Anyone been or planning on going?

Reviews a bit blah. http://www.whatsonstage.com/index.php?pg=2...=E8821221838814

Does anyone know why this is now closing on 25th October 2008 ? and whether they will put something temporary on?

Its an ok piece - I wasn't blown away by this production its probably closing early because they are not pulling in the punters!

All the reviews I've see have been terrible, but in my experience few things are really that bad. However, I'm not going to get the chance to see it before closing now.

Plus, I'm temporarily putting away my theatregoing garb of fedora hat, cloak and silver-topped cane, and become Cinema Man with the next 2 weeks at the London Film Festival. (Can't think what the equivalent film-going wear would be).

Right, so I saw Riflemind today, only to find out that its run has been cut short and that it had crap reviews. I found it entertaining, and though it definitely deserved better reviews. It's a real shame it's not running longer, so hopefully some people find this post and go see it this week.

So here's my review -- I hope it doesn't sound too pompous!

A lot of reviews basically call it tedious, but it was steadily intense. For a long play, maybe that was a bit much. The characters wear themselves down, and I think that emotion is conveyed so well, that I felt a bit drained by the end. It wasn't tedious -- it had a lot of depth and subtlety, and strongly held my attention all the way through.

The plot and dialogue are intense, realistic and well-executed. The set was great. Every actor was strong. You really feel like you're there -- there were even points where I was compelled to yell at the characters, like I knew them! There's loads of complexity between the characters, with subtle and not-so-subtle revelations all the way through. If you know any musicians, you'll recognise the characters and egos, and appreciate the themes.

And there's a lot of very clever self-reference and dark humour written into it; the conversations about films vs music, and about choir buys, whores and priests stand out in this way.

By the end, you can feel the exhaustion of all the characters. And I think that's where it's faults lie. It's so intense and so real, after 2 and half hours, it rubs off and you feel a bit consumed.

It's directed by Philip Seymour Hoffman, so that was what I was expecting. He's got an amazing range, like Ben Kingsley, so it's great to see what he came up with here. Like other plays directed by strong actors, the characters and dialogue are spot on. In this respect, if you like films directed by George Clooney, Richard Attenborough or Clint Eastwood, you'll like this play. And if you like Philip Seymour Hoffman as an actor, you'll appreciate his craft coming through as a director here.

It ends on Saturday and I think there are still tickets available, so go check it out!