The Play of the Movie
Ken Davenport is a US-based independent theatre producer. This week he posed a question on his blog.
“Why the bollocks are Londoners fascinated with play versions of successful movies? Rain Man, Shawshank, When Harry Met Sally, etc.? Think the movie companies would ever allow those productions here?”
References to male genitalia aside (call me a fuddy-duddy if you want to) and without condoning the London-centric approach, can I invite you to air your thoughts on the subject?
I would be interested to hear what you think about the proliferation of films now on stage - not just plays, but also films now on the musical stage (Legally Blonde, Dirty Dancing, etc).
Are we fascinated or do we just go with the flow (usually from the US) of whatever is on offer? Is it about audiences, experimentation or Art; is it something to do with how new work is treated or breathing new life into an old product; is who holds the power what matters, or (cynical me) at heart about money and risk?
If you want to hazard a guess about how ‘movie companies’ think on this one as well, by all means do, but if we can keep anatomical parts out of it and keep on topic so much the better!
I look forward to hearing from you. You can respond by email to sandra@britishtheatreguide.info or - preferably - here on the blog.
Sandra Giorgetti