More info on Season’s Greetings
Season’s Greetings is a play written by Alan Ayckbourn in 1980. There is a lot of information about the play which you can read on the Official Alan Ayckbourn website.
See also our Post on Season’s Greetings for other information about this National Theatre production.
Interview with the Director
Here is an interview with Marianne Elliott, the Director of the 2010 National Theatre revival of Season’s Greetings, which appeared in Metro.co.uk on 6 December 2010.
Reviews
Here is a round up of press reviews of Season’s Greetings :
3 stars for the show. Nicola was mentioned in the “other good performances” category, “And Nicola Walker as Rachel completes a trinity of dejected women by wanly recognising she can’t compete with her sister’s appetite.”
5 stars for the show but no mention of Nicola’s performance
You will need a paid subscription to the Times before you can read its review (or any other article). Here’s what they said of Nicola’s performance : “Nicola Walker’s awkward sexless thwarted Rachel moves between mockable hysteria, heroic resignation and the funniest speech about sex ever perpetrated on the British stage.”
5 stars for the show. “Nicola Walter, too, is outstanding as the writer’s wannabe moll.”
Generally positive review with acting being described as “top class” from all cast members but there is no specific mention of Nicola in the review.
Generally positive review, a general comment about “a top-notch ensemble cast” though there is no mention of Nicola’s acting talents, just one reference to the character she plays.
Generally positive review, with no specific mention of Nicola’s performance but a general comment “the technical accomplishments of the production now mainly lie with a fine cast who can turn mood and meaning midline, perfectly time their witty exchanges”.
4 stars for the show, with this comment about the cast :
Marianne Elliott has assembled a company of tremendous comic actors. Catherine Tate seethes with contempt for her husband (an odious Neil Stuke) and a burning desire for her sister’s boyfriend, while the wonderful Katherine Parkinson, best known for The IT Crowd, is almost unbearably poignant as the pregnant wife struggling to get her loser of a husband to acknowledge her at all. Mark Gatiss’s humiliation as the childless puppeteer, whose show turns into a disaster, is a comic wonder to behold, while Nicola Walker’s bravely borne misery as the spinster sister and David Troughton’s thuggish menace as Uncle Harvey are equally fine.
Generally favourable review with no specific mention of Nicola’s performance.
Generally favourable review with Nicola described as “brilliant”!
Generally favourable review with one mention of Nicola’s performance as “Belinda’s permanently disappointed sister Rachel”.
4 stars for the show, with this comment on Nicola’s performance : Nicola Walker also impresses as Rachel, the thirty-something spinster whose attempts to find happiness with a significant other are thwarted as much by her self-deprecation as anything else.
Generally favourable review with no specific mention of Nicola’s performance.
4 stars for the show with overall favourable comments on the cast. (Note: there is a limit on the number of articles which you can read for free on the Financial Times website.)
3 wine glasses (out of 5) with comment “glass half empty” though there are favourable comments on the cast in general.
(You have to look further down this article) Overall favourable review, we think.
4 stars for the show, with a mention of Nicola “as Belinda’s lovelorn sister who sways between well-adjusted sanity and despairing sobs”.
A generally negative review. There was nothing about the show, its cast, the director or the material which the reviewer liked.
A little late, and overall not a very positive review. It might help if the reviewer at least got the names of the characters right. For example, she referred to Catherine Tate’s character throughout the article as “Nicola Bunker” when in fact it should be “Belinda Bunder”! Could the reviewer be a little in awe of the fact that the fabulous Nicola Walker is also a cast member?
(Update : the New Statesman has corrected its review after we logged a post pointing out their mistake)
Six degrees
Neil Stuke was also in A Dark and Stormy Night but he read the fifth story as the Defendant whereas Nicola read the third story, as the Daughter. Neil has also guest starred in one episode of Pie in the Sky (1997), but not the same episode in which Nicola made an appearance.
Catherine Tate was also a cast member of Milner (1994) but she did not have any scenes with Nicola.
Other resources
On the National Theatre website, you will find a rehearsal gallery showing pictures of the cast in rehearsals a production gallery showing scenes from the show and audience reaction.
Interview with the Cast
Here is the interview prepared by the National Theatre where cast members share their thoughts on Christmas :
Saw this last week and enjoyed it very much. It’s typical Ayckbourn fare, incredibly funny if you’ve not seen any of his previous work, probably a little less funny if you have 😉 The National had assembled a dream cast for this and they don’t disappoint. If you come away from this without recognising at least one family member or previous incident from your own Christmases then you’ve obviously led a charmed life!