A Lara Pulver fix

I just spotted a nice photo of Lara Pulver at the press night for A Streetcar Named Desire at David Thompson's photostream on Flickr.

It seems to be copyrighted so I won't include it here.

(Although I realise that didn't stop me from doing screen-grabs of Robin Hood...)

http://www.flickr.com/photos/david_thompson/3766966470/

The Big Interview: Ruth Wilson

The Official London Theater Guide has a (literally) big interview with Ruth Wilson. It's dated 22 Jul 2009. Here's a snippet:

It is an odd sensation, chatting to Ruth Wilson; part admiration, part jealousy, part self-loathing and part-dumbfoundedness, writes Matthew Amer.

Every other sentence the actress, who leapt to fame in the BBC adaptation of Jane Eyre and is currently playing Stella in the Donmar Warehouse production of A Streetcar Named Desire, reels out a story, an anecdote or an idea that she has somehow managed to cram into a life so packed it makes a tin of sardines look as spacious as Wembley Stadium three hours after the end of a Take That concert.

Whether it be freeing leopards or quadbiking in Namibia, chatting with Wilson makes me feel slightly inadequate at every turn. If she had the merest hint of complacency or a self-congratulatory air about her, I could revel in disliking this charmed existence. But she hasn’t. She is, of course, a delight, and slightly confused as to why each successive story brings a wide grin to my face or draws a laugh.

You can find the complete article at http://www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk/news/latest/view/item106767/

Small Island trailer

The BBC press office website has a trailer for Small Island and lots of other stuff from the Autumn 2009 schedule. Thanks to http://spiffyjellybean.blogspot.com/ where I saw the link.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pressreleases/stories/2009/07_july/09/bbcone.shtml

My Life In Travel: Ruth Wilson, actress

Today's Independent newspaper (at least I assume it's today's) has an article about Ruth's travels.

http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/my-life-in-travel-ruth-wilson-actress-1740836.html

Agnes Kittelsen in Max Manus

I've been getting a lot of DVDs watched lately. The other night I watched a Norwegian WW2 movie called Max Manus Man of War. it's based on the real-life exploits of member of the Norwegian resistance. The makers are obviously proud of the story and have lavished lots of care and attention on the movie.

There's one little moment that I loved in the middle of the movie. Some resistance guys are on a hill above the harbour waiting to see if a ship explodes on schedule. They get distracted by a couple of nice ladies walking past while in the distance the ship explodes, the sound of which takes a second or two to arrive. Lovely little detail.

Anyway I was quite taken by Agnes Kittlesen who plays 'Tikken', a contact in the British consulate in Sweden. It was only later that I realised there's a Ruth Wilson thing going on. Well, maybe it's just me.

In any case I'll be keeping my eyes on Norwegian cinema from now on!

Ruth Wilson's "sticky, sweaty play"

Thanks to Barbie for this.

There is an article called ‘A sticky, sweaty play’ at the Spectator magazine where Ruth Wilson talks about her role as Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire.

If Ruth Wilson doesn’t very soon become a major force to be reckoned with, as an actress, director, producer, screenwriter (probably all four), I’ll eat my entire, quite extensive collection of hats. She is bursting with talent and possesses a gleefully voracious appetite for a challenge. This is probably just as well as she is about to take on the role of Stella at the Donmar Warehouse in Tennessee Williams’s A Streetcar Named Desire.

You can read the whole article at http://www.spectator.co.uk/the-magazine/arts/3755278/a-sticky-sweaty-play.thtml

Just seen Franklyn, and I like it

Franklyn caught my eye when it came out a few months ago in the cinema. Not that I got around to seeing it in the cinema, but then I see hardly anything in the cinemas. I've just seen it tonight on DVD and I have to say I enjoyed it very much. It won't be to every-one's taste but I liked what I saw.

I don't really want to give too much away but basically the movie dips in and out of the lives of four characters, three of which live in contemporary London and the forth lives in the fantastical Meanwhile City. By the end of the movie the four stories converge.

Special mention must be made of Eva Green who plays the troubled Emilia with a combination of darkness and vulnerability.

The production design and the visuals of Meanwhile City are wonderful. And watch out for the actors who play roles in both London and Meanwhile City. That's a clue for you!

And that's pretty much all I want to say. Give it a chance. You might like it.

Lara Pulver and Ruth Wilson plays

My two worlds collide. This whatsonstage story about Lara Pulver mentioned Ruth Wilson as well.

Congratulations and good luck to Lara Pulver. The British actress has been invited across the pond to reprise her role as Lucille Frank, the dedicated wife of convicted murderer Leo Frank, in the Los Angeles production of Jason Robert Brown’s musical Parade. Robert Brown’s Tony Award-winning 1998 musical received its UK premiere two years ago at the Donmar Warehouse, with American choreographer Rob Ashford making his directorial debut, helming a cast led by Pulver and Bertie Carvel as Leo Frank.

Ashford is now reviving the Donmar production with Pulver leading a new American cast, including TR Knight (from TV’s Grey’s Anatomy) as Leo in a limited season at the Mark Taper Forum in downtown LA from 21 September to 15 November 2009. Pulver was Olivier and Whatsonstage.com Award nominated for her performance as Lucille. Speaking to us about the new US engagement, she said: “I am so pleased this production has a life, after such an amazing experience at the Donmar, and it’s a huge compliment that they've invited me to come over to re-create the role.”

Based on a true story, Parade is set in 1913 Atlanta, where a Jewish man from Brooklyn stands accused of the murder of a young factory worker. It has a book by Alfredy Urhy, music and lyrics by Brown and was co-conceived by Harold Prince, who directed its premiere at New York’s Lincoln Center in 1998.

Ashford is back at the Donmar this month, about to make his play directing debut with a revival of Tennessee Williams’ A Streetcar Named Desire, starring Rachel Weisz, Elliot Cowan and Ruth Wilson. And Pulver has just been seen in the recession plays Everything Must Go!, which finished at Soho Theatre this past weekend.

Source: http://www.whatsonstage.com/index.php?pg=207&story=E8831246882907&title=Lara+Pulver+Conquers+LA+in+Donmar+Parade%3F%3F%3F

Rachel Nichols enters my awareness

My burst of enthusiasm for July 2009 is actress Rachel Nichols. A few days ago I don't think I was aware of who she was. Then I watched a movie called P2 (as in parking level 2) and was very impressed. It was much better than I thought it would be and turned out to be a tense little thriller about a woman trapped by a obsessed security guard in a parking garage on Christmas Eve. I would quite readily compare Rachel's performance to that of Sigourney Weaver in Alien (which, coincidentally, I had watched again the night before watching P2).


Doing a little research it turns out she was in the fifth and final season of Alias. I was a big fan of Alias, at least for the first couple of years but I confess I never got to see the final season. I'll be looking for it on DVD if the price is right.


This summer Rachel is in the GI Joe movie. This will be certainly be excruciatingly awful, directed as it it by Steven Sommers, the man responsible for the dire Van Helsing. More fool me, I expect I'll end up renting GI Joe on DVD. For Rachel.

PS I think she was the green lady in the new Star Trek movie!