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Be Vociferous: Hall Worries for West End WastelandDate: 21 November 2003
Speaking to 200 Whatsonstage.com theatregoers following last night's performance of Harold Pinter's Betrayal at the West End's Duchess Theatre, Sir Peter Hall - who celebrates 50 years as a theatre director this year and his 73rd birthday this weekend - vowed to never give up directing "until people stop asking me to do it or I fall over".
Hall founded the Royal Shakespeare Company and was artistic director of the National Theatre for 15 years. Since 1988, he's run the Peter Hall Company, with regular productions in the West End and elsewhere. Earlier this week, his production of Samuel Beckett's Happy Days, starring Felicity Kendal as Winnie, opened at the Arts Theatre.
Last night, Hall revealed further plans for the new Kingston-upon-Thames complex, modelled on the Elizabethan Rose Theatre, of which he'll be the inaugural artistic director (See The Goss, 23 Jun 2003). At the centre, due to open in October 2004, he'll present eight plays a year in repertory. Two to three will be new plays, alongside revivals of Shakespeare and other classics. Furthermore, in 2005, he'll direct the 50th anniversary production of Beckett's Waiting for Godot, which he gave its English language premiere in 1955 (See The Goss, 19 Nov 2003).
Despite his continued passion for live theatre and the thrill derived from "the actor and audience imagining it together", Hall expressed concern for the current state of affairs. "I have a feeling that theatre at the moment is going through a slightly unfashionable patch," he said.
And the West End is suffering. According to Hall, "It's hard to get a serious play on in the West End. In fact, it's extremely difficult to get any play on in the West End." He noted that 90% of West End plays now originate from the subsidised sector, as transfers from the National, Royal Court, Donmar, Almeida, Hampstead or elsewhere.
Simultaneously, commercial producers have become so risk-averse that they will only bank on big names. Not just any big name, either, but those of a certain type. "It isn't even star theatre," Hall said, "it's Hello magazine theatre." If such trends continue, the director predicts that, in terms of quality drama, the West End will soon resemble the "wasteland" that is Broadway.
Hall also voiced his disappointment with the current government. Although, he admitted, funding has increased slightly under New Labour, there is an "absolute lack of inspired pride for the arts coming from the Government", which is detrimental. Concluding the 45-minute discussion, Hall urged the audience to become more involved and outspoken. "If you believe in theatre," he said, "be vociferous."
- by Terri Paddock
NOTE: Our next Whatsonstage.com Outing is to Matthew Bourne's double Olivier Award-winning PLAY WITHOUT WORDS at the National on 10 December 2003 - including a FREE drink and post-show reception with Bourne! Click here for more info!
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