Encore Theatre Magazine

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Banker number three's coming in early 2007: a revival of The Seagull, directed by Ian Rickson, with Kirsten Scott Thomas and MacKenzie Crook. Excepting internal transfers and back-catalogue re-runs this must be the first RC main stage revival since Three Sisters in '96 (co-produced with Out Of Joint). A Chekhov plus stars package with straight-to-the-West End "commercial success" written all over it. Let's hope it gives
Dominic Cooke a big enough financial surplus to hit the ground running...

# posted by

Anonymous : 30/7/06 10:22 pm

...but a new Caryl Churchill play as well...

# posted by

Anonymous : 30/7/06 10:49 pm

Though the Rickson Seagull was mooted early this year to replace the Cloud 9 revival until it was pointed out that it would clash with Royal Court associate director Katie Mitchell's own production opening at the National Theatre. Rickson, of course, in his usual insensitive way thought this would be no problem.

Presumably this is the Court's equivalent of a golden handshake. Thanks for your work here, and here's a free production to help you launch your freelance career. The Court shouldn't be doing this; that play with that cast could open in the West End without a problem. So why is the Court doing it? They'll say it bankrolls the rest of the season, but that's a poor argument. The Court's distinctiveness is as the new writing theatre. It is challenges by The Bush, The Finborough, The Soho and various other theatres outside London. The National and the RSC have serious new writing programmes. It needs to cleave to being what it used to call 'the powerhouse of new writing' or else its claim to funding will start to look very shaky.

# posted by

Theatre Worker : 31/7/06 9:06 am

That's true. What's curious about the Court's Seagull also is that it's adapted by Christopher Hampton, who has said in both the introduction to his collected plays and in an interview with Harriet Devine, that he could considers the Court to be somewhere for young, less well established writers and that is the reason he no longer works with them. Maybe the Stoppard changed his mind...

Also I heard that Rickson was also directing the new Caryl Churchill next season, which would mean he'll direct two of the three downstairs production in Cooke's inaugural season...

# posted by

Anonymous : 1/8/06 2:15 pm

I heard wrong. The new season's on the website. James Maccie D's doing the Churchill.

# posted by

Anonymous : 1/8/06 2:20 pm

It did seem unlikely, given his antipathy to that kind of work, and James McD's evident sympathy for that tradition. But that was a nasty moment...

Still, like the second anonymous commentator puts it, a new Caryl Churchill play! This is something to celebrate indeed, whatever the background foolishness at the Court.

# posted by

Theatre Worker : 1/8/06 6:49 pm

A new Churchill play is always something to celebrate. The rest of the season is of little interest though - a new Mexican play (the Court's International Programme has produced some of its most extraordinary dross of recent years), a new Meredith Oakes and a collaboratively written play about ID cards (celebration the 'tradition' of Lay By and England's England, both pretty awful even according to some of the writers). And apparently no YWF this year...
But what's coming up the Bush isn't of much interest either (Pumpgirl was dreadful). Along with the Churchill, the most promising new plays coming up are Dennis Kelly's Love and Money at the Young Vic and Conor McPherson's The Seafarer at the National - significantly neither are principally new writing theatres.

# posted by

Anonymous : 2/8/06 11:35 am

# posted by

Anonymous : 25/1/07 8:52 pm

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