Hello, and welcome to this week’s Substack.
I may have mentioned – have I mentioned? Once or twice? – it’s my birthday this week! So if you want to give me a wee treat, and why wouldn’t you, I’m lovely, please consider becoming a paid subscriber (no extras, as yet, just lots of kudos and a warm feeling in your heart), buying me a one-off Kofi or buying one of my books. The latter comes with the bonus that they are really good reads!
[Image description: programme for Pride & Prejudice* (*Sort of)]
This week’s theatre
I was very excited to be invited to the press night of Pride & Prejudice* (*Sort of) at the Theatre Royal last night. This marks the third time I’ve seen this enormously entertaining show – the first time was at Northern Stage, featuring the original cast (including creator Isobel McArthur, who made for a very dashing Mr Darcy). The second was also at the Theatre Royal, and it has lost none of its charm on the third viewing.
I was actually lucky enough to chat to McArthur at the Northern Stage season launch (way back before the pandemic) and was hugely impressed by the thought and care she’d put into the show. It’s not just an approach of ‘how can we stick a load of modern jokes and some swearing into Jane Austen’ – although the show excels at that, it’s one of the funniest things I’ve seen in ages – but genuinely thinking about how households at the time worked, how women were affected by men going off to war, how servants related to their so-called social superiors. This has the effect of making Mrs Bennet a lot more sympathetic – she is right to be genuinely terrified for the future of her daughters, even if she’s not exactly subtle or classy in how she goes about securing it – and Mr Bennet, here portrayed as an empty chair and a newspaper – a lot less so. (Donald Sutherland, they could never make me hate you!) It runs till this Saturday – do see it if you can.
Also still running are the shows I mentioned last week which are all worth a look: Subterranea at Laurels, The Nurse’s Station at Alphabetti, Love it if We Beat Them at Live, and Abigail’s Party at Northern Stage. You can also catch the Response to The Nurse’s Station this week (check the website for details).
Theatre to book now
Speaking of Alphabetti, its big October show is My Name is Rachel Corrie, a revival of the 2005 Royal Court production about the titular American peace activist, partially based on her diaries. The theatre has both a commissioned response piece and will be holding a response writing competition, so if you are interested in submitting, do book the early days of the run – you can find details on the website. (As usual, the first week of the run is also Pay What You Feel, so if you are skint that’s the time to go!) Rebecca Glendenning-Laycock, who stars, is a favourite of mine who is always worth watching.
Over at Live, meanwhile, it’s time to get excited about its next big show, St Maud. Based on Rose Glass’ film, this has been adapted by novelist Jessica Andrews and Live AD Jack McNamara. This feels like a pleasingly bold, original choice for the theatre, and I’m excited to see what they do with it. Be sure to check out the wraparound events, which include spooky storytelling sessions.
One fascinating sounding production coming to Northern Stage – which has a host of great short-run shows lined up for autumn, is Please Right Back (I know, I know, my little editor’s heart is cringing), a show by company 1927 that mixes live action and animation to what looks like it could be incredible effect.
I’ve mentioned it before, but it’s a short run and I wouldn’t want you to miss out - Gerry & Sewell comes to the Theatre Royal next week, and is very worth checking out. Based on the Jonathan Tulloch novel The Season Ticket (which was made into the film Purely Belter), this story of two fans trying to secure an NUFC season ticket was a hit at both Laurels and Live, so I can’t wait to see what this new version looks like…
What I have been watching
Last week saw the two-episode premiere of Agatha All Along, the much-anticipated spin off featuring Kathryn Hahn’s Agatha Harkness, the breakout character of Wandavision. It’s easy to see why they decided to do a two-episode drop – the rest of the series will mostly be one episode a week – because the opener was very tonally different, a smart pastiche of Kate Winslet crime noir Mare of Eastown that had Agnes / Agatha in a gritty crime drama, before reality reasserts itself and she assembles a makeshift coven to try to get back the powers that Wanda stripped her of.
Hahn, of course, is fantastic as always, but she is surrounded by a stellar cast, including Aubrey Plaza (with whom she has absolutely sizzling chemistry), theatre legend Patti LuPone, and comedy show stalwart Debra Jo Rupp, who we also first encountered in Wandavision. Ali Ahn, Sasheer Zamata and Heartstopper’s Joe Locke – the latter playing a mysterious teen whose true identity as very likely [REDACTED] has been the source of much online speculation – round out the coven, and I for one am dying to see where this journey takes them.
Having devoured the book about The West Wing, What’s Next, I am also deep in rewatch mode. The show may not be perfect – nothing is, after all – but it stands up exceptionally well, and In The Shadow of Two Gunmen remain for me two of the best-ever episodes of TV.
Out and about in Newcastle
[Image description: plate of food including friend eggs, aubergine and bread]
As I have mentioned, only a few hundred times, it’s my birthday month – birthday week, in fact – so I have been out celebrating quite a lot, as it’s always nice to have an excuse to see friends and go places. One particular treat was lunch at Kiln Ouseburn, which became a favourite spot in the heady days of partial lockdown – its outdoor seating has a cool, Brooklyn vibe that was a boon when you couldn’t go indoors. It was a bit too fresh to be outside on Friday, when I visited, but being inside was no hardship.
Friendly staff and great food – my lunch was honestly delicious – combine to make this a great spot, and bonus for serving food and drinks in the gorgeous crockery that is, I believe, made onsite in the kiln that gives the venue its name (you can buy it: my friend has the same plates now!) They also have a great cocktail menu that I am keen to try, though maybe not at lunchtime…
Speaking of cocktails, I finally got around to trying Mother Mercy, the basement cocktail bar that is part of the family of cool outlets that include the cocktail bar in Fenwick’s and Café Mercy on Grey Street, (as well as now in Sheepsfold Stables). If you like those other bars, you’ll like this: quality cocktails, friendly service and an Instagrammable Barbie vibe, it was a great place to have a few drinks.
The benefit of Mother Mercy is you can book a table – its other outlets (at least those in Newcastle) being walk-in only. The downside is it’s not that easy to find unless you know where to look – located in the Old George Yard in the Cloth Market, I admit I got lost trying to find it (OK, that may just be me…)
[Image description: a very pink staircase, leading down to a doorway with a neon cocktails sign]
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Remember: everything included is my personal preference / opinion, and while I strive to be accurate, I always advising checking with the relevant venue.