In Cardiff, Edinburgh, Clwyd and Aberystwyth |
My Year of Theatre |
Theatre , Wales North, South & West , January-01-10 |
![]() From the Welsh productions the ballet from “The King and I” in Anthony Williams' staging, “The Small House of Thomas”, was superb. I was impressed by Clwyd's choice of “Mary Stuart” in Mike Poulton’s adaptation. My phrasing at the time: “Terry Hands’ direction is burnished steel.” Philip Breen put on an effervescent “Thoroughly Modern Millie” with a large cast headed by Claire Dunne and Tom Cullen. Peter Doran toured “She Stoops to Conquer” with the Mappa Mundi-Mwldan partnership. As with “Millie...” I took a twelve year old, a risk, but he was much tickled. Familiar faces were to be seen. “With her peacock feathers, her piled-high hair, her chalk-white face, her blush and beauty spots Kathryn Dimery’s Mrs Hardcastle is a squawking fright. Keiron Self’s socially timorous Charles Marlow takes deep hyper-ventilating breaths to prepare himself for his romantic interview. In contrast Richard Nichols’ Hastings is all urbane calculation.” A new company Citrus Arts were also in Aberystwyth. The best visiting show in an exceptional year was "the Pitmen Painters." My top five of the year, strictly alphabetical, were: “The King and I”: Aberystwyth Arts Centre “Mary Stuart”: Theatr Clwyd Cymru “She Stoops to Conquer”: Mappa Mundi & Theatr Mwldan “Thoroughly Modern Millie”: Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama “Wardrobe Diaries”: Citrus Arts, Newport Riverfront & Creu Cymru |
Reviewed by: Adam Somerset |
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