We saw Tiger Country all together at The Hampstead Theatre.  It was the best show we had seen so far in London as a group.  The play was about doctors working in a major hospital in London.  According to our dramatic criticism professor, the author had actually lived in a couple of hospitals for extended periods of time doing research.  Perhaps what was most striking about the play, therefore, was its predominant themes of death, since doctors and patients each come to the realization that every one of them must die no matter what his or her sacrifices have been.  Generally, the acting and the script were engaging.  The actors seemed to be genuinely invested in their roles and developed throughout the play.  The projections and design emphasized the focuses of the play.  In particular, the transition of the lead female from operating on actual bodies to operating on a dummy was effective in demonstrating her increasing apathy toward the patients.  The main critique of the play that we discussed in class was that there were too many principal characters in the play and thus too much material that we, as viewers, wanted to be developed...that there simply was not enough time to address within the span of two hours.

On Monday night, I went to Chekhov's Three Sisters performed by a Russian company visiting the Noel Coward theatre.  Having just read The Cherry Orchard for Thursday class, I was immediately struck by how much easier it is to understand Chekhov when it is performed than on the page.  This is also, of course, a credit to the acting.  My only critique is that some of the behaviors of the actors seemed more like dance choreography intended to create striking pictures than natural, Stanislavsky behavior that Chekhov intended.  (Thursday class was very informative about the strong relationship between Stanislavsky and Chekhov.)

On Friday night, I spent a little more than an hour talking to Lizzy and Victoria, which was delightful. :)  I do miss Columbia and New York in general.

Last night, we went to a bar called The Big Chill House.  The heat was alleviated by hordes of happy people (including most of the BADA students), cold beers and cider, and a DJ that played classics and new jams we all know and tolerate, if not love.  It was a relatively chill night compared to last Friday, but it was a good time all the same.

We start performing scenes for our Shakespeare class tomorrow and I must work on memorization and staging and such, so this post must come to a close.  I'm hoping to do a Beatrice/Benedick scene with Sean next---ooo I do want to watch that movie for the one thousandth time soon...