SAFETY CURTAIN

Couldn't have a long lie in today as I needed to get up and get sorted and go to Newcastle.  Off to The Theatre Royal to see " To Kill A Mockingbird ".

" Mockingbirds don’t do one thing except make music for us to enjoy. They don’t eat up people’s gardens, don’t nest in corn cribs, they don’t do one thing but sing their hearts out for us. That’s why it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird."

It was performed by the actors from The Regents Park Theatre in London.  They had a sell out season there before going on tour.
Lots of schoolchildren were in the audience so I gather the book must still be read in schools.  I remember Becky and Neil reading it and it is one of Becky's all time favourite books.  She has seen the play performed outdoors in Regents Park.

I haven't read the book but I had a vague idea of the story.  It was quite an odd production - hard to explain but all the actors were on stage at the same time, changed costumes on stage  and most of them played different parts.  They all read sections from the book as Scout  who is the little girl in the story. The biggest problem I had was hearing what was said.  The sound didn't seem to carry very well. And the cast had to speak in American accents which I think added to the problem of hearing what was said.  I was sitting in the front row of the Grand Circle.  Its somewhere I don't normally sit.  I always sit in the Stalls near the front but when I booked my seat the stalls were full. There were 5 people sitting in my row who actually left at the half time interval and never came back.  It did get better in the second half when the courtroom scenes were portrayed.

My blip shot shows the wonderful safety curtain at the theatre which comes down during the interval. It was installed in 2006 and shows a harlequin with the Theatre Royal and Grey Street in the background.  The floorboards which form the street each have  the name of a famous actor or actress written on them.

The performance finished at 4.30pm and afterwards I did a bit of shopping before coming home. 

Update on Tino's " wee problem ".  He did it again on the sofa late last evening.  He was outdoors, came belting indoors, straight to the sofa, did a wee and ran back outdoors again.  So I have resigned myself to the fact that the sofa is ruined and have arranged for the Council to take it away.  They will come for it next Thursday.  I think I will be glad to see the back of it.  It was part of a 3 piece suite but Tino has already ruined the 2 chairs and they were put out for the Council last year. The culprit is fast asleep in his box at the moment looking angelic and with not a care in the world.  I can't stay mad at him for long.

Steps today - 7,683