I am a bit of a nerd but I do class my recent day out in the London as one of my best ever in our capital. Coffee, books, theatre and dumplings all equal a very happy Michelle.
It all started because I’m a big fan of James Norton. Yes he’s handsome I won’t deny, but I genuinely think he’s an awesome actor. So when I saw he was in a pop-up theatre production of Bug, I seized the day (and a credit card) and booked two tickets. It didn’t occur to me at the time but I didn’t have to choose seats. And therein lies the magic of Found111. This production company have used a previous School of Art creative space to house their pop-up theatre, and have some of the most creative staging I’ve ever seen. I use “staging” loosely because effectively there is no stage. You are literally in the room with the actors. I can sometimes find theatre productions a little cringey if I’m honest. But not Bug. The play itself was gruesome, gritty and totally utterly absorbing. About as far from cringey as you could get. The flawless performances of the four actors were just incredible. The pitch, tone and diction of their southern drawl accents didn’t falter and the whole audience were totally invested in their story. When James Norton – mid psychosis – darted his head to look accross the room, so did the whole audience. And even at the end, I still had questions about the characters and the story line. I wanted more.
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