Last night I went to see The Audience which has been receiving rave reviews here in London. It stars Dame Helen Mirren as The Queen. There are no words for how incredibly talented she is. I love watching her in movies...she is diverse and versatile...everything from going naked in Calendar Girls to facing off as the Queen.
We had paid a handsome sum for our tickets as we bought them last minute...that's the problem in London...if you don't get organised early enough things are mega-dear! Anyway. I was optimistic. We had paid 75% of the amount for Depeche Mode tickets two nights before and they were average at best...so Helen HAD to be better than that surely.
And she was. Spellbounding. Mesmerising. Costume changes that were sublime and so streamlined. The most simple set...yet so carefully executed you would have thought we were in Buckingham Palace. I felt a little sad for her fellow actors. They too were superb. But seriously - when you are sitting opposite Helen M - well now, you really are playing second fiddle!
We were shepherded out of the cinema faster than you can say 'Thumbelina' by the ever efficient ushers. And the theatre coughed us out of a side-door into a slightly nippy evening. I had never been to this particular theatre before, so we kind of wandered around the block aimlessly to get our bearings. And then it happened. We stumbled upon the 'stage door'.
Now - I am a celeb spotter...but tend to shy away from forcing myself on them as I find it intrusive and feel sorry for them...I know how I feel when people nose their way into my life (not that there is ANY scale of similarity in my life and Helen M's!!!). But to hell with it - we stopped outside the stage door with about 10 other people. We waited a bit - probably about 20 minutes or so...and then IT happened. Fan my BROW.
There was a flurry of action - walkie talkie's came out. I was expecting Helen to pop out the door any minute. I had practised my line in my head if I got to say something to her...and blow me sideways. A celeb did in FACT come out of that door that minute....but not Helen...oh no people...AL FEKKIN PACINO. I was absolutely SPEECHLESS...which for me is a bloody miracle. He signed a few autographs (not mine unfortunately) and then ducked into a dark car waiting for him. Needless to say - at 73 he looks jolly good for his age...and his girlfriend looks like she could be his daughter!!!
About 30 minutes later, Helen graciously made her way out the door. She was so patient and elegant in her manner. Kind, gently addressing this little group of (mostly) foreign male fans.
I seized my chance and stepped forward and said to her 'Thank you for talking about South Africa' [she has a scene in the play with Margaret Thatcher where she is challenging her on sanctions in South Africa and whether some of the decisions Thatcher was making were right]. She turned to me and said 'oh no my pleasure - although the Queen did really support South Africa in that manner'. I was the last person she spoke to before climbing into her Merc car with driver. I was buoyant - what a gracious, wonderful actor. But most of all - what an AMAZING night in London....
We had paid a handsome sum for our tickets as we bought them last minute...that's the problem in London...if you don't get organised early enough things are mega-dear! Anyway. I was optimistic. We had paid 75% of the amount for Depeche Mode tickets two nights before and they were average at best...so Helen HAD to be better than that surely.
And she was. Spellbounding. Mesmerising. Costume changes that were sublime and so streamlined. The most simple set...yet so carefully executed you would have thought we were in Buckingham Palace. I felt a little sad for her fellow actors. They too were superb. But seriously - when you are sitting opposite Helen M - well now, you really are playing second fiddle!
We were shepherded out of the cinema faster than you can say 'Thumbelina' by the ever efficient ushers. And the theatre coughed us out of a side-door into a slightly nippy evening. I had never been to this particular theatre before, so we kind of wandered around the block aimlessly to get our bearings. And then it happened. We stumbled upon the 'stage door'.
Now - I am a celeb spotter...but tend to shy away from forcing myself on them as I find it intrusive and feel sorry for them...I know how I feel when people nose their way into my life (not that there is ANY scale of similarity in my life and Helen M's!!!). But to hell with it - we stopped outside the stage door with about 10 other people. We waited a bit - probably about 20 minutes or so...and then IT happened. Fan my BROW.
There was a flurry of action - walkie talkie's came out. I was expecting Helen to pop out the door any minute. I had practised my line in my head if I got to say something to her...and blow me sideways. A celeb did in FACT come out of that door that minute....but not Helen...oh no people...AL FEKKIN PACINO. I was absolutely SPEECHLESS...which for me is a bloody miracle. He signed a few autographs (not mine unfortunately) and then ducked into a dark car waiting for him. Needless to say - at 73 he looks jolly good for his age...and his girlfriend looks like she could be his daughter!!!
About 30 minutes later, Helen graciously made her way out the door. She was so patient and elegant in her manner. Kind, gently addressing this little group of (mostly) foreign male fans.
I seized my chance and stepped forward and said to her 'Thank you for talking about South Africa' [she has a scene in the play with Margaret Thatcher where she is challenging her on sanctions in South Africa and whether some of the decisions Thatcher was making were right]. She turned to me and said 'oh no my pleasure - although the Queen did really support South Africa in that manner'. I was the last person she spoke to before climbing into her Merc car with driver. I was buoyant - what a gracious, wonderful actor. But most of all - what an AMAZING night in London....
No comments:
Post a Comment