Sunday, 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 05:15PMTuesday, July 19, 2011
Laura Barnett is your spirit guide as the potter's wheel of art remoulds a Hollywood blockbuster into something else on the West End stageLaura Barnett
SOURCE: The Guardian at 12:32PMTuesday, July 12, 2011
Councils contemplate art fire sale, plus the lure of the 50s, Motley Theatre Design Course closes, and oh my darling Cher LloydSave the Bolton PicassosShould local councils sell off works of…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMMonday, July 11, 2011
'After Band of Gold, I got sick of taxi drivers saying, 'You're that prostitute off the telly – are you available?''What made you decide to become an actor?When I was 11 or 12 and at …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:31PMMonday, June 13, 2011
'I was brought up a Quaker. I'm not practising, but I'd like to be remembered for being true to Quaker pacifism'How did you get into directing?My dad ran an Aladdin's cave of an antique…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMMonday, May 30, 2011
'In Hollywood, they don't respect you if you make your own tea and go by bike instead of limousine'Why did you decide to become an actor?From a very young age, I wanted to get up on stage wh…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:29PMSunday, May 29, 2011
Gossip blogger Sam Nathan feels vindicated by the shameless rumour-mongering in a funky update on Sheridan's playEighteenth-century farce isn't usually my bag, but I enjoyed this. The produc…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMSunday, May 15, 2011
'My advice to a young actor? Keep your clothes on'What got you started?My father was a TV scriptwriter. He would perform his dialogue out loud, while my mum transcribed it at the typewriter.…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:31PMTuesday, May 3, 2011
'I'm a good person. I have ethics. I haven't let my parents down. And I've run the marathon three times'What got you started?Doing amateur dramatics in my spare time. I was working as a secr…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:47AMMonday, April 25, 2011
Currently tackling Harold Pinter's Moonlight at London's Donmar, the director says he won't let reviews keep him from experimentingIn 2003, Bijan Sheibani directed a double-bill of plays by …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:50AMCurrently tackling Harold Pinter's Moonlight at London's Donmar, the director says he won't let reviews keep him from experimentingIn 2003, Bijan Sheibani directed a double-bill of plays by …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:50AMMonday, April 18, 2011
'I'd love to do a big West End musical. I was never into them before, but they're a dirty pleasure now'How did you get into directing?Running a community drama group at Norwich Arts Centre. …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMSunday, April 17, 2011
From the stocking guidelines to the sex, dentist Martin Fallowfield approves the new production of this 1938 play – but where are all the patients?This play is set in a dentist's waiting r…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMMonday, April 11, 2011
A theatre critic has caused controversy by snoring through Terence Rattigan's Cause Célèbre. But surely there are worse things than a mid-show snooze. Aren't there?Poor Paul Taylor. There …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 11:47AMMonday, March 28, 2011
'Once when I was playing Groucho Marx I fainted – and when I came round my trousers were round my ankles'What got you started?As a child, I had an innate desire to think about what it was …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:01PMSunday, March 20, 2011
Fertility expert Adam Balen finds Lorca's play a brilliant exploration of the pain felt by a couple's inability to conceiveThis play by Federico García Lorca is a brilliant exploration of t…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:33PMWednesday, March 16, 2011
From 'hot 100s' to Oliviers, Oscars and Baftas, we're obsessed with ranking and categorising artists. But who does it benefit?There are, to borrow a phrase, two types of people in the world:…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 09:03AMMonday, March 14, 2011
'I'm embarrassed daily on set. My job is a series of humiliations, peppered with moments of getting it right'What got you started?I'm one of those people who wanted to act from the age …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 06:29PMSunday, March 6, 2011
A hilarious twist on Scotland's bottled water that showcases west-coast humour, says VisitScotland's Shona AndersonThe idea behind these hilarious short plays is that Ayrshire council has be…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:29PMSunday, February 20, 2011
Footwear is a serious matter – something Shoes: The Musical doesn't pay enough attention toI've never known a nun to buy a pair of my high heels. But in this entertaining musical, we …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:15PMMonday, February 14, 2011
'I was once called "the Asian woman Bengali writer". I thought, why not just call me a writer?'What got you started?Getting my play The Waiting Room on at the National [in 2000]. I'd be…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:59PMSunday, February 13, 2011
Dance is a fantastic way to convey the experience of social networking, says computer scientist Harold ThimblebyThis dance piece is all about sexual relationships, and whether or not they ca…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:15PMMonday, February 7, 2011
'I danced Juliet at 19. I remember standing in the wings on opening night, telling the director I was hungover'What got you started?Being a very naughty little girl. There was a very strict …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:31PMSunday, February 6, 2011
Junior doctor Sabrina Talukdar can't find a single medical inaccuracy in Nina Raine's play about the NHS – except the ultra-callous attitude of medical staffI'd hate for patients to think …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:45PMMonday, January 31, 2011
'I don't like other actors much – they're mostly insecure and needy. I can't bear that "luvvy darling" thing'What got you started?Real ale. When I was 15 I joined the Glasgow Youth Theatre…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMWednesday, January 26, 2011
After notching up impressive performances on stage and on TV, Lyndsey Marshal is hitting the big time – thanks to Clint EastwoodWhen Lyndsey Marshal told her mum she was going to be i…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:31PMSunday, January 16, 2011
Amphibians brilliantly catches the joy and intensity of competitive swimming – but its coach is a bit foul-mouthed!I found this play very moving. It's about two former Olympic swimmers, Ma…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:15PMMonday, January 3, 2011
'I've been very lucky – I've worked consistently and I haven't had to kiss a lot of people on stage'What got you started?You're born with the performing gene. I was a show-off at school, s…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 04:59PMMonday, December 27, 2010
'I played a fairy in a Christmas show called Only Fools and Turkeys. It was set in a cafe – and builders took the mickey'What got you started?I thought I was funny as a kid. I used to play…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PMThursday, December 16, 2010
Adam Night from Newcastle is happy to insinuate that your boss is an idiot, but he won't take a risk on hypnotising drunk peopleI do an average of 18 Christmas parties during December. Most …
SOURCE: The Guardian at 03:00AMMonday, December 13, 2010
It may be fun. It may be titillating. But let's not call it liberating or empowering to watch women remove their clothes in publicIt was the nipple tassles that did it. There they were, spin…
SOURCE: The Guardian at 05:30PM 
