My submission to the Royal Court – 100 word plays event

Important Things

Man: I want to say something but don’t know what.
A Second Man: You want to say nothing then.
Man: No, I know there is something to be said.
The Second Man: But not by you.
Man: It has to be me.
(pause)
Man: I am the one who knows it needs to be said. I have to say it.
The Second Man: It must be very important.
Man: It is.
The Second Man: I only have time to hear important things.
Man: I only have time to think important things.
(pause)
Man: I only think important things. But never find time to say them.

The End

All New People at the Duke of York’s theatre – Review

Zach Braff as Charlie and Paul Hilton as Myron in All New People. Photo by Alastair Muir

There is no getting away from the fact that All New People wants to be so much  more than it is (funnier, more profound, more interesting) but generally falls short of these intentions. On the other hand, there is something heroic in the effort.

Charlie is at a beach house in the middle of the winter, ready to kill himself. He is interrupted by Emma, an eccentric British real estate agent trying to rent the house, who brings along her friend Myron (an ex drama teacher turned fireman / drug dealer). At some point, Kim, a friendly escort sent to Charlie as a present, shows up and the four of them try to negotiate the rest of the evening, with Charlie determined to his course of action.

The Hamlet Challenge Entry No 2: Copenhagen at Sheffield theatres

Before going to Sheffied this past Thursday, I knew very little about Michael Frayn’s play Copenhagen. Something about nuclear physics and the bomb. I quite like not knowing anything about a play, all part of discovering everything in the moment.

Geoffrey Streatfeild as Heisenberg in Copenhagen Photo by Manuel Harlan

In the end, Copenhagen proved a superb play in a superb production. The play itself reminded me of Arcadia, with its visceral approach of ideas, science, morality & mortality. I think that Arcadia might be the best play ever written, so anything that comes close is a masterpiece.

You can call the production challenging, but that might miss the point. It was challenging, both because it presents something important and profound, but also because of the challenge of hanging on in a fabulous emotional and intellectual ride. Like skiing down a slope, a motif of the play itself.