Tuesday, July 24, 2012
'Theatre people are all liars, charlatans, scavengers and fly-by-nights'What first drew you to theatre?I don't really remember being drawn. As a child, acting just seemed like a natural exte…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:38PMTuesday, July 17, 2012
Performing beside HMS Victory, the Royal Navy Theatre Association is just one of hundreds of am-dram groups tackling Shakespeare this year. Laura Barnett takes in a showIt's a chilly ev…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 02:31PMFriday, July 13, 2012
Equity believes theatre group that sees hundreds of performers acting for one audience member at a time should pay wagesTo the uninitiated, it sounds like the sort of special-interest nightc…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 10:56AMTuesday, May 29, 2012
'A critic once said I drew my references from Dad's Army and Noel's House Party'What got you started?I trained as an actor, and became really bossy. I started directing rehearsals of shows d…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 01:30PMSunday, May 20, 2012
A song-and-dance show about obesity and mental illness? Epidemic could pull in big audiences – and improve their healthIn a chilly, high-windowed room, a young man is being pursued by four…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:00PMThursday, May 17, 2012
Shakespeare's Globe, LondonHenry IV: Part I; Compañia Nacional de Teatro, Mexico 4/5Henry IV: Part II; Elkafka Espacio Teatral, Argentina 3/5A burst of Latin percussion from the musicians' …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:02AMTuesday, March 6, 2012
'Which other artists do I admire? The ones that quit at the top of their game'What got you started?I couldn't do anything else for attention. I couldn't sing, I wasn't athletic or physically…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:29PMTuesday, February 21, 2012
At my first audition, they asked me things like: How are you? It didn't seem hard enough' What got you started?An uncle I loved got me into Fred Astaire when I was young. We had a scratchy o…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:01PMTuesday, February 7, 2012
'My biggest career regret? Not turning up for that interview for a part in Alien'What got you started?I had no desire to be an actor. But I started going along to the Citizens theatre in Gla…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:59PMWednesday, February 1, 2012
A number of writers' schemes help young talent get a foothold in theatre. But why do they so often shun those over 25 or 30?Let's begin with a disclaimer: this July, I turn 30. The less gene…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:57AMTuesday, January 31, 2012
'One reviewer said I looked like a giant gnome. I guess I do have prominent ears'What got you started?My parents always told me that if I found something I really loved doing, that was …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMMonday, January 30, 2012
At 14, he was acting alongside Gwyneth. At 18, he was in a Woody. And now, after eight years as the star of Scrubs, Zach Braff has written a play. He talks to Laura Barnett about learning to…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:31PMMonday, December 12, 2011
'Artists I admire? Astaire for his choreography, Hitchcock for his storytelling – and Pinter for his question marks'What got you started?I didn't start training as a dancer until I wa…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMMonday, November 7, 2011
'The Mirror called me a money-grabbing reptile. I could cope with the reptile part, but money-grabbing hurt'When did you first realise you could make people laugh?I was in an art lesson when…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMSunday, November 6, 2011
The Clod Ensemble's fascinating work should blast away any memories of dull anatomy lecturesMy anatomy classes are like performances. I see my students as my audience, and I deliver my lectu…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:15PMTuesday, November 1, 2011
What has tempted Patricia Routledge back on to the stage? A wartime pianist and the King James Bible. She tells Laura Barnett what she thinks of theatre today'History!" says Patricia Routled…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:31PMMonday, October 31, 2011
'The worst thing anyone ever wrote? "Julie Walters obviously thinks she's got good legs." That was painful'What got you started?I just had a desire to entertain from a very early age. When I…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:30PMWednesday, October 26, 2011
Dress in pink day, singing lessons while jogging, a 'love box' messaging network … when it comes to teaching the arts, are youth groups leaving schools behind?Where do artists first discov…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:31PMMonday, October 24, 2011
The women actors of the 17th century may not have been respectable – but at least they had steady jobsWalking around this very interesting exhibition, I found myself thinking a lot about r…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:00PMMonday, October 17, 2011
'Did Beyoncé plagiarise my work? She is not the worst copycat: she's a good dancer, and she has good taste'What got you started?Like so many little girls, I started dancing with ballet, and…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:59PMMonday, September 26, 2011
Edgar Degas clearly loved ballet; there's no voyeurism here, just pleasure in the transport of movement, finds dancer Sarah LambI thought I knew Degas pretty well, but this exhibition taught…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:45PMMonday, September 19, 2011
'The worst thing anyone's ever said? I remember one review began: "Jane Asher, whose charm has always escaped me"'What got you started?Being spotted in the street by a film producer when I w…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:29PMMonday, September 12, 2011
'I once worked as an understudy for Freddie Prinze Jr. The sound of booing still rings in my ears'How did you get into directing?Entertainment was always a part of growing up. I lived above …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:29PMMonday, August 29, 2011
'Doing EastEnders wasn't exactly suffering for my art, but my soul's not in TV. We all have to live, don't we?'What got you started?A lady called Anna Scher. She used to go around the Londo…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMSunday, August 28, 2011
I didn't know all of the historical figures in Caryl Churchill's play Top Girls, but their predicaments were strangely familiarCaryl Churchill's play was written in 1982, before I was born �…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:44PMSunday, August 21, 2011
Illegal immigrants and teeth falling into soup? This enjoyable play doesn't exactly speak to Chinese restaurant owner Stephanie Lo's personal experienceI enjoyed this play, but I expected so…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:44PMMonday, August 8, 2011
'The high point of my career? On the opening night of Hairspray, I wore a sequinned dress with big breasts'What got you into comedy?Seeing Steve Martin on Parkinson when I was a kid. It's on…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMSunday, July 31, 2011
She's not a feminist, but says women are born creative. Juliette Binoche talks to Laura Barnett about her spat with Gérard Depardieu, bad reviews – and why acting is like peeling onionsOn…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:31PMTuesday, July 26, 2011
The French are frankly unshockable at the Avignon festival, plus Lynn Barber shorn and Rabbie Burns's local theatre savedLingua franca in AvignonThe Diary returns fresh from a weekend a…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:00PMEnglish is gloriously absent at the Avignon festival – and, despite my French not being up to much, I found myself wondering if it matteredHow much can you get out of a play if it's perfor…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 07:45AMSunday, July 24, 2011
The RSC's legendary voice coach Cicely Berry has taught everyone from Sean Connery to Samuel L Jackson. But can she fix Laura Barnett's diction?Cicely Berry is not impressed. I'm sitting on …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:15PM 
