REVIEW - Twelfth Night at The Globe

FIVE STARS

IT is an exhilarating experience watching a play performed at the Globe theatre. It is largely down to the atmosphere generated by the audience, many of whom are standing in the pit area.

But when that audience is predominantly made up of teenagers, this amazing atmosphere is ramped up to a whole other level.

And this is currently the case with a production of Twelfth Night which is being staged as part of the Bankside theatre's Playing Shakespeare project.

With the text cut neatly to about 100 minutes, the production is geared towards teenagers and brings out the main themes of the play without losing any of the drama or the wonderful language.

Director Bill Buckhurst's version begins with Viola and twin brother Sebastian atop a shipping container which is rotated round the stage by the rest of the cast to show the violence of the storm that eventually separates them.

While Sebastian is rescued by Antonio, Viola is washed up on the shore and resolves to dress as a man in order to work for the Duke Orlando.

As Cesario, Viola has the task of wooing the lady Olivia on Orlando's behalf. However, Olivia will have none of it and instead falls in love with Cesario who in turn has fallen for Orlando.

Meanwhile Olivia's man Malvolio is being mightily abused by her cousin Sir Toby Belch, her maid Maria and friend Sir Andrew Aguecheek.

Eventually of course, all the storylines come good, order is restored and Sebastian and Viola are reunited.

Despite the cut in the text, the story is easy to follow and the language shines. The comedy of the situations is worked to the max and the mostly young audience loved it, whooping and cheering throughout.

Fast paced, energetic and very funny, it was inventively staged and well acted with stand out performances from Dickon Tyrrell as Sir Toby and Molly Logan as Viola.

For any youngster who has never seen a Shakespeare play performed, go and see this one. It's terrific.

Twelfth Night is on at the Globe Theatre until Friday, March 18. Visit www.shakespearesglobe.com/ for full listings.

INTERVIEW Judge Jules

ANYONE remotely interested in music will have heard the name Judge Jules. In a career spanning almost 30 years, he has immersed himself in the music business more fully than most.

Most notably he is a musician, lawyer and an award-winning pioneer of the electronic music scene establishing himself as a master behind the decks in venues all over the world and influencing a generation of music and musicians in the process.

He’s currently gearing up to play at the legendary Ministry of Sound in Southwark, a gig that is part of his huge Judgement Tour that spreads across the UK and will head to Europe this summer.

The Ministry is a venue he tells me he always looks forward to, not least because it's on home turf, and this one, on March 18 is no exception.

"London audiences are great," he says warmly. "When the crowd gets behind you and you look out and see all those faces, people enjoying themselves and getting swept up in the dancing, there is nothing better.

“I’ve played the Ministry loads of times and I love it. It’s got an iconic sound system and there are lots of rooms with different music in each to get immersed in.

"It’s always a good event there and people travel a long way to be there so I always want to do my best.”

He comes to London on the back of two tracks that smashed the Beatport progressive house chart – Peekaboo and Turn On The Lights, both of which got in to the top 30 – and work in a back to back set with Marco V.

“A lot of gigs in the 90s were back to back,” he tells me. “Two DJs with two distinct sounds but working together.

“Marco V is great, very well respected so I’m really looking forward to it.

"The set list will be a real mix. I describe my sound as different – what I do is either my own stuff or a one-off variation of other people’s because as a DJ you need to differentiate yourself – even if it is a familiar track it will be my own version.

“I’ve always got a lot of my own new productions but there will be a mix of tunes that have been made and released, stuff that is close to completion and some that will be heard for the first time.

"But Marco and I are only a part of it - it’s actually a pretty big line up and I’m really excited to be there."

Jules started his career in the late 80s when he was about 16. He and some mates found a “large venue” and promoted a music night. And that was just the beginning.

Before long he was promoting raves but had also carved his name in the history of DJing as one of its most successful.

“I started when I was 16 and because I was at school I had a massive social circle which meant we had a big crowd,” he said.

“We put on these huge events in dirty warehouses which gave me experience of promoting myself as a DJ. When acid house happened it was all about illegal raves. It was quite bold and brave but when you are young you are fearless,” he chuckles.

“Pop and early house elements were what I grew up with and my love of music evolved over the years.”

From those early days he has since gigged all over the world including extensive residencies in Ibiza.

“It’s the longest standing residency in Ibiza which I’m proud of but I do have to pinch myself sometimes when I think about it,” he says.

“I spend a lot of time there and speak fluent Spanish - there is definitely a lot of love there.”

But he says Ministry is up there with his favourites.

“There are few venues like it,” he says. "It’s an amazing venue with fantastic DJs and I love being there.

"I have always gone there socially and I remember DJing there in the early days. The décor is great, the branding is very good and the compilation records have extended its reputation. People always have a great time there."

Throughout our chat he is both modest about his achievements, passionate about his craft and comes across as driven and hard working.

Evidence of which can be seen in his work as an entertainment lawyer.

“I have to be very organised,” he says when I ask him how he fits all these elements into his life.

“I’ve been a lawyer for four years and it takes up a lot of my time but it’s all centred around dance music so it’s all very connected.

“I did a Law degree when I was 21 at the London School of Economics but was DJing and working elsewhere in the business.

“But when I hit my 40s I decided that I would give myself a shot at being a lawyer. It seemed a natural way forward so I went to night school, redid my degree and now spend most of the week as a music lawyer.”

And it’s clear he enjoys the challenge of the many aspects to his career.

“I’m very driven,” he admits. “You only live once so why waste your life? The opportunities don’t come knocking on the front door.

"I am passionate about music and don’t look backwards, only forward. I'm never half hearted about my work and aim to do everything to a high standard. That's very ."

But now it's all about the gigs and as well as a rousing call to his loyal fans, this Judgement Tour will be a chance to introduce himself to a new generation of dance music lovers.

“It’s exciting but I love what I do,” he says. “The biggest challenge is to sell yourself to the next generation so you never rest.

“I have got a recognisable brand name but I can’t be complacent. It’s the love of what I do that drives me. I’ve just immersed myself in music from day one and count myself very lucky. You can’t fake that passion.

“If everyone on the dance floor is looking at you when you are on the decks, dancing and totally loving it and enjoying themselves, then you know you are doing the right thing and it’s amazing."

Judge Jules will be at the Ministry of Sound, Gaunt Street, Southwark on Friday, March 18 as part of his Judgement Tour. Visit www.judgejules.net or www.ministryofsound.com/ for tickets.

INTERVIEW Simon Dormandy, director of Luce at the Southwark Playhouse

WITH the threat of extremism and terrorism ever present in our lives it is perhaps timely for a play about such a subject to be staged.

Luce, written by JC Lee, comes to the Southwark Playhouse next week where it will get its UK premiere. Directed by former actor and teacher Simon Dormandy it boasts a six-strong cast including Bake Off star Mel Giedroyc.

For Simon it is an exciting prospect - not only to work with Mel and on a play which he says is both thrilling and gripping, but also for it to receive its UK premiere at the Elephant & Castle-based theatre which he describes as "wonderful".

“It is very exciting and I’m thrilled to be directing this fantastic play,” he tells me in a break from rehearsals.

“It is disturbing, thought provoking and a bit like a thriller as the audience is presented with the story but really have no idea what’s going to happen and how it's going to be resolved."

The play itself is set in an ordinary American town and centres on a nice American family of two white parents who adopted an African war orphan, Luce, when he was seven.

Now 17, he is every mother and teacher’s dream - he’s hard working, clever, a great athlete and destined to go to a top university. In short he's an inspiration and a role model for other students.

That is until one day his teacher reads an essay he has written in praise of extremism and terrorism and in which he extols the virtues of right wing European nationalism.

His teacher is so unnerved that unable to let it pass, she searches his locker and to her dismay finds lethal explosives.

It is at this point that the lives of those involved unravel.

"It's every parent and teacher's nightmare," says Simon. "Throughout the play it raises troubling questions about parenting, schooling, racism, terrorism, extremism and growing up as a young black man in a mainly white society.

“The audience will be challenged by it and it will certainly resonate with anyone who is a parent or teacher.

“A very big part of it is about what happens when you put someone on a pedestal, live your life through them and what damage it can cause – and how you can kill someone with kindness.

"What the play exposes is how teachers and parents put their expectations on young people and create the pressures that lead to rebellion or that lead them to do things to get some freedom.”

Despite its dark storyline, Simon insists it's also very funny and bringing Mel Giedroyc in to play Amy, Luce's mum, will bring the humour to the fore.

"It's extremely tightly and beautifully written," he enthuses. "I came across it in 2012 after the events of 7/7 and before the atrocities of San Bernadino and Boston. Of course since then there have been other incidents such as the Paris attacks which make it even more relevant.

"Apart from the fact Mel's in it, and she's brilliant, there is a hairaising sense that it is a play about something that not enough people are writing about - seeing these things from the perspective of those who may or may not be perpetrators in these dreadful atrocities.

"But the sheer quality of the writing is what makes it. Every page is exciting to read and to act. It’s fast paced, lean and witty and puts the audience in an uncomfortable position. It definitely holds a mirror up to our society.

"It was also important to me to cast people who the audience can identify with," he adds. "Mel is a case in point. She plays Amy, a sweet, lovely, funny and eccentric modern young mum and as the play evolves she makes decisions which will make the audience sit up and think.”

Although Simon started his career as an actor, performing with the Royal Shakespeare Company and at The Old Vic among others, he says he has no desire to be on the stage with the rest of the cast stressing his acting days are very much behind him.

Instead he's very much loving directing, a career that he's enjoying after a 15-year stint as a teacher at Eton College.

It was here that he taught the likes of actors Tom Hiddleston and Oscar winner Eddie Redmayne although he dismisses any idea that he might have had something to do with their successful careers.

"They were both academically very able and I knew they were both extremely good actors at school," he says.

"They are phenomenal actors - the finesse and detail of their work is incredible - but they would be so even if they’d never met me.

"I went into teaching as I didn’t find acting completely satisfying and wanted to work in a slightly different way.

"However, I had always tended to think a bit like a director and was fascinated by the structure of drama and how to make it.

"After about 15 years teaching I wanted to see what it was like working with professionals again so I changed tack and moved into directing."

And he says he doesn't regret his decision and is pleased to be working at the Southwark Playhouse, a venue he's not worked at before.

"It's an exciting place," he says. "It's one of those wonderful small venues where they take on new writing and make brave decisions.

"I really admire their programming and I'm thrilled to be here and directing such a great piece of work with such a talented cast."

Luce is on at the Southwark Playhouse between Wednesday, March 9 and Saturday, April 2. Tickets cost £20. Visitwww.southwarkplayhouse.co.uk or call the box office on 020 7407 0234

INTERVIEW with Nigel Plaskitt, puppeteer and puppet coach for Avenue Q

BEHIND every puppet is a great actor. And behind them is someone like Nigel Plaskitt.

Nigel is a puppeteer and coach, something he has been doing most of his adult life after starting out as an actor.

During his long career he has worked on his fair share of exciting projects, most notably TV shows such as Spitting Image, films such as The Muppet Christmas Carol and the stage musical of Doctor Dolittle.

His current project is one he has been involved with for about 10 years, that of the hit stage show Avenue Q.

A smash hit on Broadway and in the West End this multi award-winning comedy musical is currently on a UK tour and coming to the New Wimbledon Theatre for a week from Monday March 14.

The show features a host of puppets brought to life by an ensemble cast of 11 performers – all of whom have been trained by Nigel.

"It’s a great show, very funny but definitely not for children,” he laughs. "It’s an adult take on Sesame Street, featuring characters who might have been in that show, and what happens to them when they grow up and leave home to go to university.

"During the show they find themselves in situations that most people can identify with at some point in their lives. It’s funny, rude and a lot of fun to be involved in.”

The story is about a group of characters who inhabit a New York neighbourhood of Avenue Q. Amongst them is Brian and his fiancée Christmas Eve, Nicky and his closet gay Republican roommate Rod, Trekkie Monster and the cute kindergarten teacher Kate Monster. Into their world comes Princeton, a bright eyed graduate with big dreams and a tiny bank account and it his arrival that heralds adventure and fun.

To make the characters come alive, the puppeteers have to act, sing, do all the voices and learn how to move the puppets so that the audience looks at the puppets rather than the actors.

It has been Nigel's job for the past 10 years to train all those involved. But if you think it looks easy he says you should think again.

"It’s actually extremely difficult and not everyone can do it,” he says. "The actors make it look easy but it takes a lot of practice and co-ordination.

"There is a huge amount to think about and that’s where I come in by teaching them how to use the puppets.”

He says the puppets themselves are not heavy and indeed are made to be really light as they have to be easy to move around. But he says for the actors it’s learning how to move in a totally new and unnatural way that is the tricky bit.

"It’s just off being comfortable," he explains. "I always tell them that if they feel comfortable they are doing it wrong.

"They have to get the puppet's faces and expressions right, learn how to lip sync correctly and make sure their hands are in the right position.

"They also have to learn their lines, the songs and move in the right way so there is a huge amount of stuff to take on board.

"I get involved in the casting process of the show, lead workshops and stay with them all throughout the rehearsal process, keeping an eye on them and then I see the show every three to four weeks.

"Half way through the rehearsal process you can see real panic set in,” he chuckles. "However it begins to feel more like second nature fairly quickly and they master it totally and then it becomes great fun."

So what made Nigel become a puppeteer I ask.

"I wanted to be an actor so that’s how I started out,” he says. “I didn’t get any careers advice on being a puppeteer when I was at school! However, pretty early on in my career I was approached to do a voice for a children’s TV show called Pipkins which ran from 1973 to 1981. When I auditioned they asked me to do the puppets, so I learned the craft on the job and by trial and error as I had no formal training.”

From there Nigel went on to star in Spitting Image and worked for Jim Henson Productions plus numerous TV shows, films and adverts including the PG Tips Monkey.

“I have been very lucky and realised I filled a niche that not many people were filling and I could do it and do it well,” he says.

“It’s a great business to be in and I love it. Spitting Image was amazing because it’s like an historical document and was really exciting to work on. There were a couple of moments when we thought we might get sued but we didn’t!

“The PG Tips Monkey is a great character to play too. My career has been full of highlights!” he adds warmly.

He got the Avenue Q job through a recommendation after having worked for Jim Henson Productions, creator of the Muppets and Sesame Street. That was 10 years ago and he’s still loving being part of the show.

"I still get a kick out of it,” he says. “I have seen it about 200 times now and still love being in the audience and seeing their reactions.

“Nothing beats a live audience and the experience of being in a theatre and that’s why Avenue Q works so well.

"It’s magical to see puppets on stage and I think their resurgence on the stage in shows such as War Horse, The Lion King and more latterly The Lorax is testament to that magical moment where you use your imagination and suspend belief.

"It’s an amazing thing - even though you know the actor is there you almost forget.

"The cast coming to Wimbledon are top rate and really great performers and just seem to be getting better and better."

Avenue Q is on at the New Wimbledon Theatre, Broadway, between Monday March 14 and Saturday, March 19. Tickets from £15. Visit http://www.atgtickets.com/wimbledon or call the box office on 0844 871 7646.

FIVE star review for The Solid Life Of Sugar Water, at the National Theatre

FIVE STARS

LOSING a baby must be one of the most painful things a parent can experience. How to reconnect then with your partner when that happens is the subject of a quite astonishing play now on at the National’s Temporary Theatre.

The Solid Life Of Sugar Water is a two hander written by Jack Thorne featuring Alice and Phil who have lost a longed for baby shortly before the due date.

We see them in the process of healing their wounds, desperate to communicate with each other and not always succeeding.

It is staged by Graeae Theatre Company, which aims to break down barriers and challenge preconceptions by placing disabled actors centre stage – in this case one actor who is deaf and one who has an impairment of one arm.

It is also a fully accessible production with captions and audio descriptions at all performances.

The play is quite beautiful and the actors who play Alice and Phil, Genevieve Barr and Arthur Hughes, put in stunning performances.

The action jumps around between the present and the past and we see how they got together – a rather inauspicious meeting in a post office – to their first and fourth dates, the first time they had sex, the nightmare that unfolds when they rush to hospital after Alice, heavily pregnant, starts bleeding heavily, and then how they try and reconnect with each other afterwards.

The action takes place against a mock up of an upright double bed in which they spend a lot of their time.

It features plenty of strong language and scenes of an adult and sexual nature – in fact there is a lot of talking about sex, what they did and how they did it making it refreshingly candid, honest and very funny.

Beautifully acted and staged it also challenges our preconceptions and is raw, visceral, tender, blunt, poignant, at times hilarious and at others heartrendingly sad – sending the audience on a rollercoaster of emotions.

The Solid Life Of Sugar Water is on at the Temporary Theatre, National Theatre, Belvedere Road, until Saturday, March 19. Tickets cost £20. Visit www.nationaltheatre.org.uk or call the box office on 020 7452 3000.