Keep It Gay!

Today's Guardian has a blog article about the current state of plays and their gayness. The premise seems to be that these days there is a much greater range of portraits of gay men on the stage. Ultimately, though, the conclusion is that gays on stage are not yet completely out of the closet. The blogger makes quite a good case, as he trawls through productions of the past, present and future. O, and he even mentions a lesbian, albeit in brackets. Read it for yourself right here. Feh!

harold pinter r.i.p.

news came today that the playwright harold pinter had lost his battle with cancer and died yesterday at the age of 78. i met him once, when he and his wife came to dinner at my parents' flat. he was very emphatic about what he had to say, gesturing strongly with his hands ... so much so that one of my mother's best crystal wineglasses went flying and smashed. the following week at the dinner table, my mother was describing what had happened to our guests that evening, and sent one of her best crystal wineglasses flying into smithereens.

i also remember persuading my mother to come with me to the haymarket theatre (i bought the tickets - 3rd row centre stalls) to see "old times" i think it was. i wanted to go because liv ullmann was in it and i had a majestic crush upon her. we watched and listened - to the words and the pauses - but found it hard to make sense of what was going on. afterwards, as we left the theatre, we noticed many people turning to the right and crowding around something on the wall. as we drew closer, we saw it was a review of the play, including some explanation. we heard "o, now i get it!" and variations on that theme as people walked away. never mind, liv ullmann in the flesh was a sight worth seeing for me :-)

meanwhile, here are the serious retrospectives of the literary world:

bbc online obituary here.
the independent.
the times.
photos from the guardian.
obituary from the guardian.
the telegraph.
the new york times.

the wit and wisdom of dame maggie smith?

from an article in the independent in advance of the london opening of albee's the lady of dubuque, the author notes:

"These moments, however, are the abrasive side of an impish spirit that tilts at pomposity. Smith didn't even spare Olivier when, in rehearsals for Othello, he said her vowel sounds were getting sloppy. She looked the great man (painted all over to play the Moor) up and down, and, in her best prunes-and-prisms tones, enunciated: "How. Now. Brown. Cow."

Nor has the older Smith been above guying her own image and playing Lady Bracknell out of hours. On Broadway in the Nineties, she was furious that the music of a gospel show in the theatre next door could be heard in her theatre. The management decided to solve the problem by putting thick black velours along the connecting wall. When Smith arrived at the theatre for the next performance, she was told: "I think you'll be very pleased, Dame Maggie. We've hung all the blacks." "Well," she said sternly, "I don't think there was any need to go that far.""