So there I was, 3 hours early, arriving at London for the much anticipated show I had promised I'd gift to myself, "Much ado about nothing". I admittedly am of those people that would not have been there if it wasn't for the ex-doctor who cast David Tennant and Cathrine Tate. I think anyone would agree that their chemistry is amazing, although I felt so uncomfortable seeing them kiss on stage! I should really stop lurking around the actors' backgrounds next time. It's killing the magic.
And having all those hours to kill I went for a walk in central London, first spending some time in Trafalgar square on this nice sunny day, then walking all around, crossing a bridge, getting lost somewhere on the other side of the Thames, walking my way back from another bridge (exhausted but very pleased) and landing outside the back stage door, stalking the actors.
After some awkward looks with the some of them, that might have thought I was there for an autograph but I really hadn't seen them before in my life, it was almost time we got in so I went towards the crowd mostly because I had started feeling weird. Wyndham's theater is tiny but beautiful. All in rococo, most appropriate for Shakespeare, maybe not for a modern version of it as that we were presented. The truth is I liked this version a lot. It was funny and perky and the serious scenes were nicely done because Tennant and Tate are versatile and successful in both genres. Unfortunately, two things destroyed my mood and were both related to the crowd.
Some days before I had listened to an interview of Tate where she was terrified at the idea that people would not understand the jokes because let's face it - it's still Shakespeare. Well, surprisingly, the day I was there people were laughing a lot... Maybe more that they should have. Whoever is familiar with the play knows that not all of it is comedy. There was actually a laugh when Beatrice asked Benedick to kill Claudio. I wonder how Tate felt about that. And then there was this cough, really loud, in which someone had fallen into repeatedly making the same sound. It was so loud and weird, it sounded like someone was choking. Occasionally some heads would turn to see what's happening. Now, I know I'm not the best person to say this because I rarely go to the theater, but it is amazing how the actors can concentrate in such situations. It was the most important and dramatic scene, and yet they were playing as if in complete silence.
After the end of the show I had to rush to catch the train - so no autograph for me. Leicester underground stop had problems and I had to change my route hoping this wouldn't destroy my otherwise perfect day. When I got back to Brighton - supposedly one of the most joyful cities - I felt like it was really empty. It did not compare to the hordes of people sweeping London. You could never feel alone there. It was amazing. I'm really glad I did this despite the fact that it cost me a little fortune due to my last minute ticket purchase (believe it or not this show was sold out for the whole summer in the first few days!).
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