The area beneath the stage can be full of surprises…. Under the London Coliseum stage I found a staff canteen[…]
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Category: Blogs
How to conjure the Devil in an Early Modern Theatre
A magician with a staff in once hand and a book of magic in the other (as well as a damn fine pair of mustachios) faces off a grinning bearded figure with wings, tail and scaly skin. It’s the woodcut illustration from Christopher Marlowe’s 1616 edition of Doctor Faustus. But the devil doesn’t spend the whole play as this dragon-like figure. At the request of Faustus, the demon Mephistopheles changes into the likeness of an old Franciscan friar.
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5 Reasons to Love Theatre
1- Where else can you go with lots of friends, on a date, or all alone and still have a[…]
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Shared Journeys: The Ups and Downs of Touring Together
I like my own company. Me, myself and I make a happy team. We’ve been to the theatre, just us,[…]
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Backstage Tours: Killing the magic of theatre or bringing it alive?
In The Stage online, Flyman asks how we preserve the magic of theatre while letting the audience see backstage. It’s[…]
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You never forget your first Pantomime
It was the first time, and it wouldn’t be the last. My first memory of going to the theatre was[…]
Read moreIn Praise of Tourists
In 1596, a Dutch traveller Johannes de Witt visited the Swan playhouse, and drew a sketch and wrote in his[…]
Read moreLife through a lens: Why I like my live performance live
Reading this fascinating article by first BFI ambassador actor Tom Hiddleston, I was particularly struck by his description of the[…]
Read moreBackstage Theatre Tours: Why do they exist and what is the audience experience? Some initial questions.
Many theatres now offer tours, from large organisations such as the National Theatre and Barbican to smaller venues like Wilton’s[…]
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