Beginning of July seems like a lifetime ago, and indeed it has been an intensely busy month. Too much time wasted with Copacabana in my opinion, and that show and that place could be so much better. Which is saying something, seeing that it's good enough as it is.
But anyway, I will count Copacabana as the first show I saw in July, on the 3rd, opening night. I have seen it 21 times since, but only counting shows, not performances, no?
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| Tough competition in July, but hosting Matilde Vigna was my favourite experience |
Reality Bites at Arches Lane felt like the first REAL show, and having Suzy (Eddie) Izzard and Rachel Zegler seeing it was beautiful.
Kill Drill did an excellent job on all fronts, with solid audiences in a time when nothing had solid audiences.
I saw Harry Conway's How to Kill Your Landlord at Drayton Arms and my main takeaway was how hot Frankie Weatherby is. But Harry has done well, and I'm glad his Edinburgh run seems to be so successful.
Caught the matinee of Pretty Witty Nell in the last day. Coming back two years later and with a different actress, I found Ryan a bit mellowed and the show marginally better, though it's the over-inflated ego that's still dragging him back. But hey-ho, Offie Award, who am I to comment? And plus, these three shows took us out of the 3-star slump we seemed to be stuck in this year.
Claire's Broadway Broads at Toulouse Lautrec was a nice surprise, and I'm glad to discover Claire's talents slowly slowly. She has been a reliable presence for us for the past two months, and I have grown to appreciate her. Also, Toulouse Lautrec does absinthe the traditional way, with melted sugar over a spoon, and it's been interesting to sample. £16 pounds a shot, Toulouse Lautrec must've been raking it in. Still, I prefer the raw, unfiltered ferocity of 80 degrees absinthe, very few things to get smashed quicker.
Camden Fringe has started like a bit of a tornado, and was about to blow my house up for a second there. It also marks the month with the most shows I'll miss at Barons Court. A bit unavoidable, what with shoving rehearsals for Lobster Pot in every second of the day I have off. I started the festival with two shows, Journey to the West at Rosemary Branch and Fly Trap at Barons Court. I watched Rabbie Burns' Bottom Drawer on Tuesday, which made me happy about the overall standard we manage to present at Barons Court this August, but unhappy about the discipline, experience and attitude of most of the companies.
I will make a separate passage about The Stupid Hug (El Abrazo Stupido), coming from Argentina for just two performances. It is a long time since I have seen a company, this friendly, this cooperative, this accommodating and this professional. The show was mediocre, probably very good for Argentine but I felt like the main big ideas of the show get diluted in the cultural differences. Regardless, I will keep a cherished memory to my new good friends from La Plata and I will pray the theatre gods will be good to them. It has been such an eye opener in regards to how privileged we are to be doing what to do and a stark reminder to fucking enjoy life more rather than dwell on the negatives.
Oh, and yeah, that was 30 July, that was the last show of the month, as Thursday, Friday, Saturday was Copacabana all over again. Still, 11 shows in July for a grand total of 70 shows in the first 7 months of the year. Averaging 10/month with more than half of the year gone, on track for 120. And I'm only next week going to Edinburgh.
