Curtain Call Podcast

Earlier this week, in Episode 70 of the Curtain Call Theatre Podcast, we brought you the company of People, Places & Things...well, not the entire company. There were three local actresses that joined the West End Transfer at the St. Anne's Warehouse in Brooklyn, New York. I chatted to them about their previous experiences of the show, what it was like joining an already well-established company and just what is a "Super Emma".

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Matt Humphrey and I had the opportunity to fly over to New York and catch People, Places & Things at the St Anne’s Warehouse in Brooklyn. With both of us having seen the show a couple times before, we got to watch it again before heading backstage last Friday night. And I cannot begin to tell you how phenomenal this production was. The company has grown in stature, taking Jeremy Herrin’s production of Duncan Macmillan’s play to new heights.

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The Evening Standard Theatre Awards shortlist was revealed with two cast members from The Ferryman among those nominated. Laura Donnelly has been nominated for Best Actress and Tom Glynn-Carney for the Emerging Talent Award. Curtain Call paid a visit to The Ferryman when it was on at The Royal Court, just as they announced their transfer to The Gielgud in London's West End.

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We have seen a recent spate of high profile actresses making acceptance speeches at awards nights - highlighting the unequal representation of actresses on stage and screen and the need to redress the balance. It kicked off in earnest with Denise Gough at the 2017 Olivier Awards, actor Jimmy Nesbit even chipped in at the BAFTA TV awards, and is continuing as witnessed by Deirdre Mullins’ speech after picking up a Best Actress in Film award at the Scottish BAFTA’s. 

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A few months ago, we went over to the ENO London Coliseum to take in the theatre spectacle that is Bat Out of Hell: The Musical. It started in Manchester before moving down to London, and last weekend the entire London company started their run in Toronto at the Mirvish Theatre. Bat Out of Hell is like nothing I have ever seen...or heard. The sound system in that theatre was incredible. And there were so many people in that production, that, for the first time, I had to have help to make sure that we talked to as many of the company as possible. Theo Bosanquet, who you have heard on this podcast before, and I spoke to scores of people that night, and we hope to have the majority of that content up on our site soon. This week, I thought I would bring you the full chat I had with Sharon Sexton, who plays Sloane in the show. We talked about everything from being in such a physically demanding show, various states of dress and how a musical theatre actor can keep their voice in tact during a long run of a show that’s such a big sing.

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We were fortunate enough to find time with multi award-winning lighting designer Paule Constable, an associate of the National Theatre where her many credits include Follies, Angels in America, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time and War Horse. She talked to Theo Bosanquet and Matt Humphrey about her serendipitous entry into the profession, her design process and collaborations with directors including Marianne Elliott, and how she feels the industry can improve in regards to gender and diversity. 

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Curtain Call attended The Mono Box September Speech Surgery and talked to Niall Bishop.

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I have been waiting to chat to my next guest for ages! I first met Olivia Williams when I was understudying Matthew Fox in Neil Labute’s two-hander “In a Forest Dark and Deep” back in 2011, and have had the privilege to share the stage with her on numerous Word Theatre stages around London. I am in AWE of her talent. Olivia doesn’t just play characters, she inhabits them. Rosemary Cross in Rushmore or Anna Crowe in The Sixth Sense to Miss Stubbs in An Education. On screen, you just believe her. And that’s brilliant acting. As for her on stage exploits...she’s such a powerhouse. And she's going from strength to strength in her latest production "Mosquitoes" at the National Theatre in London.

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Curtain Call had the privilege of attending a Q&A after a performance of Man to Man at the Wilton's Music Hall this week. A fascinating discussion with Director Bruce Guthrie and Translator Alexandra Wood.

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This week's podcast was recorded in the press room of The Stage Debut Awards, where winners and guest presenters spoke to Curtain Call's Theo Bosanquet about their own debuts. The answers were touching and surprising in equal measure (suffice it to say, we're keen to see Rufus Norris reprise his performance of a chicken). Guests you'll here from include Preeya Kalidas, Dan Gillespie Sells, Grace Moloney, Noma Dumezweni, Christina Bennington, Abraham Popoola, Lekan Lawal, Rufus Norris, Nica Burns and Kenneth Cranham. 

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