Random Friday...

Have just noticed that on the homepage of the National Theatre is an archive feature of David Thacker talking about Arthur Miller. Worth a watch. You can see it here...

Audience feedback

Not only are we getting some wonderful reviews from the press, some of our lovely audiences members are also writing to us to tell us how much they are enjoying All My Sons. We have received actual letters (see above - click to enlarge and emails (see below). Isn't that nice of them.

From: charles stubbings

Sent: 11 October 2009 17:01
Subject: All My Sons

We came to see All My Sons on Friday and were completely swept away by the excellent direction and the superb acting. I have emailed The Guardian to say that their write-up was good but they failed to mention the wonderful acting and I can't see why 4 stars couldn't ahve been 5. We are regular supporters of the Octagon and look forward to seeing Ghosts in the future. Thank you again. Charles Stubbing.

Well, Charles I can't agree with your comments more and I hope that extra star will be winging its way over to us in post as we speak!

Investigate: Miller Time

If seeing All My Sons has led you to want to know more about the man that is the great Arthur Miller you might be interested to get the heads up on a few associated events that are part of our BoltON investigate series.

Tomorrow (Wed 14 Oct) starts a Investigation into All My Sons. As the title suggests David leads some of the cast into an investigation of the play. If you are studying Miller, just have a general passion for him or want to understand more about the 'science' behind a performance then this will provide a great insight into how a play progresses from page to stage. And don't forget if you are under 26 you can still take advantage of the under 26s Free Tickets scheme. Click here for more info on the event.

On Saturday 17 Oct we welcome the guru of all things Miller, Mr Christopher Bigsby. Not only did Mr Bigsby write the article on All My Sons for our season brochure, he is a Director of the Arthur Miller Centre and an author of a new biography on Arthur Miller. So there can't be many more qualified to talk about Arthur and I am sure as eggs he knows his onions. You can read more about this event here.

And lastly, but by no means leastly, we have had some further info on the Investigate: All My Children event on Sat 24 October. This event will see extracts of All My Sons, performed alongside Caryl Churchill's Seven Jewish Children and Seven Other Children by Richard Stirling. Should be a very interesting day. If you want to join the debate then click here for more info.

So October is looking like a good month for fans of Miller. As I said in the title....Miller Time.

More All My Sons...

Further to the reviews here are a few more links about All My Sons. Just in case you are one of those people that haven't yet booked off the back of the reviews there might be something in here that persuades you...

It's Miller time again at the Octagon - What's on Stage - 17 September 2009

Interview: Huw Higginson in All My Sons - The Lancaster and Morecambe Citizen - 25 September 2009

Brief Encounter with David Thacker - What's on Stage - 1 October 2009
Bringing Miller to life at the Octagon - The Bolton News - 1 October 2009
Who Needs Several Productions of the Same Play? - The Guardian - 1 October 2009

Links gathered with the help of the lovely people at www.georgeirving.co.uk

Love, love, love...

More than a little giddy about this. I love Lauren Laverne, I love Grazia magazine (it is a weekly treat - don't judge me) and I really love our current production of All My Sons so imagine my extreme delight that we have a mention of All My Sons on Lauren Laverne's page in Grazia magazine...

Click to enlarge...

More All My Sons photos...

I received some more fantastic All My Sons images from Ian Tilton so I thought I would share

Round...

Despite the flexibility of the auditorium we haven't in recent years staged much in the round. But we have used the round for All My Sons, so we asked Joel to take a picture as people were taking their seats.

All My Sons - the reviews...

Well, it was the press night of All My Sons on Friday night and I think I have only just about recovered enough to write this. Quite simply it was phenomenal. There were standing ovations, audible gasps and many a person leaving (or not being able to leave) the auditorium with damp hankies and red eyes. The atmosphere in the bar afterwards, despite the tears, was electric.

The production is wonderful and the cast are astonishing. I am so, so proud to work here and you MUST see this show....

"This is brilliantly paced, meticulous piece of work, which manages to ratchet up the tension, and allows the characters room to grieve... Thacker’s production is as unfussy and uncluttered as it needs to be, and still feels dense and weighty... some of the finest playing I can recall on the Octagon stage... a wonderful revision of a classic text, and a must-see production. 5 stars" WHAT'S ON STAGE Read more here...

"Although I’ve seen the Octagon in-the-round before, the playing area has never felt so close and immediate…. George Irving returns to the Octagon after his blinding performance in Shining City two years ago. He remains faithful to Miller’s description of Joe Keller as “stolid”, but although superficially impassive and unemotional, below the surface there fizzes a James Cagney-esque nervous energy which eventually explodes to shattering effect.

Margot Leicester, who was so brilliant as the grieving mother in A Conversation at the Royal Exchange, gives a wonderful performance here" UK THEATRE NET Read more here...

"An excellent cast is headed by George Irving... Margot Leicester... She gives a beautifully layered performance... Miller’s powerful work still has resonance today, as does his condemnation of those who make deceitful profit from war." THE STAGE Read more here...

"The Octagon has a deserved reputation for quality productions of works by renowned American playwright Arthur Miller…. This was further reinforced by the excellent casting headed by M.E.N. Theatre Award nominee, George Irving. Thacker has cast the excellent Margot Leicester, in the role of a woman on the edge of a nervous breakdown. It's a beautifully judged performance." MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS. Read more here...

"The play manages that rare trick — to transport you away from the theatre, to make you unaware of the person sitting next to you, and to wrap you up so tightly in the characters’ world that you forget these are actors on a stage. It is a bold, gutsy, terribly moving play that left me sobbing.

David Thacker has certainly wasted no time in putting his stamp on the Octagon, and if everything else in the coming season is as good as this, then long may he reign." THE BOLTON NEWS. Read more here...

"With a classic production of one of the best plays of the twentieth century, a superlative cast, under the deft touch of an expert director the Octagon have unquestionably got a first-rate hit on their hands...A high quality production that excels in every way, Arthur Miller would have been proud." GEORGEIRVING.COM Read more here...

"George Irving's hugelyimpressive performance as Joe takes a massive journey from the charismatic, jokey, loving family man preparing for retirement but ready to step in and solve family disputes calmly and rationally when they arise, to a prowling silverback gorilla in the last act, ready to attack in order to defend. Margot Leicester's performance as Kate is equally great, portraying her as a perfectly rational woman but with some unshakeable and not entirely rational beliefs.

Oscar Pearce as Chris goes from the happy, rather naive but wholly positive son of a local hero to a completely broken, devastated young man in a totally believable and heartbreakingly emotional performance. Vanessa Kirby gives a remarkably assured and mature performance as Ann in her professional stage debut, and Mark Letheren judges the character of George, who appears to believe whatever the last person with a strong opinion told him with great emotional intensity, just right.

Although some productions of Miller seem to show him to be dated and long-winded, Thacker has shown that with the right hand on the helm he can still be as powerful, emotionally-charged and relevant as he ever was." BRITISH THEATRE GUIDE Read more here...

"Thacker is back – with a bang... As the father who may, or may not, have sold defective engines to the air force George Irving gives another towering performance... As his wife, Margot Leicester harbours all the composed mania of a grieving mother... Irving and Leicester are also to appear in Ghosts... this one shouts to be seen and heard first." LANCASHIRE EVENING POST Read more here...

"David Thacker, the Octagon's newly appointed artistic director, had the distinction of being Arthur Miller's favoured British interpreter...Thacker's subtle direction takes a neutral, non-interventionist approach, yet the overall message seems clear - 4 stars" THE GUARDIAN Read more here...

"in Thacker’s production of All My Sons you are engulfed from the outset in this powerful story. Making it easy to get lost in the comfortable allure of this play which makes the eventual climax even more exiting. Transitioning from the calm to the intense and engaging there is nothing clichéd about David Thacker’s razor sharp direction. This combined with Millers rich theatrical dialogue lures you in and grips you like an old fashioned thriller. Make it your business to see this show. It is In the Round theatre at its very best, an elegant, powerful and flawless piece of drama." THE PUBLIC REVIEWS Read more here...

"The play is an American nightmare of love, greed, death and culpability in which Thacker's own use of metaphor would be less effective if his staging weren't so brilliant. The production could scarcely be more gripping, the emotional energy between these flawed people could hardly fizz more resonantly or the cracks in their veneer shatter with more tragic inevitability." THE INDEPENDENT. Read more here...

"So, as the pattern and texture of guilt weave through Thacker’s revival, it stands a fit companion for another classic drama of moral responsibility emerging from the past, Ghosts by Henrik Ibsen, which comes next in an Octagon autumn likely to be seriously filled with guilty pleasures." REVIEWSGATE Read more here...

Would love to hear what you thought of the show. Why not post a comment below?

All My Sons - production photos

All My Sons opened last night and press night is tonight. I am so excited about seeing this for several reasons. It is David's first show here at the Octagon, I loved George Irving in Shining City and here he is again as Joe Keller and after watching The Take this week and seeing a run through I can't wait to see Margot in action.

All My Sons - behind the scenes

We are working with a new young photographer called Joel Pammenter. Seems we have a thing about photographers called Joel as Joel Chester Fildes took some of the lovely show images for our Season brochure. Anyway Joel Jr, as it were, is doing some work experience with us to build his portfolio.

His first mission - to take photos of the rehearsals of All My Sons. Here are some of my favourites...

Oh and whilst on the subject of Miller there was a nice piece in What's On Stage recently. You can read it here.

Arthur Miller classic comes to the Octagon

When David Thacker, our Artistic Director, chose to stage Arthur Miller’s All My Sons as his first production this October, there was a personal reason behind his decision.

David struck up a close relationship with Arthur Miller while he was Artistic Director at the Young Vic in London. Miller frequently traveled to Britain to see his work, and selected David to work with him on developing many of his later plays. He once commented “Not I alone, but theatre itself owes much to David Thacker” and this respect was clearly mutual.

David said:

“I had spoken to Arthur on the phone on a number of occasions before he came to see my production of Two Way Mirror. I was terrified at first, but we struck up a firm working relationship and friendship. He was witty, intelligent and, most of all, a man who loves human beings. It was a real privilege when he asked me to direct the British premiere of The Last Yankee, then to work with him on his new play Broken Glass, which we eventually made into a film together. Arthur was incredibly proud of All My Sons, it was a landmark in his career and his first major success as a playwright. I am delighted that this production will be the last of Arthur’s most famous plays to be staged at the Octagon in recent years, following on from the wonderful productions of A View From the Bridge, Death of a Salesman and The Crucible.”

All My Sons is an unbearably moving and powerful American family drama set in the aftermath of the Second World War. Joe Keller is accused, then cleared, of having supplied fighter planes with defective engines, leading to the deaths of innocent pilots. One of Keller’s own sons, himself a pilot, is missing in action and his mother is desperately clinging to the hope he is alive. But the family is thrown into turmoil by the unexpected arrival of Joe’s old business partner’s son, whose revelations send the play hurtling towards a devastating conclusion.

The role of Joe Keller will be played by George Irving, who appeared as Anton Meyer in BBC’s Holby City and in the Octagon’s 2007 production of Shining City. He is joined by Huw Higginson, who played the part of George Garfield in The Bill for more than ten years, as well as Oscar Pearce, Tammy Joelle, Vanessa Kirby,Mark Letheren, Patrick Poletti and Francesca Ryan.

The role of Kate Keller will be played by Margot Leicester, a celebrated stage and screen actress who has appeared in recent television dramas such as Families and Sky One’s The Take. She is also married to David Thacker, and will be working with him on an Arthur Miller play for the first time since 1994, when she was nominated for a prestigious Olivier Award for Broken Glass at the National Theatre.