The Mono Box

The Mono Box is a resource for actors, directors and playwrights. It was set up by actor Joan Iyiola and movement director/choreographer Polly Bennett in 2012. The organisation runs workshops and events. It also has a collection of plays that was entirely donated by industry professionals. Several donors are people I have featured on my blog over the years* - actors Hugh Bonneville, Olivia Colman, Charles Edwards, Andrew Scott, Michael Sheen, Juliet Stevenson and David Tennant; and playwrights Caryl Churchill, Lucy Prebble and Laura Wade.

* belated realisation that I've had this blog for nine years!

Samuel West - The Book of Disquiet, Chekhov, writing

[updated 20 August]

Sam will perform in the UK and US premieres of The Book of Disquiet by Michel van der Aa. It will be performed at Montclair State University 21-24 January and the Southbank Centre 24-25 February.

Last week, Sam rehearsed for the Young Chekhov season then went to a night shoot for Mr Selfridge!

10.30 - 6 on Ivanov, 7-10 on #MrSelfridge. About to discover why people don't make a habit of this.

— Samuel West (@exitthelemming) August 5, 2015

Sam wrote about Caryl Churchill in the Telegraph. His article suggests that her plays continue to be revived because of their humanity and inventive qualities. He also reflects on his experience of performing in two of her plays, A Number and Drunk Enough to Say I Love You?
Howard Brenton, a contemporary of Churchill, wrote The Romans in Britain. Sam wrote the foreword for a new edition of the play (@exitthelemming). Sam directed it in Sheffield in 2006.

Sam's reading of Brighton Rock is seventh on the Telegraph's list of the 20 best audiobooks of all time, "The splinter of ice that Greene declared at the heart of a writer has lodged in West’s voice to sinister effect." This list was published in May.

In April, Dermot Murnaghan interviewed Sam on Sky News (transcript is here). They spoke about arts funding in relation to the election manifestos (via the NCA Twitter @artscampaign - Sam is the chair of this organisation).

Samuel West. Narration - The Soldier's Tale. Guardian letter.

Sam will be a guest on In Tune today (via @suzyklein). Presumably he will be discussing the upcoming performance of The Soldier's Tale at the Wigmore Hall, which he will be narrating this Friday. [Update, 25 February: a picture of Sam in the studio is here]
Later in the week, he will be a guest on Saturday Kitchen Live, facing his food heaven or food hell. [Update, 4 February: it clashed with a morning performance of The Soldier's Tale (see the comment from Anonymous on this post, and tweets from @cmoody and @debbie2711; cancellation confirmed by Sam here)]

Sam wrote a letter to the Guardian outlining disagreement with the appointment of actor György Dörner as the director of the Új Színház (the New Theatre). Early last week, he tweeted that he was in the process of putting the letter together:

"Putting together letter about theatre situation in Hungary (http://bit.ly/yOizOb). As ever, moved & delighted by response of fellow actors."

The letter's signatories include Daniel Evans, Romola Garai, Toby Jones, Dan Stevens, Harriet Walter, Caryl Churchill and Laura Wade.

Samuel West. Theatre - A Number. Radio - All That I Am.

The Next 48hours and the Mail & Guardian have articles about A Number.
Here's a selection of recent tweets, beginning with some thoughts from Sam:

"Here we go then. Press night on a new continent. Feels good that some of my second Sheffield season is still going, five years on. #anumber." (@exitthelemming)
"@TheFugard tonight 4 A Number - wonderful play w great acting. See it if you can..." (@UKinCapeTown)
"A Number production last night was moving and also leaves a lot of 'What If' thoughts to ponder..." (@NickiLinde)
"Loved it, great night out... @exitthelemming congrats on a brilliant show..." (@lucymayhinde 1|2)
"@exitthelemming outstanding work tonight..." (@untheatre)

The readers for the Book at Bedtime All That I Am are Sam, Hattie Morahan and Sara Kestelman. It starts on BBC Radio 4 on 24 October (BBC Press Office).

Samuel West - Theatre - A Number

A Number began previewing on Tuesday, and the final preview is tonight. A couple of tweets about the first preview:

"...check out the amazing acting of @exitthelemming [Sam] at the Fugard in A Number" (@yesreallyangel)

"Thanks brother @iamSivN for taking us to see @exitthelemming show #numbers [sic] this eve! great to meet u #sam gd luck with the birding& ur show!" (@johnmcinroy)

Jesse Kate Kramer's website has some lovely stills from the play and its rehearsals.

IOL has an article about the production, "Acting combo keeps it in family".

And a nice mention of Sam and Timothy from an interview with director Jonathan Munby:

"This play is truly one of the great works for theatre and already a modern classic. Also, having father and son play father and son is a truly unique and powerful experience."

Romola Garai, Ruth Wilson, BBC Radio

Romola Garai and Nicholas Burns will star in The Village Bike at the Royal Court from 24 June to 30 July.

A quote from Ruth in the Telegraph about Michael Grandage, outgoing artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse:

"'He is an agent’s worst nightmare!’ Ruth Wilson laughs. Not only does he cut them entirely out of the process by contacting their clients directly, but he also expects his actors, however famous they are, to work for a company wage."

Ruth previously performed at the Donmar in A Streetcar Named Desire, and will star in the theatre's upcoming production of Anna Christie.

BBC Radio

• Hattie Morahan, Bertie Carvel and Tobias Menzies star in the Drama on 3 Serious Money by Caryl Churchill (available on iPlayer for 4 more days)
• Alex Jennings reads Twenty Minutes "A Warning to the Curious" (available on iPlayer for 5 more days)
• Andrew Scott voices James Joyce in the Book of the Week James Joyce - A Biography. Jim Norton narrates.   
• Jason Isaacs was interviewed on Loose Ends 

Samuel West - Theatre - A Number

[updated 17 August 2013]

Posts about A Number are here.

Reviews

whatsonstage.com
"With the Wests, the human drama is brought fully to the fore... the chance to witness the generational baton being passed – and so adroitly – in this revered family of actors is unmissable."

Evening Standard
"Caryl Churchill’s prickly, rewarding play...
Samuel West manages in his three different guises to be pained, sardonic, resentful, brutish and suave. There’s a meaty rawness throughout.
Timothy West gives a performance richly furbished with little tics and postural shifts that betray the intimate mechanics of self-justification."

Official London Theatre Guide
"As Salter, West senior shows us how easily that decision could be made, how a potent emotional mix of grief, regret and a desire to have another shot at life can culminate in a man making this horrific choice.
In playing three of Salter’s sons – the original Bernard and two clones – Samuel West shows his versatility as he deftly changes from one character to the other..."

Telegraph
"Churchill creates a play that is as emotionally upsetting as it is intellectually and morally profound... Timothy West plays the father with a mixture of furtive unease, gnawing guilt and a deeply moving vulnerability... Samuel West differentiates the three sons with high-definition panache."

The Stage
"The Wests’ performances are meticulous..."

The Guardian
"superb acting from West pere et fils..."

Pictures

After party: guests included Laura Wade, Marcus Brigstocke and Malcolm Sinclair

Production:
Tristram Kenton/The Guardian
unknown/Evening Standard

Screencaps from Sam and Timothy's interview (7 October) on The Alan Titchmarsh Show (click thumbnails for full size):

Samuel West. Theatre - A Number. Narration - Lines of Flight. Radio - A Brief History of Mathematics. Narration - Secret Iraq.

• A Number
• Pictures from Broadway World [link]
• Sam and his dad Timothy discussed the play on Loose Ends [link]
• Some tweets from Sam about the play 1|2|3
• Lines of Flight will receive screenings at the Graz Adventure (10-13 November) and Banff Mountain (30 October-7 November) film festivals [link]
• Some episodes of A Brief History of Mathematics are available for a limited time on iPlayer (via his Twitter, @exitthelemming) [link]
• Sam narrates the BBC2 documentary Secret Iraq (via his Twitter, @exitthelemming) [link]

Samuel West. Radio - Faust. Audio - Realms of Gold. Theatre - A Number. International Musicians Seminar.

• Faust
• Will be broadcast today on BBC Radio 3 [link]
• A post from the BBC Radio 3 blog [link]
• Sam participated in a discussion about the play on Night Waves earlier this week (via his Twitter, @exitthelemming) [link]
• An excerpt about Realms of Gold from an interview with Nicolas Soames, co-founder and managing director of Naxos Audiobooks:
  
  

  "Poetry: some of it is meant to be read aloud and some of it exists very much first and foremost on the page – what are the main issues with recording poetry and what recordings do you think have worked the best? [Question from Vulpes Libris]
  Nicolas: Samuel West’s Letters and Poems of John Keats is exceptional. He came into the studio at 9am, discussed the use of the dash in 19th century literature with our literary advisor/abridger/compiler Perry Keenlyside, and sat down to record. He read a letter, and put the page to one side. He looked down and saw the poem which was next. He looked up to the microphone and recited it. One take. From memory. Then he stopped and sat in silence for a bit. Then he picked up the next letter and read it. Then glanced at the title of the poem that followed, looked up at the microphone and recited it. From memory. He did this with almost every poem. And as I remember, no slips. Unforgettable. And by the way, I know Keats was a cockney, and Sam West certainly isn’t. But listen to his Keats. You will not move."

• A Number
• Some tweets from Sam about the play 1|2|3
• Sam and his father & co-star Timothy were guests on The Arts Show with Claudia Winkleman on BBC Radio 2 (tweeted by me, @spiffyjellybean earlier this week) [link]
• Sam stage managed the 10 September open chamber music concert at the International Musicians Seminar (via his Twitter, @exitthelemming) [link]

Samuel West. Arts funding. NCA board. Index on Censorship. Narration - Peer Gynt. Narration - Nocturne. Audio - A Shard of Ice. Radio - The Vanishing. Theatre - Generation Jeans. Television - Garrow's Law. Theatre - A Number.

• An extended version of the arts funding article has been posted at Ning (via his Twitter, @exitthelemming) [link]
  
  
• The Arts Desk has made a partial transcript available of a discussion on You and Yours about arts funding, which Sam participated in [link]
  
  
• Board profile for the National Campaign for the Arts [link]
  
  
• Video from Sir Tom Stoppard Presents... Belarus Free Theatre, an event hosted by Index on Censorship [link]
  
  
  
• Sam will narrate Incidental Music to Peer Gynt by Grieg with the Southampton Philharmonic on Saturday 27 November (via City Local) [link]
  
  
• Lucy Parham interview from the Harrogate International Festival's website about Nocturne: The Romantic Life of Chopin, which toured in July. Sam and Harriet Walter were the readers. [link]
  
  
• Sam plays Albert Tiermann in the Doctor Who audio Demon Quest: A Shard of Ice, which will be released in November 1|2|3
  
  
• Sam recently recorded the radio play The Vanishing in Glasgow [link]
  
  
• Sam read from Generation Jeans by Nikolai Khlezin at the HighTide Arts Club in Edinburgh last week (posted earlier at my Twitter, @spiffyjellybean) [link]
  
  
• Some tweets from Sam's Twitter about filming Garrow's Law 1|2|3
  
  
• A Number will be revived at the Menier Chocolate Factory, 29 September-5 November (via Sam's Twitter, @exitthelemming) [link]

Samuel West. Arts funding. Belarus. Comedy of Errors opening night. Radio - Faust. Radio - With Great Pleasure. Television - Random Quest. Equity.

• A marvellous article by Sam in the Evening Standard about arts funding (via his Twitter, @exitthelemming) [link]
  
  
• Internet censorship in Belarus
• An open letter to David Cameron - as well as Sam, signatories included Sir Tom Stoppard, Howard Brenton, Caryl Churchill, and Laura Wade [link]
• A protest at the Belarussian embassy took place on 1 July
• Articles from Charter 97 and Index on Censorship
• Video of Sam performing an extract from Generation Jeans
• Some tweets from @exitthelemming, Sam's Twitter: 1|2|3|4
  
  
• Sam attended the opening night for The Comedy of Errors at the Open Air Theatre on 29 June [link]
  
  
• BBC Radio
• Faust (starring Sam, Toby Jones and Anna Maxwell Martin) press release [link]
• Sam and Harriet Walter are the readers for an upcoming episode of With Great Pleasure. Readings have been chosen by Joan Bakewell. [link]
  
  
• Random Quest will be screened at the BFI 14 and 20 August [link]
  
  
• Sam has been elected to the Equity General Council (via The Stage) [link]
  
  

Hattie Morahan - Theatre - Three More Sleepless Nights. Rosamund Pike - Film - Surrogates. Theatre - Arcadia. Theatre - Enron.

• Pictures from Three More Sleepless Nights 1|2
• Rosamund makes an appearance in a featurette from joblo about Surrogates [link]
• Mentions of Arcadia and Enron from the Alleyn's Trinity Term newsletter:

  "...Nancy Carroll (Brading's, 1985–92) is appearing in a revival of Tom Stoppard's Arcadia at the Duke of York's Theatre... An extended member of the Alleyn's community, Dan Stevens, also appears alongside Nancy in Arcadia. Dan is the son of Ron Stevens, former teacher of Economics and Business Studies, who retired last year.
  
  And a trio from the Alleyn's alumni will be treading the boards together in the world premiere of Enron at Chichester Festival Theatre, followed by a London transfer to the Royal Court from 17th September. Roper's alumni Tom Godwin (1987–94) and Samuel West (1977–84), and parent Tom Goodman-Hill will appear in a dramatisation of one of the most infamous scandals in financial history..."

Samuel West - Television - Desperate Romantics. BBC Radio drama.

[updated 19 March 2011]

Sam will guest star in next week's episode of Desperate Romantics.

BBC Radio drama:

• Rory Kinnear stars in Ruth and Slipstream ruth|slipstream
• Anna Maxwell Martin and Lizzy Watts star in Villette [link]

Samuel West - Theatre - A Family Affair

[updated 19 March: picture removed]

Some recaps of A Family Affair, an Oxford Playhouse fundraiser starring Sam and his parents, Timothy West and Prunella Scales:
Stuck in a Book [link]
Oxford reader [link]
m4sure [link]
Oxford Times [link]

Dan Stevens - Audio - The Angel's Game. Hattie Morahan - Theatre - Three More Sleepless Nights.

[updated 24 April 2010 - links for The Angel's Game]

• A review of the abridged (CD, download) and unabridged (CD, download) versions of The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón from the Times:
  
  

  "'Every book has a soul - the soul of the person who wrote it, and the soul of those who read it and lived and dreamed with it,' Carlos Ruiz Zafón says in his latest book. The soul of Dan Stevens, the audiobook's narrator, richly deserves to be added to that of Zafón's latest bestseller, The Angel's Game. Stevens reads this magical realist prequel to Shadow of the Wind in its unabridged (13 CDs, £29.35 £26.42) and its abridged version (6 CDs, £16.63 £14.97) with extraordinary versatility, holding the listener's attention in a vice-like grip, and is as adept at being the Copperfield-like hero, David Martin, and the elusive, wounded heroine as at playing the Faustian Corelli or the saintly Sempere, the wise but doomed guardian of the Cemetery of Lost Books. I chopped and changed between the two, interested as I was in how well a book can work despite being halved in length. Indeed, since many reviewers of the text edition complain of too many subplots and Grand Guignol meanderings, it may even be that the abridgement is an improvement..."

• The official website for Three More Sleepless Nights is up [link]

Dan Stevens - Audio - The Angel's Game. Hattie Morahan - Theatre - Three More Sleepless Nights. Bill Nighy, Tom Hollander. BBC Radio drama.

• Review of the unabridged (CD, download) version of The Angel's Game by Carlos Ruiz Zafón, narrated by Dan Stevens:
  
  

  Narrator Dan Stevens's caressing voice is perfect for this haunting tale of writer David Martin. His deft pronunciation of the Spanish names enhances the story's mystery and the romantic love which floats cinematically between the reality of dark alleyways in 1920s Barcelona and a mystical past. Mesmerising.

  An abridged (CD, download) version is also available.
  
  
• Hattie will star in Three More Sleepless Nights by Caryl Churchill at the National, 30 July to 27 August [link]
  
  
• Bill Nighy, Tom Hollander and Rupert Penry-Jones attended the reopening of the Langham Hotel London [link]
  
  
• BBC Radio drama
• Toby Jones and Lesley Sharp star in the Afternoon Play Qualms [link]
• Bill Nighy stars in Killing Maestros [link]
• Toby Stephens narrates Will in the World. He also stars in the Saturday Play Journey Into Space - The Host.

Tags: audio, Bill Nighy, Dan Stevens, Hattie Morahan, radio, theatre, Toby Jones, Toby Stephens, Tom Hollander, The Angel's Game, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Three Sleepless Nights, Caryl Churchill, National Theatre, Rupert Penry-Jones, Langham Hotel, Lesley Sharp, Afternoon Play, Qualms, Killing Maestros, Will in the World, Saturday Play, Journey Into Space

Entertainment news

• Oscar winners [link]
  
• The Boat that Rocked trailers (via ONTD) 1|2
  
• Footage of Hugh Jackman at an Oscars rehearsal [link]
• Pirate Bay vs. Hollywood [link]
• Publicists for The Dark Knight and Gossip Girl have received awards [link]
• Short round up of British theatre news, plus discussion about Caryl Churchill's new play Seven Jewish Children [link]
  
• Gorgeous Old Hollywood pictures [link]
  
• Rory Kinnear interview [link]
• NIDA (National Institute of Dramatic Art) has officially launched its 50th Birthday Party celebrations [link]
• Franklyn featurette [link]
• Ricky Gervais interview from the Washington Post (via gervsmerchpilk) [link]
  

Samuel West - Theatre - Drunk Enough to Say I Love You

* updated 29 March



Reviews

New York Times
"... Will Guy leave Sam? Will Sam break down if he is left alone? Against the odds, Mr. West and Mr. Cohen make us care about such soap-opera-ish questions, even as we recoil from what is obviously an unsavory case of codependency.

They give human flesh to characters who could easily be papier-mâché figureheads. They invite you to think about politics as a personal equation and personal affairs as a political one, so the play’s metaphor, which could be too blunt by half, cuts on two sides..."

New York Daily News
"...the production is slickly staged by James Macdonald. Scott Cohen gives Sam a pushiness and irresistible charm. Samuel West, as Guy, has the right trace of submission..."

The Star-Ledger
"...In league with his first-rate actors and designers, Macdonald offers a brisk and assured presentation of this polemic comedy."

Variety
"...West and Cohen are mesmerizing, their uneasy to-and-fro echoing the playwright's incomparable skill at making language, as much as actions, a dangerous monster..."

backstage.com
"...Under James MacDonald's authoritative direction, both Cohen and West couldn't be better..."

theaterscene.net
"...Under the direction of James Macdonald (who also staged the London production in 2006), both actors are accomplished at the artificially staccato dialogue and the very pregnant pauses. They are also very consistent in establishing the British/American dichotomy..."

gaycitynews
"...the fine performances by Scott Cohen as Sam and Samuel West as Guy are sterling examples of actors in complete control of their craft, committed to a concept and making it work..."

Pictures

Production
by Joan Marcus [link]
by Sara Krulwich [link]
by Ari Mintz [link]

Opening night
WireImage [link]
Getty 1|2|3|4
broadwayworld.com [link]

Articles
broadway.com - Scott Cohen [link]
nymag.com - Scott Cohen [link]

Tags: Samuel+West, Sam+West, Scott+Cohen, James+Macdonald, Caryl+Churchill, theater, theatre, off-Broadway, Drunk+Enough+to+Say+I+Love+You, play, Guy, Sam, Joan+Marcus, Sara+Krulwich

Samuel West - Theatre - Drunk Enough to Say I Love You

Casting has been officially announced for the New York Public Theater production of Caryl Churchill's Drunk Enough to Say I Love You – Sam will play Guy, and Scott Cohen will play Sam. The play will be directed by James McDonald.

The play begins previews on Wednesday, March 5 and run through Sunday, April 6 with an official press opening on Sunday, March 16.

The following articles have a bit more information about the play:
broadwayworld.com [link]
broadway.com [link]
playbill.com [link]
theatermania.com [link]

Links
Public Theater of New York [link]
my previous entry about the play [link]
Scott Cohen 1|2

Tags: Samuel+West, Sam+West, theatre, theater, New+York, Caryl+Churchill, Drunk+Enough+to+Say+I+Love+You, Royal+Court, Scott+Cohen, Public+Theater, Sam, Guy, James+McDonald

Samuel West - Theatre - Drunk Enough to Say I Love You

According to Sal Brown's blog, Sam will be in a New York production of Caryl Churchill's new play Drunk Enough to Say I Love You:

"...their [Royal Court] co-production of Caryl Churchill's play Drunk Enough to Say I Love You will be on at the Public Theater of New York in March, with Sam playing one role in the two-hander - but I don't know if he's playing Sam or Jack. Not sure which would be most confusing!"

Links
United Agents - Samuel West [link]
Public Theater of New York [link]
Casarotto - Caryl Churchill [link]

Tags: Samuel+West, Sam+West, theatre, theater, New+York, Caryl+Churchill, Drunk+Enough+to+Say+I+Love+You, Royal+Court