Whats on stage :cheer: [Thanks to willisking on d]

http://www.whatsonstage.com/dl/page.php?pa...=E8821169546716

 

That's a very good review, **** as well, I'm really pleased that this one mentions all the cast as well, I agree with your post chrysalis, although I had to look up the word, "soubriquet" :lol: and like you say, on the whole the reviews are fair and constructive, well unless your an ignorant t*** called Quentin and work for the Mail. :lol:

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by suggy

Thanks for bringing all the reviews over girls.

 

I'm happy. I think Will will be too - constructive criticism such as he has got - so far - will do him no harm at all. It's his very first role and I reckon he'll gain much kudos for daring to take on such a huge one for his debut. These critics have given him a very fair judgement based on his professional acting experience - which is nil - and knowing Will the way we do he'll take on board everything that has been said and use it. It also helps that he wasn't the only one who was criticised.

 

No gold star this time but very close. Well done William - very proud.

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by munchkin

WHATS ON STAGE RATINGhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gifhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gifhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gifhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gif

USER RATING http://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gifhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gifhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gifhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gifhttp://www.whatsonstage.com/wosimages/redstar.gif

 

Here are some of the user rating :dance:

 

*****A superb production. The balance of humour and tragic worked well, with an excellent sense of timing from the cast. Very believable characterisation from all the actors. Will Young, in his stage debut, was a revelation! Never dreamt he could act so well....a startling performance, especially for a first attempt. Sandra 23 Jan 07

 

***** WOW..went on Saturday and couldnt believe the singer Will Youngs powerful performance as Nicky Lancaster. The whole cast was brilliant and I was memorised by the play and what a great atmosphere!!! NoelsCreation 22 Jan 07

 

****What an amazing theatre and an amazing production of The Vortex. If you thought Will Young was just a singer, think again! He is so believable as Nicky Lancaster. Don't miss this! Theatregoer

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by BanYellowm+m's

London Evening standard :D

Thanks to lizzie on D :cheer:

 

Revelatory Will finds key to Coward classic

http://i.thisislondon.co.uk/i/pix/2007/01/willyoung_243x202.jpg

Brave performance: Will Young plays Nicky Lancaster with just the right impotent despair

 

4 out of 5 stars

 

It has taken more than 80 years and the performance of Will Young, the gay pop idol who has never acted on stage before, to bring out the full truth about Nicky Lancaster, Noël Coward's angry young man in The Vortex.

 

So Jo Combes's ingenious in-the-round production, at this beautiful glass-and-steel theatre, generates frissons of surprise. People at the 1924 premiere enjoyed frissons too, being scandalised by this fascinating but atypical Coward, in which the Master took lethal aim at the decadent #bolges#-and-laughter society of London in the hedonistic 1920s.

 

For once Coward did much more than make his languid sophisticates figures of witty fun. Yet those audiences and those critics turned blind eyes to one crucial fact, at which Coward, in an age of strict stage censorship, could only hint, and of which Will Young now makes us provocatively aware.

 

Twenty-four-year-old Nicky returns from France to make revelations and discoveries at home, a flat which designer Lez Brotherston has fashioned as a lovely black and silver, art deco circular platform, adorned with piano, gramophone and glass-free mirror.

 

His mother, the fluttering social butterfly Florence, superlatively brought to narcissistic, emotionally retarded life by Diana Hardcastle, is adulterously entwined with Sam Heughan's Guardsman Tom Veryan, who is young enough to be Nicky's brother.

 

Her sad, cuckolded husband - David Peart - keeps his wary distance. David Fielder's waspish, slightly overdone queen, Florence's presumably lesbian best friend, Alexandra Mathie's trenchant Helen and Rhiannon Oliver's caricature of a singer complete her admiring circle.

 

Young's petulant Nicky is caught up in a cool, or frankly frigid, "sort of try-out" engagement with Laura Rees's stylish Bunty Mainwaring, from which he detaches himself, but Coward insisdisguisedtently implies that the cause of this mother-obsessed young man's unhappiness and secret cocaine-taking is his homosexuality.

 

In a Hamlet-like bedroom scene, he tries to make Hardcastle's angry, ashamed Florence see the truth about herself and her supposed role in making his life such a mess.

 

"We're utterly rotten, both of us," he accuses his mendacious mama, who grieves over the loss of Tom to Bunty as if she were a sixteen-year-old at the end of her first love-affair.

 

Coward links Florence, with her unashamed appetite for young men and Nicky, the coke addict with his shamed awareness of being gay, as people who cannot face hard reality.

 

The actors who have played Nicky, from Noël Coward himself in 1924 to Dirk Bogarde and Rupert Everett, have disguised or glossed over this crucial gayness. Not so Will Young.

 

Slightly lisping, emotionally delicate, prone to petulance and with the disquieting air of a vulnerable child out of his depth, this Nicky exudes the effeminacy of which Tom accuses him.

 

Young is surprisingly weak-voiced at times and he delivers his tirades with insufficient emotion or fury, but this brave, remarkable performance is charged with the right impotent despair.

 

In an absolutely brilliant directorial stroke, Combes implies that Nicky's addiction is not risky cocaine but lifethreatening heroin. The Vortex therefore acquires a fresh, stinging, contemporary relevance.

 

Miss Hardcastle, the best Florence I have seen, floats sexily around in a haze of self-adoration and a shimmering dress, until faced with home truths. She then poignantly dwindles to the status of a frightened child, out of her depth.

 

This Vortex, with its delectable period songs and style, ought to be London-bound.

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by BanYellowm+m's

 

 

The actors who have played Nicky, from Noël Coward himself in 1924 to Dirk Bogarde and Rupert Everett, have disguised or glossed over this crucial gayness. Not so Will Young.

 

Slightly lisping, emotionally delicate, prone to petulance and with the disquieting air of a vulnerable child out of his depth, this Nicky exudes the effeminacy of which Tom accuses him.

 

Young is surprisingly weak-voiced at times and he delivers his tirades with insufficient emotion or fury, but this brave, remarkable performance is charged with the right impotent despair.

 

In an absolutely brilliant directorial stroke, Combes implies that Nicky's addiction is not risky cocaine but lifethreatening heroin. The Vortex therefore acquires a fresh, stinging, contemporary relevance.

 

Miss Hardcastle, the best Florence I have seen, floats sexily around in a haze of self-adoration and a shimmering dress, until faced with home truths. She then poignantly dwindles to the status of a frightened child, out of her depth.

 

This Vortex, with its delectable period songs and style, ought to be London-bound.

 

 

 

Yes - someone sees.

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by munchkin

Thanks BYM&M's.

 

Someone who identifies with Will's portrayl of Nicky & the Evening Standard to boot.

 

I take back what I said about the London press.

 

Anyone else's emotions all over the place reading these reviews? Down one minute up the next, the continual rollercoaster ride of being a Will fan. Then again we wouldn't want to be following any old one dimensional dreary popstar. ;)

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by truly talented

That's an excellent review from the Evening Standard. :yahoo: I'm off now to get ready to go and see Will, see you all tomorrow when I'll be posting my honest review.

Thanks to JanetL on Devoted for this insight into Quentin Letts te Daily Mail critic. :lol:

 

The Stage wrote about Quentin Letts (Daily Mail):

 

 

But David then does something even braver: he actually takes on a critic publicly. “Quentin tit sorry did I say tit I mean Letts on the other hand is a former gossip columnist, parliamentary correspondent and contributor to Horse & Hounds. His reviews play to the worst prejudices of conservative England, they’re ignorant and his appointment is an anachronistic throw back to the days when the tory establishment made patronising and amateur forays into the arts world. Tit’s sorry I do mean Letts notice slating Market Boy was treated as a badge of pride by the company at the NT and was pinned up in the lads dressing room. In eleven years working in professional theatre Letts has the dubious honour of having written the only review I’ve ever seen an acting company treat with utter derision - and I’ve had a few stinkers along the way. The toff should stick to sloanes, parliament and ponies. Even The Daily Mail’s readers deserve better.â€

 

More reason for us to totally dismiss his piece of c***!

Have a great time Suggy. :dance:

 

When I last posted I'd only seen The Times, The Independent, Daily Express and the MEN reviews. I have now seen more,and am particularly impressed (and surprised) by the Evening Standard. It's as if the reviewer really felt the character of Nicky. The majority of the reviews so far have been fair and constructive - we really didn't ask for more. There's always going to be the odd exception who think themselves clever by having nothing good or constructive to say about anything - and (I'm editing to add) your post TT shows the point about some reviewers trying to be cleverclogs, and I'm pleased the DM's reviewer has been hoisted by his own petard.

 

As has been pointed out this is Will's first adventure into the professional theatre in a very demanding role. Personally I think he's come up trumps as have the rest of the cast and the production team.

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by chrysalis

Thanks for the info TT, That little snippet casts light over that particular reviewer :lol:

The Express:

 

Quote:

Paul Callan: Will Young Launches on to Stage in a Vortex of Promise.

 

The first night of The Vortex, on December 16th 1924, was explosive. It launched Noel Coward into the theatrical stratosphere. The opening coincided with his 25th birthday and he was immediately recognised as British drama's most daring, precocious and [some felt] alarming talent.

What John Osbourne would do in the late 1950's with Look Back In Anger, Coward did 30 years earlier with a foray into dangerous territories of promiscuity, homosexuality [then illegal] and drug addiction. All were shocking no-go areas.

The critics were livid including the Daily Express reviewer who dammed the work as "a dustbin of a play".

Coward wrote and starred as the main role, the sensitive Nicky struggling with his sexuality and unable to cope with his morally shallow mother, Florence.

The part of Nicky demands sensitive handling, balance and an ability to keep from tumbling into the chasm of high camp.

Sadly, Will Young - he of Pop Idol fame - fails to achieve this delicate touch.

At one point he flaps absurdly in Oxford bags - the play is set in the roaring twenties - like some young, mincing queen about to scratch someone's eyes out. This is his debut as a serious actor and the role is amazingly difficult to portray , on stage, without descending into near farce.

But these are early days for Mr Young and he has a flair for the dramatic. He displayed a genuine tension in the last act in which he condemns his mother, Florence, beautifully played by Diana Hardcastle.

Coward was describing the anguish and folly of rich people who had few morals and frolicked around in weekend house parties. There are some splendid and memorable performances. alexandra Mathie as the stern Helen saville brings a stunning credibility to a character that has light lesbian overtones.

It will be well worth watching Will Young's future career. This play was not the best for him to launch himself into a brave new world. But the talent, the craft, and the timing are certainly all there. And he is already a long way from the vacuous Pop Idol

 

Another good one - I agree with the highlighted bits - very nice to see this acknowledged. I was immediately struck by Will's timing - especially in the first act.

 

Feel some of these coming on :yahoo: :dance: :dancing: :banana:

 

and a special one of these for our man http://bestsmileys.com/hugging/4.gif

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by munchkin

Another fair review from the Express.

 

Love that they acknowledge the complexity of the role & that this is Will's debut. I'm sure Will will gain valuable experience from his time in the Vortex. With his work ethic, natural talent & willingness to listen I'm sure this is merely a stepping stone to greater things in this field.

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by truly talented

Thanks munchkin

 

I agree another fair review and he can only get better :dance:

 

Edit to say ......the title says it all....

Will Young Launches on to Stage in a Vortex of Promise

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by BanYellowm+m's

I know she'll probably bring it across herself but I just have to post this by Sunday on Devoted:

 

http://www.stephennewton.com/2007/01/will-...-noel-cowards-v ortex.html

 

 

I simply adore Noel Coward. His characters might be mistaken as false, but are actually wonderfully controlled and intelligent until, as is the case here, they are caught up in a quite awful ‘vortex of beastliness’ that conspires to reveal them as all too human (in the sense that to be human is to have faults). And while I’m no Will Young fan, I suspected he’d be splendid here and splendid he is.

 

That Will Young gets bums on seats is beyond doubt. He’s so the housewives’ favourite and the audience is full of excited 50-somethings who wave excitedly across the theatre as they take their seats. Despite its size, being in the round The Royal Exchange remains an intimate space, so when Will sticks his bum into the audience, the ladies struggle not to reach out for a grope. All of which cannot be more fitting, given that the drama of the play rests on the inability of Nicky’s celebrity mother, Florence, to cope with her age. She too lusts after men twenty or thirty years her junior. But Florence acts on her impulse, while these ladies pick out Will because his unavailability (for all sorts of reasons) renders the fantasy so safe. And full credit to Will Young for tackling a piece of substance, when he could so easily have landed a part in some nonsense West End musical like Chicago.

 

Of course Florence’s lover could never keep her young. His inevitable betrayal reveals how fame, fortune and the pressure to remain perfect to her fans have damaged her and all around her. Go see the Vortex.

 

:lol: Hilarious - fanastic blog - and so true.

Edited January 23, 200718 yr by munchkin

Thanks to maggie on devoted :cheer:

 

 

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/maggie3/MEN23Jan.jpg

Posted by wilma on the o/s :cheer:

 

I'll scan the article in later, but for the moment I will type it up..

in

LONDON LITE tonight:

 

"Will Hoodie debuts as a straight actor

Pop Idol winner Will Young looked nervous under a hoodie as he arrived for his stage debut last night. The 28 year old plays a young man caught up in hedonistic Twenties London in Noel Coward's The Vortex at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester.But he had nothing to fear, critic Nicholas De Jongh said : 'This remarkable , brave performance is charged with the right impotent despair'.."

 

Pic of Will in his hoodie carrying a cup of coffee...and a BIG picture of Will and Bunty.

willma

Nice to read on Devoted that Michael Gracey is in the audience tonight.

Nice to read on Devoted that Michael Gracey is in the audience tonight.

 

I'm back! we saw Will on our arrival at the theatre, :dance: he walked passed us and went to the reception, he had a grey hoodie on, "those" jeans and his dirty converse on, we didn't bother him though, we just stood like statues as he walked past us again. :lol: I also sat near Michael Gracy in the cafe area, I said "hello Mr Gracy", :blush: must have looked scary though as he moved away shortly after. :lol: When we went into the theatre round, Michael was sat straight opposite me on the other side. :lol: After the play had finished, we waited close by and Will came by us into the cafe/bar area, he smiled as we aproached him and he came over to us and I spoke to him, got my programme signed (he used my Will pen )and I also gropedstroked his arm. :o :yahoo: I told him my name was Chrissy, he's spelt it Chrissie but I don't mind. :wub: I've had a fantastic evening made extra special by Will and the cast of Vortex and my three friends, Anne, Anne and Anne, yes it is bloody confusing and when we were getting our programmes signed by Will, I told him he'd be seeing that name in his sleep. :lol: There was also a lovely man getting his programme signed and he told Will that he was going to be a great actor and I said I think you already are Will and he said, "oh no, I've got a long way to go yet, but thanks." :wub: I'll write my review of the play tomorrow.

Edited January 24, 200718 yr by suggy

Suggy loved reading that..really looking forward to your report...so glad you got to speak to Will :wub:

really love this bit.. :wub:

There was also a lovely man getting his programme signed and he told Will that he was going to be a great actor and I said I think you already are Will and he said, "oh no, I've got a long way to go yet, but thanks."

wonderful... :dance:

Thanks Suggy - it's so nice to hear all the fans meeting with him.

 

London Lite

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v282/whisu01/Untitled_Scanned_01vortex.jpg

 

Thanks to Sanellen on D and Willma on O/S. Same as the picture in the Evening Standard.

Edited January 24, 200718 yr by munchkin