Just A Jump To The Left (And Then A Step To The Right)

[anarchist_nomad]

Went to the Oxford Playhouse last night to see Alan Ayckbourn's play Communicating Doors. Really, it was just your typical show about a hotel room with time travelling doors. Still, cheshcat and I enjoyed it.

The show premiered in 1994 and was originally set in 1974, 1994, and 2014. To keep the spirit intact, this production updated the timeline to 1990, 2010, and 2030. I thought that this change worked well, especially since it is not actually obvious at first that the play begins twenty years in the future.

I have now seen twenty-six plays this year. That is slightly better than one per week and well on track to my goal of at least forty shows in 2011. Nice!

What was also nice was coming out of the theatre at half past ten to see that the sky was still light -- a beautiful blue twilight. Ah, how I love this time of year!

To appreciate the season further, my beloved cheshcat and I are heading up to the Lake District this evening for a long weekend away. We are finally taking our late-May bank holiday weekend[*], which was deferred when I stayed to work longer in Japan. Given the push to release our electron neutrino appearance results, both cheshcat and I worked on the holiday and are taking tomorrow off instead.

It has been about four years since we last visited the Lake District in May 2007. It is such a breathtakingly beautiful area and we had an absolutely awesometacular weekend when we were last there. I am rather looking forward to a new set of adventures in such a gorgeous setting!

---

[*] For those gentle readers in the States, this coincides with Memorial Day weekend each year.

Comments

[miss-amaranth.livejournal.com]

"Ah, how I love this time of year!" <-- just commenting to say that I could not agree more!

I love you! *kiss*
xxxxxxxxxxxx

[acelightning.livejournal.com]

Always the pedant, I wish to point out a few things about that synopsis of the play. One is that the name "Phoebe" (pronounced "Fee-bee", and meaning "shining") is repeatedly misspelled. The other is the name phonetically written as "Poopay Dayseer". This is obviously French, Poupee Désire; poupee means "doll", as in "a pretty toy" (compare to English "Dolly"), and is reasonably common as a female first name or nickname. All that being said... what a strange play!

[cheshcat.livejournal.com]

To be fair, it is now my *absolute favourite story about a hotel room with time travelling doors*.

Indeed it is my favourite Ayckbourn so far. Such a brilliant conceit, and so elegant from a set design POV. Plus I adore how all the threads tied so neatly together. :) It was thrilling and sweet, and I am very glad we got to see it together.

Yay, we go on vacation!

[sweetcyanide.livejournal.com]

Ooh, hope you both have a fab time in the Lake District! I'm ashamed to say I've still not been yet, I think I may have to do a random trip there this summer :-)

x