice in Wonderland. He hit the automatic exit button, and inadvertently revealed Peter and myself to the audience heading for their seats, as we headed back stage, then Mark was gone.
Peter and I took up our positions in the wings waiting for standby. Over her headphones our ASM, Sarah could hear Front of House panicking that they needed to find seats in the packed auditorium, for the set designer, Libby Watson, and a ‘very important man’. The ‘very important man’ was none other than our white rabbit , Mark Jonathan. Libby has a mischievously wicked sense of humour, and I guessed that she might have insisted on the best seats and used Mark for leverage!
Finally, they were all settled in their seats, standby was given, and we were on.
The hour and a bit flashed by again. The applause died away and we were back in our dressing room. Hardly back at all, when there was a knock on the door. I opened it to reveal our writer, David Eldridge. He was ecstatic. Very happy indeed! He stood back to introduce the original writer of the piece, Jean Marie Besset, and the director of his work in Paris, Gilbert. I smiled inwardly, as I noticed that they were both dressed almost identically to my character, a successful Parisian professional. They were hugely complimentary.
Another knock, and in came our director, Hamish Glen, a big grin across his face. He hugged us both, and exclaimed how pleased he was with our performances. I presented him with a bottle of Margaux as a thank you and a good luck present for the run. He rushed off to gather glasses, and then generously shared out the bottle for a toast. There were the inevitable comparisons with the French production, to which Jean Marie consented that we had the edge on the Paris performance, in design, direction and execution. Though, he was a little taken aback that the running time was 45mins shorter than in Paris. David concluded that this was due to the French having far greater pauses of silence between certain moments on stage. Not sure we would get away with that over here.
So, on to the opening party. I actually usually hate these events. In London, they are an opportunity for people to network and brush shoulders with celebs and potential future employers. Thank God at the Belgrade, it is far more relaxed, and they feed you. Superb! Once we had exhausted the catering and bar staff at the Belgrade, we headed across the way to the Town Wall Tavern, Jean Marie and Gilbert on-tow. Sadly, at this point we bade farewell to our Assistant Director Amy Bonsall, who we will not be seeing again until the last night. I will definitely miss her, not least because she has been my house-mate for the past two weeks, but she makes a mean pot of coffee, and was a very good ear towards ensuring that I was word perfect.
We didn’t have to wait long for the reviews to emerge, and they were more than encouraging. The Times’ approach was thoughtful and thought provoking, The Guardian, tentative about the French writer’s depth, and applauding the production, What’sOnStage.com gave it a rollicking 5star rating, and The Daily Telegraph are set to cover it this week.
The buzz for the West End transfer is a nano louder and increasingly positive. There are even rumblings of a New York transfer, though admittedly the Broadway shift possibility is mostly from Peter in the corner of our dressing room, but then that is his territory, He acted and lived there for many years.
By the end of this week, we should have more concrete answers. One thing we are increasingly aware of is the audience’s responses. They love it! The twists and turns take them by surprise, the design of set and lights delight. Hamish has done a blinding job, with a beautifully crafted piece of writing from both sides of the Channel. This is a production that deservers a wider audience.
JLP ;-)
Our thanks to (l-r) Carol Roe, Michelle & Wally Bradshaw and Nick Roe for sharing their reaction to Babylone with us following today’s matinee performance.
Hamish Glen, the Belgrade Theatre’s Artistic Director - and director of Babylone, talks about the show after the final dress rehearsal ahead of tonight’s first preview performance.
The first performance of Babylone is tomorrow (Sat 24) so here’s a quick reminder of where you can buy tickets.
Earlier this afternoon we chatted to Peter Tate, one of the actors performing in Babylone, following the first day of technical rehearsals for the play.
The technical rehearsals happen at the end of the normal rehearsal period and take place on the stage set itself. They offer an opportunity to perfect all the technical elements of the production such as lighting, sound and special effects, as well as costume changes, exits and entrances.
Sarah Burton, a talented designer in her own right, is currently working on the set for Babylone up at the Belgrade Theatre’s workshops. This film shows her using a stencil to paint the individual tiles that will make up the entire floor surface of the set.
As you’ll see, she’s got her work cut out!
The Belgrade Theatre’s Press & PR Officer, Ray Clenshaw, chats to Head of Workshop, Andy Hilton about building Libby Watson’s set design for Babylone, particularly the 9m working lift!
This link will take you through to the Belgrade Theatre’s website where you can find some other info about the show and also buy tickets.
Here are some photos of Libby Watson’s beautiful set box design for Babylone. The set is currently being built in our workshops in Coventry.
The tall metal tower you can see on the second photo is actually a lift shaft that will house a 9 metre tall, working lift! More to come on that soon.
Babylone is a new play that will premiere in the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry’s B2 auditorium from Saturday 24 October to Saturday 14 November.
It’s a stylish and engrossing tale of suspense and is a new adaptation, by David Eldridge, of Jean-Marie Besset’s original French play, Rue de Babylone, which was a big success in Paris in 2004.
We’re hoping to bring you some interesting bits and bobs of information about the show via this blog - starting with a word from the show’s director, who is also the Belgrade Theatre’s Artistic Director, Hamish Glen:
“When I first read this script I found it wonderfully chilling and fantastically evocative of films like Graham Greene’s The Third Man and the works of Alfred Hitchcock like The Man Who Knew Too Much and Vertigo. This is a great opportunity to try to recreate that film noir atmosphere live on stage.”
