The Hollow (play) - Agatha Christie

After my brief dalliance with the acting world while volunteering as an extra during Dining with Alice, I decided to investigate the possibility of furthering my amateur theatre career. A few months ago I joined the Maddermarket Theatre Company and worked as assistant stage manager on my first production, Agatha Christie's The Hollow. The Maddermarket is a very small theatre, with about 300 seats and has been around since the 1920s, despite its Tudor appearance.

The Hollow was adapted by Christie from her novel of the same name. Allegedly, Christie was not happy with Poirot's appearance in this particular novel and thus she wrote him out of the play, replacing him instead with Scotland Yard's Inspector Colquhoun. Otherwise, the Hollow is your typical Christie murder mystery, unfolding slowly, with many characters each with their own agenda. With a single static set, the attention is directed firmly to each character, allowing the audience to examine their interactions with the other characters, and their potential motivations. What I wasn't prepared for was the humour. Quite frankly, the Hollow was very funny. Largely due to the enigmatic Lady Angkatell, but also due to the suspense building up upon watching it. Many an audience member let out a nervous laugh after a particularly surprising death scene.

My responsibilities during the play were mostly preparing the set before every rehearsal and performance, and during the interval, and coordinating the many many props used for each scene. Another somewhat fun job every show was having to fire the gun that kills the unfortunate John Cristow, a job I took to with a fair bit of relish! Since The Hollow finished, I've been catching up with sleep after a hectic schedule, helping with the lighting for a couple of nights on the next production, Guys and Dolls, and looking forward to the huge winter production of A Christmas Carol....oh and successful grading for my brown belt in karate. All in all a busy summer!

A Game of Thrones - George RR Martin

I feel this book justifies a far longer review than I am able to give, but as it has been a few months since I finished it and I have since seen several episodes of the television adaptation, this is all I am able to give.

A Game of Thrones is the first in an epic fantasy series set in a fictional world of snow and ice. Lord Eddard (Ned) Stark is a lord and warden of the North, who is forced to leave his home and wife when he is summoned to the capital, King's Landing, to be the right hand of his king and oldest friend. But King Robert Baratheon is a changed man, a lover of rich foods, wine and women, and blind to the insiduous plans of his conniving wife, Queen Cersei. And soon things go terribly terribly wrong for the Stark family, tragedy ensues and war breaks out.

A Song of Ice and Fire is very much a saga, political and dangerous, sometimes heartbreaking and horrifying. These are tales of war and treachery, tales of fear and hate. It is hate that pervades this book, and the hate that I found exhausting. In fact I was torn throughout my reading of this book, captivated to the point where I would read through until 2 or 3am, and yet desperate to put the book down, and get some respite from the horrors within. And yet there is hope within these pages, tales of love, both romantic and familial. 

Ned's wife Catelyn is particularly intriguing, strong and wise, yet bound to her love for her family, for her children. Catelyn's children: Robb, brave yet out of his depth; Bran, crippled but full of surprises; Sansa, beautiful yet foolish; Arya, fiery but young; and Rickon, tiny and innocent. Then there is Ned's bastard son, Jon Snow, destined for great things, yet never truly part of the family he loves. And the Lannisters, brutal, wicked and calculating. So cruel in fact that they could almost be ridiculous, yet Martin gives them depth. The dwarf, Tyrion, intelligent and unpredictable; the kingkiller, Jamie, incestuous and brutal; the Queen, Cersei, single-minded and devoted to her son; and the father, Tywin, sinister and merciless. Yet the Lannisters stick together, blood with blood. And let's not forget Daenerys Targaryen, Princess of Dragonstone, and daughter of the usurped and murdered king, building herself an army of horse lords across the sea, to take back her throne.

Characters are what keep this tale enticing, and mystery. And the wolves, raised from cubs by the children and tied so completely to their future. Perhaps the greatest mystery, hinted at and alluded to throughout this tale, is what lies beyond the wall, the darkness looming over the North. As the Stark house motto says, Winter is Coming.

One thing George RR Martin is not, is afraid to kill off his characters. He has this terrible habit of drawing you in, letting you care about his characters, only to rip them away, cruelly and painfully. These books are dark and brutal. Be prepared.

R.I.P.VI Challenge

(Image credit: Sanctuary, by Melissa Nucera)

It seems I have returned from my brief sojourn from blogging in time to yet again participate in one of my favourite reading challenges, R.I.P. VI, hosted by the ever wonderful Carl of Stainless Steel Droppings.

The challenge as always is to get people together to enjoy and share tales of horror, mystery, suspense, thriller, dark fantasy, gothic and the supernatural, leading up to October 31st.

I will be participating in Peril the Second, and will endeavour to read two books of any length that fit within the challenge categories. My pool of potential reads includes Dracula, which I have always intended to read! Let the haunting begin!

Never Let Me Go - Kazuo Ishiguro

"I keep thinking about this river somewhere, with the water moving really fast. And these two people in the water, trying to hold onto each other, holding on as fast as they can, but in the end it's just too much. The current's too strong. They've got to let go, drift apart. That's how I think it is with us. It's a shame, Kath, because we've loved each other all our lives. But in the end, we can't stay together forever."

I like this cover. It's vague and mysterious and doesn't really mean anything until you've read the book, but I like it. Annoyingly I read the film tie-in copy of the book, with Keira Knightley's face plastered all over the front of it (sorry, I am not a fan), but it was a gift, so I can't complain! But seeing this cover, after I have read the book, has brought back all kinds of memories of my time reading it and the feelings it evoked.

Kazuo Ishiguro's award-winning novel Never Let Me Go is the tale of Kathy, Ruth and Tommy, and the friendship between them as they grow up together at the quiet and idyllic Hailsham School. As many bloggers will tell you, there is a twist to this particular tale, which I will not spoil for you, despite the fact that I had it ruined for me in the trailer of the recent film (frustrating!) and it is not particularly hard to guess once you read the first couple of chapters.

As with all of Ishiguro's work, this is very much a character-driven piece, focusing very much on the three main characters as they move from childhood, to adolescence, and ultimately discovering themselves as adults. The novel is narrated by Kathy, the passive observer of the three, watching life unfold around her in the school and the romance that blossoms between Ruth and Tommy. Kathy is heartbreaking to listen to. What appears at first as disinterest, becomes painfully obvious as a lack of social awareness. She cannot understand or interpret her feelings and how they relate to the people around her. Ruth is the extrovert, desperate for attention and affection from those around, but is more vulnerable than she appears to be. Meanwhile Tommy, sweet sweet Tommy, is the child of the three. Despite obviously caring for Kathy who watches out after him at school, Tommy embarks on a romantic and sexual relationship with Ruth, becoming sucked into a somewhat destructive emotional rollercoaster that he often finds hard to comprehend. As the three move from school to the quiet countryside of Norfolk, they find it hard to accept their new-found independence and struggle to understand the world they have been born into. The reasons for this slowly come to light, helping us to understand more about the school life that originally shaped them.

Never Let Me Go is a story of friendship and love, but above all, it is a story of silence, of restraint, and ultimately, of regret. Events unfold slowly, as the characters come to terms with the events from their childhood and their feelings towards each other. Ironically the pervasive silence and lack of action that caused so many of my friends to find the novel boring, are exactly what I enjoyed most about it.

Last year's film adaptation is surprisingly good. The quicker pace of the film drives the story along, compensating for the lack of pace in the book, and allows the audience to become quick attached to Kathy and her feelings for Ruth and Tommy, as they begin to understand their place in the world and what that means for their relationships. Despite really not being a fan of Keira Knightley, I enjoyed her performance as Ruth, perhaps because we are not really destined to like Ruth's character as she manipulates those around her in an attempt to get what she wants, and ultimately to find happiness. However, Carey Mulligan and Andrew Garfield really stole the show as Kathy and Tommy, and I found myself quite moved by the end of the film, even shedding a tear or two that did not surface during my reading of the book. Perhaps that's the power of cinema...

Never Let Me Go is a gorgeous example of prolonged innocence. While intricately composed and wickedly clever as it develops into a dystopian novel, Ishiguro's expert hand has also brought us a gentle and touching story, full of quiet country lanes and long wistful gazes that mask the brutal complexity of hidden emotion and tumultuous relationships that pervade our brief glimpse into the characters life. Great stuff.

The Name of the Wind - Patrick Rothfuss

"I have stolen princesses back from sleeping barrow kings. I burned down the town of Trebon. I have spent the night with Felurian and left with both my sanity and my life. I was expelled from the University at a younger age than most people are allowed in. I tread paths by moonlight that others fear to speak of during day. I have talked to Gods, loved women, and written songs that make the minstrels weep."

Well that's a summary and a half right?! Despite the somewhat cheesy cover, this is a book that grabbed my attention from the shelf on numerous occasions. I didn't finally get around to reading it until a close friend had read and recommended it, and kindly lent me his copy. As you might imagine from the summary, this was a book that one can get sucked into very quickly and very easily.

The Name of the Wind is Book 1 of the Kingkiller Chronicles, a proposed trilogy, Book 2 of which, Wise Man's Fears, has just been published. This is Kvothe's story, as dictated to a scribe by the man himself, while he lives in hiding in a small backwater town with his assistant and friend, Bast, who has a story of his own. The arrival of the scribe prompts Kvothe to recount his life from childhood, as a record of his experiences - the truths, not the legends.

The story then takes us to Kvothe's childhood, recounting his life as he tells it, from happy memories as a child with his family, to shocking tragedy and finally to Kvothe's experiences at the famous University. Kvothe recounts these events, allowing the reader to become completely immersed in his life and the characters he meets along his journey, following his trials and tribulations as he attempts to survive the University and uncover the truth of his childhood tragedy. Kvothe's story is entirely gripping, as he makes both friends and enemies, finds romance, and narrowly escapes death on more than one occasion.

The success of this book for me was that although there were enough characters to keep the story interesting and drive the narrative along, I never felt overwhelmed or confused by the number of names and personalities introduced during the story, unlike others I have read recently. Kvothe is an intriguing character, both passionate and reckless, while struggling with his own ambition and desires, yet always seeking answers to his past. Definitely a character you can root for, though also be frustrated with when he makes a rash decision. I was also particularly taken by the mysterious, powerful yet somewhat odd Master Namer Elodin, and his riddles and strange sense of humour, and Kvothe's loyal yet mysterious assistant Bast. I look forward to unravelling their stories in the next instalment of the trilogy.

Although this tale had elements of your usual fantasy series, with its magics and musics, at no point did the tale feel clichéd or overly familiar. A truly excellent début Mr Rothfuss!

The Complete Plays of Shakespeare - Eric Kim

A gift from Rhinoa following her visit to the New York comic-con, this collection of very brief summaries of Shakespeare's plays is a pure delight! Definitely a book for fans.

Each play is covered in only two sides, with the most magical, witty, often risqué, and downright hilarious drawings. Kim's style is very short and to the point, focusing on one of the most important or amusing aspects of each play, but his sketches imbue each summary with humour, while honouring the spirit of Shakespeare's work.

Here are two examples...

Rhinoa kindly purchased this for me, knowing my love for the Bard, and the book comes with a wonderful dedication from the author, and of course centred on my favourite play, that continually makes me smile!

The Dark Horse - Marcus Sedgwick

The Dark Horse was not the book I was expecting, though I'm not entirely sure what that would have been. A short novel, typical of Sedgwick, The Dark Horse maintains an unsettling and tense atmosphere throughout.

The Dark Horse follows the Storn, a coastal northern tribe, in their struggle to weather the harsh conditions and prepare themselves for the arrival of the titular Dark Horse, a terrifying, relentless warrior tribe. The story revolves around a single family, with the young boy Sig and his adopted sister Mouse, found in a wolves lair while the Storn were on a hunt. Sig loves his family, would do anything for them, but there is far more to Mouse than it seems.

I was completely absorbed by the relationship between Sig and Mouse. Love, trust, respect, fear...Sig battles an array of emotions when dealing with his sister and the events that transpire following the arrival of the Dark Horse. Drama, tension and excitement I was prepared for. What I was not expecting was the dark and entirely creepy nature of the book. I was honestly not expecting anyone to survive the events it contained, and was continually surprised by its twists and turns. Knowing who to trust is not immediately obvious, as events unfold slowly and danger lurks in unexpected places. As always, I was utterly gripped by Sedgwick's storytelling. Highly recommended!

The Mortal Instruments - Cassandra Clare

The Mortal Instruments is a six-part series written by the infamous and apparently prolific author Cassandra Clare. The first four books in the series are already available, with City of Lost Souls and City of Heavenly Fire due for release in 2012 and 2013.

As mentioned in my review of Clockwork Angel, the Mortal Instruments series was imagined first, although set in present day New York. In City of Bones we meet our main protagonist, a young teenager named Clary Fray, at a club with her best friend Simon. Clary encounters a group of teenagers whom no-one else can apparently see, while she witnesses them murder another young man. Clary returns home to find the apartment wrecked and her mother missing, shortly before she is attacked by a demon. She is rescued by one of the mysterious teenagers, Jace, who takes her to his home and reveals that he is a demon hunter, known as a a Shadowhunter. Clary soon learns that her mother was also a Shadowhunter, who had apparently been trying to protect Clary from the same fate.

The Mortal Instruments is an ongoing saga revolving around Clary, Jace and their family and friends, in a tale of demons, warlocks, vampires, werewolves, faeries, magic and romance. Nothing new there you might say. And while the typical stories in this series are generally similar to much of the fantasy fiction that is available for young adult readers at present, Cassandra Clare has certainly proved herself to be a highly entertaining storyteller. Indeed this series delves into some of the more darker aspects of the genre, with gruesome murders, tragic loss and forbidden (and inappropriate!) love between two central characters.

Although somewhat predictable, the Mortal Instruments series is enjoyable, with humour and heart where it is needed. I may have fallen more for the world created in Clare's Infernal Devices, but I shall certainly be seeing this series through to the end.

(I've recently heard that Clare is working on a set of sequels called The Dark Artifices...watch this space!)

Infernal Devices: Clockwork Angel - Cassandra Clare

The Infernal Devices is a trilogy of prequels to the bestselling Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare. While the Mortal Instruments series is set in modern day New York, the Infernal Devices is firmly set in Victorian England.

Although a prequel, Clockwork Angel was my first foray into Clare's world of Shadowhunters and Downworlders, demons and warlocks. The titular Clockwork Angel is a necklace that belongs to Tessa, a young orphaned American girl who travels to England in search of her missing older brother Nate. However, when she arrives at Southampton, instead of her brother she finds the Dark Sisters, who take her prisoner, subjecting her to experiments and preparing her for marriage to the "Magister". Tessa soon discovers she is a shape-changer, able to take the shape of any person whose belongings she can touch.

Tessa is rescued from captivity by Will Herondale, a handsome and arrogant Shadowhunter, who introduces her to the Institute, his "family" and the world of demon-hunting. The Institute members utilise Tessa's unusual skill to find Nate and find the Magister and reveal his sinister plot. Of course there must be a sinister plot!

Clockwork Angel is a world of supernatural beings, magic and mystery, but had such intriguing characters that I was completely hooked within a matter of pages. Tessa herself is a mystery, her nature as a shape-changer - is she a demon or some other kind of creature? Will Herondale is reckless and self-destructive, drinking, gambling and womanising, while demonstrating unnatural skill as a demon hunter and moments of barely hidden tenderness to his loved ones. Will's best friend and fighting partner Jem is an even more interesting character, with a mysterious illness and dark secret.

Clare's Victorian London is dark and gloomy, with sinister organisations, dark magics and flesh-covered automatons. With seedy drinking establishments and glamorous parties, dark alleys and gothic buildings, I can well believe this London may have existed. With the pre-requisite revelations, betrayals and romantic triangles, Clockwork Angel is a gripping and enjoyable story, with a very intriguing ending! The next two books in the series, Clockwork Prince and Princess will be released at the end of 2011 and 2012, and I for one am very excited to read them.

Tumbling down the rabbit hole...

So far it has been another slow year of both reading and blogging. In my defence, my normally busy life has become even more so with the advent of my new training regime (fitness here we come!), my flourishing vegetable garden (small yet ever so enticing), the new feline additions to my household, my stuttering attempts at fundraising ahead of our charity skydive (this coming weekend eek!) and my participation in an ambitious theatre project.

Each year, May hosts for us the Norfolk and Norwich Festival, over two weeks of dance, music, theatre, literature, comedy and general oddness...With ambitions of soon becoming the country's second biggest arts festival, each year the Festival appears to outdo the preceding event, by bringing even more weird and wonderful artistic creations to this small city, somewhat removed from much of the country. This year I was unable to enjoy most of the festival's offerings (aside from an ingenious circus routine and some late night mechanical wolf shenanigans) as I had signed myself up as an extra in order to renew my love of the theatre.

And so, shedding my inhibitions and in the hope of meeting some unusual characters, I joined a theatre project called Dining with Alice. Originally created by Hilary Westlake for the Salisbury Festival a few years ago, the venture has been reimagined by Artichoke a creative company renowned for their ambitious and artistic "invasion of public spaces". Over three weeks of intense rehearsal and performance time (while also working full-time!), our band of extras were fortunate enough to share in the latest Artichoke experience, in all its glory! I for one have come away with the certain knowledge that I wish to remain working in theatre, if only part time, and have made some good new friends. I have described this project to many of my friends and complete strangers, some of whom have responded with blank stares, but others who became quite enthused and urged me to share the experience. So please indulge me, and do forgive me for this long and rather enthused post...

At Dining with Alice, guests were invited to take part in a magical evening of food and song, hosted by an array of Wonderland characters, in the grounds of the beautiful Elsing Hall, a private stately home dating back to the thirteenth century. With 20 acres of picturesque gardens including a walled garden, an arboretum, a moat and a bog (!), the Hall was the perfect setting for such an unusual event.

Guests were ushered in past high hedges and mysterious doorways, catching rare glimpses of the house.

Beautiful and elegant statues and stonework were nestled amongst the English roses and romantic borders.

Upon arriving at the welcome tent, guests were offered delicious Hendrick's Gin cocktails and nibbles, before the characters descended in a whirl of music and laughter.

The guests were then surprised by a throng of turbaned waiters who regaled them with colour, wit and song, but who do not engage in repartee.

Guests were then separated from their friends and taken to their tables by their waiters. Individual tables....for every single person.

Tables were spread out amongst the beautiful gardens, where guests could bask in the evening light and watch their fellow diners sitting around them.

Tables were decorated with jars containing weird and wonderful delights, and riddles to test the mind...

and confuse the senses...

Unusual Victorian dishes with a twist were served, such as this mock turtle soup and a vial containing amber liquid and a label saying..."drink me".

While diners ate, Alices large and small flitted through the gardens..

Characters regale diners with amusing riddles and ridiculous arguments.

Diners were in fear of losing their head when the Queen of Hearts was around.

While her King of Hearts and the Mad Hatter debated the food and stimulated the conversation.

After a three course meal, diners were reunited with their friends and brought to a floating pontoon on the moat, where the evening's entertaining reached its finale with a flourish of song.

But wait...who was this mysterious waiter?!

Thank you so much to Artichoke for putting on such a wonderful production and allowing us to take part in it! And thanks to all the other extras for making my time so enjoyable!

Anyone interested in the Norfolk and Norwich Festival or Dining with Alice can experience a little themselves in a short behind-the-scenes film on Sky Arts in June.

Reviews in the press:

The Guardian preview article

The Guardian - 13th May

The Guardian - 15th May

The Independent

The Norwich Evening News

The Brideswell Press

BBC News - spot yours truly at 28 seconds!

Other reviews and articles:

Winkypedia

Mini reviews

Lonely Werewolf Girl - Martin Millar

Teenage werewolf Kalix MacRinnalch is pursued through the streets of London by murderous hunters, while her sister, the Werewolf Enchantress, is busy designing clothes for the Fire Queen. In the Scottish Highlands there's trouble at Castle MacRinnalch as the Werewolf Clan prepares for war.

Lonely Werewolf Girl is an expansive tale of werewolves in the modern world. The MacRinnalch family contains elegant werewolves, troubled teenage werewolves, friendly werewolves, homicidal werewolves, fashion designers, warriors, punks, cross-dressers, musicians - an entire Clan of Werewolves, involved in conflict from the Scottish Highlands to London, and several dimensions beyond.

How anyone could not rush out and get this book after reading Chris' review is beyond me! I managed to get a copy through my library in perfect time for last year's RIP Challenge.

Lonely Werewolf Girl is a hoot! Flitting between modern day London and Edinburgh, the story moves from high drama to ridiculous comedy! Lonely Werewolf girl is both a dark fantasy, and a modern tale of students, music and pizza. Kalix is a troubled girl on the run from her family and living rough on the streets of London, when she is taken in by two naive but kind students.

With a bizarre series of events and plot twists, it is Millar's characters that steal the show. Perhaps best of all is Malveria, Queen of the Fire Elementals, who is more concerned with having the latest designer handbags and shoes than with ruling her kingdom. The hilarious things she occasionally comes out with left me roaring in laughter, especially her conversations with the haughty and misunderstood Werewolf Enchantress, Kalix's sister. Fantastic stuff!

Curse of the Wolf Girl - Martin Millar

Scottish teenage werewolf Kalix MacRinnalch is in London trying to settle down and live a normal life. Her new friends support her as she goes to college to learn to read and write, but her old enemies won't leave her alone. Many powerful werewolves want Kalix dead, and the Guild of Werewolf Hunters is still dedicated to wiping out the entire MacRinnalch werewolf clan. Life might be easier for Kalix if her werewolf family were able to help, but her sister the Enchantress needs all of her sorcerous powers to locate the perfect pair of high heels, her brother Markus is busy in Scotland organising an opera, and her cousin Dominil is engaged in her own merciless vendetta with her enemies. Kalix must carry on alone but she's finding it difficult enough to pay the rent and cope with her anxiety and depression, while struggling with werewolf hunters and exams at the same time...

With her life a little more stable, but her continuing problems with anxiety and depression, not to mention a laudanum addiction, Kalix attempts to get an education and even finds a romantic entanglement. However, life is never that easy when you are the daughter of the former werewolf chief and find a bunch of assassins on your tail, while befriended by the clumpsy adopted daughter of the Fire Queen. Needless to say, further chaos ensues.

While this was a thoroughly entertaining follow-up to Lonely Werewolf Girl, and I would highly recommend it, few of the characters were really developed much, and it did not feel quite as substantial as the first.

The City and the City - China Mieville

The body of a murdered woman is discovered in the remarkable, crumbling European city of Besźel. Such a crime is par for the course for Inspector Tyador Borlú, who is the premier talent of the Extreme Crime Squad – until his investigations uncover evidence that bizarre and terrifying forces are at work – and soon both he and those around him will be in considerable peril. He must undertake an odyssey, a journey across borders both physical and psychical, to the city which is both a complement and rival to his own, that of Ul Qoma.

China Mieville is a complicated writer, with a highly complex imagination. The City and the City begins as a crime novel, a whodunnit set in a fictional eastern European city, a culture in part Balkan and part Germanic. The victim is a young American woman who had been working in another city, "the" other city, situated in the same place - the two cities occupying the same place, sometimes merging, sometimes overlapping. Both the law and social acceptability require the citizens of these two cities to refrain from contact, to the point where people have learnt to "unsee" places and people in the other city. To see something from the other city would be considered breach, with harsh penalties. Strict border controls exist between the two, manned by law enforcement from both sides. However, there are some borders that cannot be completely maintained, which is where "Breach" - a mysterious force that deals out the most severe penalties - steps in.

The relationship between these two cities is the heart of this story, which rapidly delves into philisophical science fiction, while all the time focusing on two law enforcement officers and their search for the truth about the young woman's murder. Confusing yet gripping, the City and the City is a highly original and inventive novel, that occasionally falters, and while it may not have provided the most satisfying ending for this particular blogger, was a very enjoyable read.

Revolver - Marcus Sedgwick

After his father dies from the cold out on the ice-covered lake, fifteen year old Sig Andersson finds himself waiting alone with the body in the family cabin while his step-mother and sister go for help. Then a mysterious and sinister man bearing a revolver arrives claiming to have business with his father. Sig slowly learns the truth about the man's link to his family and when his sister's own life becomes threatened, he has to make a choice. Whether to use his father's own prized revolver.

Set in the Arctic Circle, cold penetrates every inch of this novel. With tension that you could cut with a knife, and a story of such intensity, this book lingered with me long after I finished it. Another atmospheric and gripping novel from my beloved Marcus Sedgwick. Go read it!

Frankenstein

"Life and death appeared to me ideal bounds, which I should first break through,
and pour a torrent of light into our dark world."

In April I was fortunate enough to get tickets to a unique production of Frankenstein at the National Theatre. The two stars, Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller alternate the roles of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature each night, both embuing the characters with their individual performances and qualities. The night I went, Cumberbatch played the Creature, with his infamous fervour and energy; while Miller played Victor, progressive yet naive, brilliant and yet foolish.

The production was incredible. The Olivier theatre at the National contains the renowned Drum Revolve stage - 4 storeys high and 15 m across, the stage rotates and contains beneath it immense set pieces that dominate the large yet intimate theatre. The moment the production began, the audience was captivated by the sight of the Creature being born - bursting forth from the manmade womb, naked and helpless as an infant. We follow the Creature, as he learns to use his body and mind, finds his voice, and experiences human emotion.

Cumberbatch was incomparable as the Creature. Embodying his fear and wonder, rage and love and ultimately, his hate towards Victor - Cumberbatch allowed us to care for the poor Creature, while creating such tension and suspense that the audience was truly shocked at the horrific ending. Miller was also excellent as the unfortunate scientist and scenes between the two men were electric.

The following week, I was able to see the production again, as it had been filmed for display in several arts cinemas, this time with the roles reversed. While Miller played the Creature very well, allowing a certain amount of personal interpretation, his portrayal perhaps lacked the depth and humour (and full nudity!!) of Cumberbatch's performance. Cumberbatch meanwhile was wonderful as Victor Frankenstein, showing him as slightly less vulnerable and more misguided. The reversed production held a similar tension to seeing the play on stage, although it was certainly missing the energy and grip of a live show, focussing on the action and artistry of the stage design.

The actors were astounding and the production, adapted by Nick Dear and directed by the film director, Danny Boyle, was absolutely brilliant. Sadly a short run meant that only a small number of theatre-goers were able to see the play, but the new tradition of filming productions means that it will be available to many more. If it comes to a theatre near you...see it!

On a side note - I shall be taking the backstage tour at the National Theatre on Sunday - I can't wait to see the sets and props!

Photos taken from the National Theatre website.

Introductions...

I'd like to introduce two new members of my little household.

Rosencrantz...

and Guildenstern...

They became part of my family on Sunday from the RSPCA rescue centre after their stray cat mother gave birth to them in a foster home. Only 9 weeks old, they were understandably nervous at first, but have already become quite the little characters, keen for both play and cuddles. I've wanted to get cats for years, and now that I am well and truly shore-based and have a house of my own, it felt like the right time. Luckily I've been able to provide some homeless kittens with all the shelter, food and love they will need, and forsee many happy kitty years ahead! They've already shown a great interest in my bookshelves and will hopefully live up to their comedic namesakes.

I'll keep you updated on kitten antics, but for now, from me, Rose and Gilly...we bid you a good night.

Psyche in a Dress - Francesca Lia Block

Francesca Lia Block's short work of poetry and prose, is a retelling of the Greek myth, set in a more familar contemporary setting.

Psyche is also a book about what it is to be woman. She takes a lover, Eros, though she is forbidden from seeing his face. Convinced by her sisters to expose him in candlelight, Eros flees, and Psyche is forced to spend her years searching for her lost love. In that time, Psyche is personified as several other mythological women, including Persephone, queen of the underworld, Demeter, goddess of the harvest and Eurydice, wife of Orpheus banished to the underworld.

Manipulative and deeply sexual, Blocks gods and goddesses are both delicate and beautiful yet terrible and cruel. Psyche in a Dress is filled with complex metaphors. I admit to not being able to decipher them all myself! However, I was able to appreciate the uniqueness of Block's writing, and the nature of the stories being (re)told - although set in a modern world, the stories and characters maintain a classic mythological feel.

Psyche in a Dress is worth a read by anyone with an interest in Greek mythology, though Block's particular style may not be for everyone.

Other blog reviews:
Stella Matutina
Rhinoa's Ramblings
The Written World
Things Mean A Lot