Frankenstein in cinemas tonight
March 17, 2011
The National Theatre’s sold out production of Frankenstein will play two dates as part of the NT Live cinema programme, starting tonight.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller in Frankenstein
Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle’s new production of Frankenstein at the National Theatre will be screened live in cinemas today, 17 March 2011, starring Benedict Cumberbatch as the Creature and Jonny Lee Miller as Victor.
On 24 March this will be reversed, with Jonny Lee Miller as the Creature and Benedict Cumberbatch as Victor, allowing audiences to see both stars of the show in the leading roles.
This new adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic Gothic novel has been reimagined by Nick Dear and told from the point of view of the monster. The first block of performances for the play are already sold out.
Critics have raved about Frankenstein, with Charles Spencer in the Telegraphy saying that director Danny Boyle, “pulls off something truly spectacular here.”
NT Live is an initiative to broadcast live performances of the National’s plays onto cinema screens in the UK and worldwide. The second season of National Theatre Live, which now covers 360 screens across 20 countries, recently screened the Donmar Warehouse’s production of King Lear, with Derek Jacobi, filmed at the Donmar’s home in Covent Garden on 3 February; following Frankenstein, Howard Davies’s production of The Cherry Orchard starring Zoe Wanamaker will be filmed on 30 June. A third season begins in the autumn.
Check the NT Live websites for times and locations
LINKS
NEWS: More news on Frankenstein
WATCH the Frankenstein video trailer
LISTEN to Frankenstein interview with writer Nick Dear
NT Live website
Frankenstein: two dates for cinemas
February 7, 2011
The National Theatre’s sold out production of Frankenstein will play two dates as part of the NT Live cinema programme.
Oscar-winning director Danny Boyle’s new production of Frankenstein at the National Theatre will be screened live in cinemas on two separate dates, the first time the initiative has covered two performances.
This is to allow audiences to see both stars of the show in the leading roles, as Benedict Cumberbatch andJonny Lee Miller alternate in the parts of Victor and his monster.
A screening on 17 March 2011 will see Benedict Cumberbatch star as the Creature and Jonny Lee Miller as Victor, and on 24 March this is reversed, with Jonny Lee Miller as the Creature and Benedict Cumberbatch as Victor.
This new adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic Gothic novel has been reimagined by Nick Dear and told from the point of view of the monster. The first block of performances for the play are already sold out.
NT Live is an initiative to broadcast live performances of the National’s plays onto cinema screens in the UK and worldwide. The second season of National Theatre Live, which now covers 360 screens across 20 countries, recently screened the Donmar Warehouse’s production of King Lear, with Derek Jacobi, filmed at the Donmar’s home in Covent Garden on 3 February; following Frankenstein, Howard Davies’s production of The Cherry Orchard starring Zoe Wanamaker will be filmed on 30 June. A third season begins in the autumn.
Check the NT Live websites for times and locations
LINKS
News: Brian Cox to reveal Frankenstein science
News: Frankenstein cast: Cumberbatch and Miller
Frankenstein cast: Cumberbatch & Miller
October 29, 2010
Fresh from receiving a British Film Institute Fellowship this week, director Danny Boyle has announced his cast for Frankenstein at the National Theatre, playing in the Olivier from February 2011.
Jonny Lee Miller and Benedict Cumberbatch to star in Frankenstein
Benedict Cumberbatch returns to the venue following his much-praised turn in Terence Rattigan’s After the Dance, and will be alternating the roles of Dr Frankenstein and his monster with movie star Jonny Lee Miller.
This creative casting is in-line with Boyle’s promise to create a fresh new approach to theatre through this production. The adaptation of Mary Shelley’s classic Gothic novel has been reimagined by Nick Dear and told from the point of view of the monster.
Boyle, who has spent the last 15 years in film and won an Oscar last year for Slumdog Millionaire, has a previous history in theatre, having worked for the RSC and Royal Court, including productions of Howard Barker’s Victory, Howard Brenton’s Genius and Edward Bond’s Saved. Boyle, along with former Royal Court head Stephen Daldry, is also charged with creating the opening and closing ceremonies of the London 2012 Olympics.
Earlier this year Benedict Cumberbatch played the lead in Thea Sharrock’s acclaimed production of Terence Rattigan’s After The Dance at the National Theatre. This year he has also become a household name by playing Sherlock Holmes in the hugely popular BBC series based on Conan Doyle’s books. Forthcoming roles include Steven Spielberg’s film version of the National Theatre’s War Horse, currently playing at the New London Theatre in the West End. Past stage roles include work for the Open Air Theatre and the Almeida – including an Olivier Award nomination for his performance in Hedda Gabler in 2005.
The play’s adaptor, Nick Dear, covers the world’s of theatre, film and TV. At the National Theatre his plays Summerfolk and Power have been staged, plus The Art of Success at the RSC. Screenwriter credits include Agatha Christie’s Poirot and Lewis.
Frankenstein in the Olivier Theatre at the National Theatre will start previews from 5 February with press nights on 22 and 23 February, and the show is currently booking until 17 April, with further dates to be announced. The show is suitable only for 15 years+. Public booking for Frankenstein opens on 1 December 2010.
A series of special Platforms talks called ‘Beyond Frankenstein’ will run alongside the production: Frankenstein on Film on 24 February looks at Hollywood and the Frankenstein story; Frankenstein’s Science on 4 March sees Dr Brian Cox talk to Richard Holmes about the science behind Mary Shelley’s creature; Frankenstein’s Creator: Mary Shelley on 15 March sees acclaimed biographer Claire Tomalin discuss the life of the author of Frankenstein; and Josephine Hart presents Romantic Poetry on 15 April, revealing the works of Shelley, Byron and their Romantic contemporaries.
Frankenstein will also be broadcast live to cinemas across the UK and around the world on 17 March as part of National Theatre Live.
Book tickets to Frankenstein at the National Theatre
MORE NATIONAL THEATRE NEWS
Cottesloe to Change Name
A £10 million donation from Travelex founder Lloyd Dorfman towards the redevelopment of the National Theatre, will see the Cottesloe Theatre renamed in his honour. The gift will form the cornerstone of the £70 million the venue needs to raise to complete its NT Future project. The donation is the largest ever given to the National and will see the studio space, called the Dorfman Theatre, enlarged. An enjoining room will be called the Cottesloe Room.
Dorfman’s Travelex company has supported the National for the last 8 years through its Travelex £10 tickets season.
London Assurance in cinemas tonight
June 28, 2010
Fiona Shaw and Simon Russell Beale in London Assurance
Don’t forget that the National Theatre’s London Assurance will be shown in selected cinemas tonight, 28 June, as part of the NT Live programme.
The National’s latest big fat smash-hit sees Simon Russell Beale and Fiona Shaw star as Sir Harcourt and Lady Spanker in Dion Boucicault’s hilarious classic comedy.
NT Live is an initiative to broadcast live performances of the National’s plays onto cinema screens in the UK and worldwide. The four show pilot season launched with Phèdre, starring Helen Mirren, All’s Well That Ends Well, Nation and The Habit of Art.
Check the NT Live website for times and cinemas.
Is televising theatre a good thing?
May 29, 2009
With the announcement that David Tennant’s Hamlet is to be televised for BBC2 we ponder the question: is televising theatre a good thing?
Tennant enjoyed enormous critical and audience acclaim for his performance of the Danish Prince for the RSC, both in Stratford and, briefly, in the West End until a serious back problem caused him to pull out.
Gregory Doran, who directed the RSC version, wants to reunite the cast and create a film version of the production.
This comes alongside the National Theatre’s NT Live programme, which sees live theatre broadcast to cinemas in the UK and around the world. It kicks off with a biggie – Phedre starring Helen Mirren, broadcast to over 50 cinemas on 25 June.
Given that few people actually had an opportunity to see David Tennant in Hamlet, and that Phedre completely sold out in a few days, the idea of taking live performance outside the confines of a theatre has the opportunity to vastly widen its audience. Theatre is intrinsically elitist – it costs a lot to attend and is very location specific. By turning to cinema and TV, you reduce the expense and vastly expand potential audiences.
But is something lost? The magic of seeing live theatre cannot be recreated on screen. And it’s a vastly different medium. Some of the most boring TV and cinema happens when you simply take a static theatre piece and point some cameras at it. Far from inspiring new generations of theatregoers it could actually confirm their worst suspicions – that theatre is slow and uneventful and nothing compared to the breadth and scope of the best movies and tele.
Bringing TV and film stars such as Tennant and Mirren into theatre has to be a good thing for everyone. But doing a neat back-flip and putting the TV star in a play on TV could backfire. Here’s a wild, off-the-wall idea: maybe these stars could tour their plays to other places than Stratford and London? For centuries stage stars spent the majority of their time performing in front of audiences across the UK – feeling a strong sense of loyalty to the millions of people who wanted to see them perform live. What happened to that?
