On the road again: London, day 1
Today was rather short, because I spent the middle of it in a long nap to make up for having gotten no real sleep on the plane. In the late afternoon, I got up, unpacked, showered, and headed out. Late lunch/early dinner was at a small pub next to the Trafalgar Studios theatres, where I had the privilege of seeing Martin Freeman and a wonderful cast of British actors bring Shakespeare's Richard III to stunning life.
Intense, tightly staged, constantly busy, and perfectly performed, director Jamie Lloyd's Richard III never let up. Freeman delivered a masterful performance as a Richard so angry and so self-focused that at no point did he ever question what he was doing; he had a plan, and God help anyone who got in his way. The World War II-like setting fit the play perfectly, and the intimacy of the theater--I was maybe four paces from Freeman for much of the show--heightened the tension and drew the audience deeper into the action.
If you find yourself in London while it is still running, I highly recommend this play.
For a late and light dinner, I picked up an egg mayonnaise and some Coke Zero, along with a treat--my favorite water, Vittel--at a local Tesco.
Tonight, I plan to sleep a very long time.
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4 comments:
I haven't been to London in years. Some in our group also went to the theater but our seats were way, way up in the highest balcony. I really enjoy reading about your travel experiences.
Thanks for the kind words. I've always enjoyed my theatre trips here, even when the seats have been less than ideal.
We could see the production well from our seats. The scary part about the seats was that the pitch was so steep, when I stood up, I was afraid that if I leaned forward, I would take a very ungraceful dive down to the floor level! I sometimes have fear of heights; this is one time I definitely did.
Thanks for the museum tour in your most recent blog. When I was in England, one time I was touring w/ the Raleigh Concert band and the second time I was touring w/ my kids and their high school band as a chaperone, and although we got some time to explore, as you know, there are always more great things to check out. Thanks again for the great travel posts.
You're most welcome.
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