1st Night Photos: Film Fans Flock to Bloom’s Debut

Hundreds of film fans and first nighters blocked traffic on St Martin’s Lane last night (16 July 2007, previews from 5 July) as Orlando Bloom made his stage debut in Anna Mackmin’s revival of In Celebration at the West End’s Duke of York’s Theatre.

Since graduating from London’s Guildhall School of Music and Drama, Bloom has worked exclusively on screen in such blockbuster films as The Lord of the Rings trilogy and Pirates of the Caribbean trilogies, Ridley Scott’s Black Hawk Down, Troy and Kingdom of Heaven .

In David Storey’s play, premiered at the Royal Court in 1969, Bloom plays Steven, the youngest of three brothers who return home to their Northern roots for their parents’ 40th wedding anniversary. Although they’ve returned to celebrate, the complexities of family life and long-held grievances make a decent party unlikely.

In an otherwise accomplished stage company, Steven’s brothers Andrew and Colin are played by Paul Hilton and Gareth Farr, his parents by Tim Healy and Dearbhla Molloy, and neighbours by Lynda Baron and Ciaran McIntyre. The production is presented by Sonia Friedman Productions, Michael Edwards and Carole Winter, and Tulchin/Bartner Productions. It continues its limited season until 15 September 2007.

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For 1st Night Photos, our Whatsonstage.com photographer Dan Wooller was on hand for the curtain call at the Duke of York’s Theatre and the post-show party at the Jewel Bar along with the company, author, director, producers and other first night guests including Tracy Emin, Richard E Grant, Anne Reid, Anastasia Hille, Sean Campion, Peter Davison, Neil Stuke, Amy Nuttall, Elena Roger, Royal Court artistic director Dominic Cooke and Orlando Bloom’s mother Sonia.

– by Terri Paddock