Fan Reviews
(All reviews contain spoilers, so don’t read if you intend to go to the play and don’t want to know anything beforehand. 🙂 )
NT Relaxed Performance review by Lucy, posted on 16 October 2012
Saturday 13th October 2012 marked a unique day in the history of the National Theatre, as it put on the first ever ‘Relaxed Performance’ of a play. This type of performance is defined by the NT as being ‘aimed at anyone who would benefit from a more relaxed performance environment, including people with an Autistic Spectrum Condition, sensory or communication disorders, or a learning disability’.
The chosen play was ‘A Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time’, which of course was a very appropriate choice, as it focuses on Christopher, who, while highly intelligent, struggles to cope with (and interpret) everyday life.
I went to this matinee performance with some friends, one of whom is on the Autistic Spectrum. We had a wonderful afternoon, and a really memorable experience. We were advised that while the content of the play remained unchanged, there would be a relaxed atmosphere in the auditorium. People would be permitted to make noise during the performance, and also to come and go freely. The auditorium wouldn’t be as dark as usual, and there would possibly be subtle changes to some scenes.
I have been to a number of other performances of this play before, so it was interesting to see the difference between a “Traditional” performance and a “Relaxed Performance”. The first notable difference was that there were more children in the audience than usual, and the atmosphere was vibrant. There were also several helpers in the auditorium, who were very welcoming and on hand at all times to assist anyone. Once the play started, we noticed that the sound effects and music were slightly quieter. There was more laughter and applause throughout the play, and some movement amongst the audience. Sometimes, certain members of the audience would shout a response to the actors during a scene. However, for the most part, they were transfixed, and the more ‘relaxed’ atmosphere didn’t distract at all. It was great to be part of it.
The content of the play was indeed unchanged, with only very subtle scene alterations. For example, during the scene where Christopher (Luke Treadaway) is shining a torch on certain items close to the audience, he didn’t shine the torch too closely to anyone (which he does in the usual performance). This led to one unfortunate incident. As Luke had changed his routine on stage to compensate, he tripped over the toy train and fell! Thankfully, he was unhurt, but did manage to break the train. In a moment of great improvisation, he also managed to fix the train before setting in on it’s way at the end of the first half!
At the end of the play, there was a brief Q&A with the cast, which was lots of fun and really relaxed. The audience were invited to ask questions, so here are a few of them:
Q: How long did it take Christopher to learn his part?
A: (Luke) It took about 5 weeks to learn all my lines, the moves and all the numbers!
Q: Can you explain the set design? (The audience is on all 4 sides, as the play is ‘in the round’).
A: (Rhiannon) Reading the book, you feel very close to Christopher, so making the play ‘in the round’ adds to that, as the audience is so close. Also, no-one has anything to hide behind. It’s very open, just like Christopher.
Q: How much did the cast know about Asperger’s Syndrome, Autism etc, before they started work on the play?
A: (Howard) Not very much at all. We watched lots of DVDs and read books about it, and Luke and Niamh visited some schools.
(Luke and Niamh) Yes, we spoke to the teachers and asked lots of questions. We spent the afternoons talking to the children, which we found really helpful and great fun!
Q: What is the puppy’s real name?
A: (Howard) Funnily enough, it’s Candy, not Sandy, as she is in the play!
Then Howard asked if everyone enjoyed it, and there was a resounding “yes” with cheering and applause, and that marked the end of the Q&A.
Afterwards, we had a chat with Nicola at the stage door. She really loved being part of this kind of ‘relaxed’ production, declaring that “Theatre should always be like this!” She said that she and the cast were a bit worried that the evening performance could feel a little flat after that experience! Nicola also said that she was so impressed that the NT are doing these productions, and she would definitely attend and support them herself. We discussed that as there is a lot going on in ‘The Curious Incident,’ it’s very engaging and therefore the perfect choice for the first performance of this kind.
Nicola said that she was loving being a part of this play, and she really hopes it moves to the West End. We asked if she might move with it, and she said that she didn’t know yet, but would love to if asked!
Along with Di, Viv and Rose, Nicola said this was her favourite play to have been involved in, saying that both were such good fun to do. She doesn’t want the run of The Curious Incident to end!
We couldn’t agree more! 🙂
Many thanks again to Nicola for being so generous with her time, and chatting to us between matinee and evening performance. It was lovely to see her reaction to being involved in this different kind of performance. She was so full of enthusiasm for it and was delighted that we were there to see it. You could really sense just how much she enjoyed it!
Editor’s Note :
In August 2012, a couple of Nicola Walker fans went to a performance of this play. According to one member of the audience (who we shall call “Mr Grumpy”) who sat behind these fans, they were quite noisy during the first half of the play because they wondered, aloud (at least within earshot of Mr. Grumpy), when Nicola would actually appear on stage (she comes on fairly late during the first act) and when she did, whether Nicola would recognise them. Mr Grumpy posted a tweet to the effect that whilst he enjoyed the play immensely, his experience was marred by the behaviour of these “Nicola Walker loonies”.
I don’t know the identity of the “Nicola Walker loonies” but I do have a strong objection to any one describing any fan as “loony” purely on account of their enthusiasm for the work of an actor or actress. I guess it never occurred to Mr. Grumpy that one or both of the “Nicola Walker loonies” might be on the Autistic Spectrum, which would explain the inability to keep quiet in an environment where one is supposed to remain silent. It is extremely judgemental to label these fans as “loonies”, based on just fleeting observations in a theatre. Its ironic that Mr. Grumpy said that he enjoyed a play whose central theme is to ask us to be more tolerant of people who may not behave in a normal manner. I guess for him, charity does not begin at home!
I think it’s a stroke of genius on the part of the National Theatre to stage these “Relaxed Performances” and I hope that there will be more of these to come in future. At the very least, it will save people like Mr. Grumpy from having to label people as “loonies”. (I don’t know Mr. Grumpy personally. For all I know, he might be the sweetest human being in real life. In labelling him as “Mr. Grumpy”, I am as judgemental as he was towards the Nicola Walker fans. 😛 )
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To my fellow Virginian, you capture all the essentials. It is a play and book for everyone. I too have seen all you describe in the classroom and it is appropriate love, not violence that makes connections with the students. They can learn and interact with general education peers given the chance unfortunately too often that doesn’t happen. I’m proud my school promotes as much interaction as possible. The R word rarely used. I’ve had to calm students when upset. Sometimes they want to make me feel better if I say I’m having a bad day. Sometimes it’s to see how much they’ve learned to interact. I love teaching Special Education. To me they try the hardest to do their best. Families struggle, divorce happens. You have captured it all in your review and don’t give up working with special education students. Good teachers, aides and paras are needed. These are the students who need the best. Re Sandy, I’d forgotten the dog’s name and can see the appropriateness of it and how it would bring such a laugh. Stay safe, I’m in the Mnts. but in the wedge where we’re only getting a bit of wind and light snow.
[Ed : this comment refers to Beatrice’s review of the NT Live screening in Washington DC.
Dee wrote a Close Encounters report for us which you can read HERE.]
Dee,
Thank you for your kind remarks. I admire special ed teachers who are so dedicated to their students. It can often be hard for them to deal with the children’s meltdowns (over the years I have met quite a few teachers who were bitten or hit by their students), but it is also a very rewarding profession. As you noted, special needs children are compassionate and surprise their teachers by their creativity and unusual skills. I enjoyed The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time very much. The play did not shield the audience from the realities of the autism spectrum and the actors were fabulous in this very emotional play. I just have to convince my husband to see a live performance of the play, if the same cast is transferred to the West End next March.
I hope that you are not snowed in. We were lucky in Northern Virginia. I would have been very disappointed if the NT live performance had been cancelled.
I braved the storm and was there. I did tell a few people sitting near me to wait to watch Luke solve the math question. Yes the biggest laugh was ‘Sandy’. I found myself laughing at times when I understood the ‘You have to live in England to get this joke’ and being either among the few or only one chuckling.
[Ed : this comment refers to Beatrice’s review of the NT Live screening in Washington DC.]
Excellent review capturing the emotion of the evening. Although I only saw it twice I wish I could have seen the NT Live but maybe another play at another time. Anyway, the review was spot on and meeting Nicola Walker is a fabulous experience.
[Ed : This comment refers to Emily’s report on the final performance of the play at the Cottesloe on 27.10.2012.]
Lucy,
Thank you for your interesting comments. What a timely report! I just worked today in a class with severe autistic children who were nonverbal and who like Christopher became violent out of frustration. However, I am always impressed by the way most of those children can attentively watch plays or concerts performed by the other students of their schools. It is also very touching to see the vibrant and spontaneous reactions of the children to the plays. Surprisingly, they often behave better than their regular classmates.
You have to admire the National Theatre for organizing a relaxed performance, which I hope will be the first of many. I was a bit concerned by the length of the play, but the NT wisely allowed sensory overwhelmed spectators to come and go.
I hope that Nicola gets her wish for her sake and that of her fans.
Dear Editor,
Mr. Grumpy failed not only to notice the irony of his remarks in the context of a play about “autism” but also to realize that he was insulting the fans of one of the main actors of The Curious Incident. Unlike Mr. Grumpy, the NT is so open-minded that it does not hesitate to take the risk to offer the joy of theatre to a special audience.
I saw the film version of this play in Christchurch and have not been able to stop thinking about it since! The acting was absolutely fantastic and I wish I could have seen the play live at the National Theatre. However, the National Theatre Live is a wonderful thing as it transports audience around the world into their magnificent productions. Will be on the lookout for more!
Interesting to read those articles in the NZ and Perth newspapers, it brings home the global reach of NT Live! I wonder which half of the split Luke Treadaway was in during rehearsals – those who hated or loved maths!
Any one whose been to the show care to (a) write a review of the play for us and/or (b) share your photo with Nicola and let us put it up on the We Met Nicola! wall? Please send your contributions to us via Email.
I would love to write a review for the play that I pretty much haven’t stopped thinking about since watching it, and I wish I had read your post a day earlier Editor, but I’m away for the next two weeks, gutted!
I’m yet to actually meet NW as yet, so can’t help there either… Booo!!
There’s no time limit on submitting fan reviews. Any time you’re ready, George, just email your comments through. 😀
I’m going to see the play on the 24th of October which will be nearly the end but I can’t wait to see Nicola Walker in real, not in front of a tv screen! Promise, I’ll try to post a review even if I guess a lot of other fans will have done it by then! I don’t know if there are other French fans on this site but I’m sure I’m not the only one!
All contributions, long or short, submitted at any time, will be gratefully received. 😀
Excellent in every respect. Nicola is brilliant as always. The production is genius.
Anyone going to see the play is in for a real treat.
Really enjoyed the play, and great to see such positive press reviews – I read the one in the London Evening Standard on the train home and had a flashback to the play when 2 policemen suddenly appeared in my carriage… no sign of Christopher though!
I enjoyed the interviews with Marianne Elliot and Simon Stephens, both gave interesting insights on how the play’s taking shape. Also found this interview with Simon Stephens on what it’s like seeing one of his plays performed. Not long to go now!
Have my ticket for Aug 23 evening, can’t wait to see play, will have to take 5 days off work, although just had 10 wks off for summer break, but it seems rare that Nicola Walker does a summer play, so didn’t want to miss golden opportunity. Of course I really want to see the play given that I made my Brit Lit students read it last year. Interesting how things come together. Loved book, admire NW, and both now together in one venue. Adaptation of book should be interesting. I think I am grieving loss of Spooks, but recognize difference between roles and actors, and in that picture she looks so tiny. Would love to be her size. Oddly enough not as excited about Peter Firth new roles, guess I’m fickle.
This is nothing to do with the play but wasn’t sure where else to post it!
I wonder if Nicola was amongst the people on the NT balconies yesterday to see the River Pageant – she must have had a great view if so as Joey the horse seemed to capture the attention of the whole royal party eliciting a few waves!
Wish I’d been there, if only the Jubilee and Olympics had fallen on different years!
Also, just seen that Time Out Theatre’s included The Curious Incident at No. 6 in its list of 10 top theatre shows in London this season – so this play definitely seems to be going places!
Well, look at that? There is a Santa Claus! Thank for the NT Live info. My wish came true! Although it is not listed on their webpage yet. Do you have any indication of what the actual transmission date will be? Sometimes there is a bit of a lag but usually not much of one for my venue. The NT Live page ends with Timon if Athens on 1 Nov.
No details yet re actual transmission dates but will post here as soon as we know. Wish the NT would put these NT Live events on DVD for sale …
Good idea. I’d buy several of them. However, I have no idea what the distribution or copyright the legalities might be.
You can download plays from Digital Theatre to keep and watch on your computer. Surely its only a matter of time before the NT is able to hammer out similar deals with its own productions for some kind of a download service. The NT Live events are great, but there are still a whole lot of countries who do not currently participate in this programme. Even for those countries with participating cinemas, the show times are quite limited. Still, I’m soooo super excited for Nicola that she’s been cast in this wonderful project!
As a point of note, I just phoned the NT box office as I’ve been allocated a ticket on Level 2 next to one of the ‘pillars’ as marked on the Theatremonkey seating plan – only to be assured there are no pillars in the Cottesloe (phew!) So one less thing to worry about!
How frustrating….!
I have ‘Advance Membership’ for the NT, every other play except for this one has its advance ticket sales open!! Come on NT, let me buy some tickets….!
Tickets…… Done!!
Well done you!
Just looked at the play’s page on the NT site and see you were right about casting, Nicola’s to play Christopher’s mother. I wonder how they’ll adapt it for stage, since if they follow the book chronologically she’ll only feature in the latter stages (except maybe for flashbacks). Perhaps those are other details they haven’t finalised yet!
Part of the charm of the book is that it takes you inside Christopher’s head and shows you his version of the world. Obviously the play can’t be just a monologue by Christopher, so the other characters will have to be given more to say and do, on stage. But if they did that, the play might end up being very different from the book. Its too early to say whether that might be a good thing or a bad thing. I’m sure there is a version of a script for the play somewhere, but until they start rehearsals, cast & crew won’t know what will work and what won’t. Simon Stephens is an award winning playwright, so one lives in hope. If his adaptation of the play works, maybe Hollywood will finally figure out how to transfer the book to the big screen.
Did you notice the “Movement Directors” and “Fight Director” amongst the production crew? With the Cottesloe being the smallest of the three NT theaters, this should prove an interesting experience to any one sitting near the front of the stage 😀
Yes, I thought it said ‘Flight Director’ first which really confused me!
Interesting too to note that Christopher’s father will be played by one of the 2 ‘ensemble’ cast members which perhaps suggests less emphasis on the front end of the story and more on Christopher’s London trip onwards… and hence more stage time for Nicola’s part?
I have just heard from the NT, advance booking for members will be open for the next season from 10th April, so I’m guessing it will be a week after that for normal booking. Good luck everyone!!
For National Theatre members who are on the Supporting Cast tier, booking opens on 2 April 2012. 🙂
It’s a bit weird as the NT brochure says public booking for The Curious Incident opens on Friday 4 May which is a fair bit later than for the other plays… any ideas why?
Only just found out from the NT – see our correction to the booking dates above for explanation. Its worrying that details about the play are still so fluid and sketchy. This means that cast and crew haven’t quite finalize how they want to stage the play. Fans thinking of attending the preview shows should take care. Preview shows sometimes get cancelled if the Company has not tweaked the play to its own satisfaction.
I really hope this play starts before July 24 I have to be back teaching on Aug. 5. Having taught this book, and finally having the funds to visit London I really want to see the play and of course Nicola Walker no matter the role she plays. Any chance play will start before July 24. Middle of July would be fine.
Hi Dee,
The play is part of the National Theatre ‘Olympic Festival’ programme. The festival starts on 21st June, and the play from July, so I would have thought the play will be in its second or even third week by your date. I hope so anyway… I have Olympic tickets and I am looking to combine the two trips!
I reckon that renting a flat in London for 2-3 months is the only sure way to see everything you might want this summer, the list is almost endless… Thames Pageant, Olympics, Paralympics, Cutty Sark, Nicola’s play. A bit of a balancing act really!
Oh I wish renting was an option for this seasons festivities!!!
I’m afraid I was speaking hypothetically too of course 🙁 London’s expensive at the best of times, let alone in Jubilee and Olympics year!
Brilliant idea, except that rents for London during this summer are horrendously high! My usual room at the inn costs 3 times higher than before!
A note to all…….
I have just been on the NT website and they have announced that tickets for the July to September season will be available from April…….
Woohoo, thanks for letting us know, George! 😀 Here’s the NT link, in case anyone’s interested.
Having now read the book I’m wondering if Nicola’s been cast as Siobhan, Christopher’s teaching assistant? The book’s written by Christopher in the first person which could be difficult to convey in a play, so one way round this would be to have the story relayed to the audience as Siobhan helps Christopher write the book. Which would be good as it’d mean that Nicola’s role was fairly central to the play.
I’m guessing Una Stubbs will be Mrs Alexander, and Luke Treadaway has to be Christopher – which will be a tough part to get right. It’s a clever, touching and insightful story, so it’s going to be interesting to see how they decide to adapt it to stage.
Siobhan is described in the book as having blonde hair, plus she didn’t have that big a part. Its an adaptation for the stage, so it won’t be completely faithful (though hopefully not in a bad way) to the book. My money is still on Nicola playing Christopher’s mother. 🙂
I don’t think the hair colour need rule Nicola out of playing Siobhan, I’m sure there’ll be bigger deviations from the book than that in the stage adaptation! I was suggesting Siobhan’s role may be given more emphasis in the play to assist with telling the story… we’ll have to wait and see!
Nah, I reckon Nicola’s in the “mum” phase of her career 😛 ! She’s playing one in both Inside Men and Antony & Cleopatra. We’ll know more if they release more casting info.
I disagree, each project is different – and besides I’m sure Nicola wouldn’t wish to be typecast. Either way, we know she’s got a part so that’s good news!
Wish I lived in the UK – I miss all the theatre things. 🙁
Great to hear Nicola has been cast in another stage role, congratulations to her! And at the NT too, so no cross-London tube journeys required either, even better! I’m sure I’m not the only fan who’ll be taking the opportunity to read this book before the summer, it’s one I’ve heard a lot about but never got round to reading.
It’ll be good to see Una Stubbs perform too, currently aka Mrs Hudson from Sherlock… perhaps she could speak to Mark Gatiss/Steven Moffat and see if Nicola could audition for a role in series 3 of Sherlock, that’d also be great!
A regular in Sherlock… what a diamond idea. Its another favourite BBC drama of mine!
Thanks for the info!
I live in hope that this will be “The One.” The production in which NW is cast that will be transmitted via NT Live. I keep telling myself that it’s only a matter of time.
Fingers (arms, legs, toes, eyes…) crossed…
I live in hope that this project will become available as one of the Digital Theatre’s downloads. But sadly, its doesn’t look like the NT is one of Digital Theatre’s theatre partners.
This is excellent news. Can Bonkers But Brilliant keep us all posted when the NT will have this on their website?! I know tickets for the NT can be like gold dust!
Of course, this is what we’re here for. The NT’s brochure for its next season should be out soon. 🙂