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Donmar Welcome Event 16th Jan 2024

Also went to a member's welcome event that the Donmar had, which was basically an hour where they served something to drink and told us a bit more about the theatre and the upcoming shows.

The invitation did say they'd have an exclusive tour of the place - on and off the stage - which I'd been quite excited about - but that didn't actually happen :(

Still, it was rather interesting! Learned a few things about Macbeth as well :)

Apparently, the stage stains very easily - which is why I'm baffled at how easy it apparently is to clean, but guess they must have some really lovely red dye that isn't as stainful as pretty much anything else that's dyed red. It also scratches easily - the movement on the stage can easily create little creases where the blood can get stuck.

I'd only seen the bloodbath on the floor once, so hadn't noticed, but was told that it comes up through the floor - probably why it differs so wildly each night how and where David is covered in it!

(As an aside to that - on the first night there wasn't a bloodbath - he was struck with the knife and there was a bit of blood on his shirt instead - now there's no blood at the wound)

Someone asked them about filming productions (not specifically about Macbeth - and they didn't say anything about it) and they told us about the process of deciding whether to record a production or not as it's a very costly affair to do so - which is why it's not something they just automatically do for everything.

They said that either the NT will ask them if they record a show - which means they do everything, and therefore is obviously the much cheaper option for themselves. The NT will let them know what benefits there might be in it for them - but as far as I understood they won't really earn much if anything from it.

So, the second option is for themselves to invest in filming a production by bringing in a third-party filming company that they pay for themselves. It's obviously a much more expensive way of doing it - but they'd also get more money back from it if it sells well in cinemas or online. Obviously, they have gone with the second option - so hopefully that's because they think it has really good marketing potential!

They mentioned that they are always very aware of the fact that not as many people get to see their performances as would probably like to see them - so it's always part of their considerations whether to film it or not when they create a new production.

One of them joked that they could probably keep up a production like Macbeth for three years and still sell-out - but that the theatre is known for putting on about 6 productions each year, so there's a limit to how long their runs can be - plus there's also the availability of actors to consider.

Someone asked if actors (I assume meaning, big name actors) takes a pay-cut to work with them - and yes, they do. Everyone is paid the theatre-standard no matter who they are. The only extra benefit they might offer big names is a taxi to get to the theatre and to escape back home afterwards.

Ah, yeah, think that was about it - everything else was more or less just about the upcoming productions, memberships, and other general things :)

Edit: Oh, forgot to mention that their focus will always be on the production as it's on, then on any potential transfers and then on releasing it for cinema/online - so if they filmed something it wouldn't be released until the live show is done - and sounded like they wouldn't necessarily say anything about it having been recorded (or not) until then as well. So don't think we will hear anything about the plan for it until the show is over.

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Macbeth Q&A 18th Jan 2024 Part 2

Continuing where the previous post left off...

The next question basically boiled down to "How will you go on in your career from having lived this experience" - David says something funny, but I can't decipher what/ or remember it. Cush then replied "I'm quitting. I'm not doing anything else!". She then goes on to talk about how part of the fun of doing what they do, is that they develop their skillsets and toolkits - and that they are lucky to be living in a time where technology is kinda smashing into theatre. She talks about how theatre is one of the oldest forms of storytelling - and telling a story is as old as gets. So with every job they do, ideally, they want to develop or take on something new that you can then infuse into other things work on afterwards otherwise you're essentially just banging your head against a wall, doing the same thing over and over again.

Cush then said that theatre will live or die will based people coming or not coming - "You know, as much as I love everbody in here, one day we will all be dead" - so the survival of the amazing and beautiful thing that theatre is depends on younger people wanting to come as well and therefore it's important not to be afraid of fusing worlds together - experimenting and trying new things.

She goes on to say that there's been people to see the play who has never seen Shakespeare, never seen Macbeth before - and who has then told them things like "It's really cool how you changed to words to modern [language] and that's just because they understood it" and it's important to have in mind than when standing there you're not just explaining the show to one person, but to everybody.

David then continued by saying that they are not suggesting that this is now the only way they will do their projects! Every project they come into has its own way of being, its own development process and its own concept. This is just one way of telling this story - that allows you inside of some characters, who might suffer from PTSD for various reasons, which was the starting point that led to "How can we tell that story? How can we be inside someone's head in a particularly nightmarish way?"

A not production of Macbeth might approach that differently - but one version of the play isn't more valid than the other, one doesn't wipe the other out - they just have tools at their disposal and sometimes they make use of them.

The last question was in regard to the whole production (and cast) being Scottish with the exception of Lady Macbeth - and what the thinking behind that might have been.

David answers that that too was one of Max's original ideas (even though he isn't Scottish). But right from the start he wanted a Scottish cast, Scottish conditions, Gaelic singing. The idea being that Lady Macbeth not being from Scotland is part of the story in itself - she's another, she brings a different energy which allows the Macbeths to have a slightly different perspective on the world they are in.

Annie Grace then mentioned that she wondered if that idea was influenced by a production of Winter's Tale that she and Alasdair both worked on together with Max. The play was done in Edinburgh with a full Scottish cast as well and used traditional Scottish music. Craig then told her that that was indeed the influence behind the idea!

And then he ended the Q&A :(

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Macbeth Q&A 18th Jan 2024 Part 1

Was lucky enough to get a ticket for the Member's Event at the Donmar Warehouse that took place on the 18th...with the price of the patronages I sure never thought I'd have gotten the chance, but luckily, they also let in some non-members 🥹❤️

The brilliant performance of Macbeth was followed by a very quick cleaning of the stage - thought for sure it would've taken them longer to remove the blood than like 5 minutes - followed by a lovely, little Q&A session.

The Q&A was led by Craig Gilbert (Literary manager) who talked to Annie Grace and Alasdair Macrae (Musicians and part of the acting ensemble) as well as Cush Jumbo and David Tennant.

Anyway, just gonna write down some of the stuff they talked about :) sorry if it's a bit messy! Might be spoilery if haven't seen it yet but is going to!

To begin with Craig remarked that he didn't think he'd ever seen that many people staying behind for a Q&A before (While I was just wondering why some people even left!? Stressful!).

David introduced himself with "My real name is David "Thane of Paisely" Tennant - while Cush introduced herself with "I´m Cush Jumbo - there's only one of me".

First question was Craig asking them what it was that brought them to the Donmar to do Macbeth - to which David pretty much just replied that 1. It's the Donmar! 2. It's Macbeth! One of the greatest plays of all time in an amazingly intimate space - and that the theatre is famous for its quality of work. So he found it quite hard to think of a reason not to do it!

Cush said she'd worked there before and loves the theatre, how it's so intimate but also a great workspace. Followed by her saying she said yes because David asked her. She talked about how important it was for this play to do it together with the right actor playing opposite you.

David says Max Webster asked him about a year ago if he wanted to do the play - he gave him the dates - and since there weren't any obstacles in the way, David didn't have any excuse not to do it.

He then said that he had slightly avoided Macbeth - there sorta being the assumption that if you're Scottish and has done some Shakespeare plays before you have to do Macbeth. Which he joked was a bit odd since it's not like every Italian has to play Romeo. Then he mentioned that Macbeth is probably a bit more of a jock than he is - that it seemed more like a part for big, burly actors.

Max had laid out his initial ideas to David, a lot of which are in the final production, and David thought he seemed lovely, bright and clever and inventive plus it being the Donmar Warehouse! To which joked that he had last worked there 20 years ago - when he was 8 years old! "It's just one of those spaces" - friendly and epic at the same time where it's such a pleasure to be on the stage.

When Craig asked his next question concerning the sound of the play someone asked him to speak louder as she couldn't hear them - to which David joked that they've gotten so used to whispering. But also said sorry, and that they would!

Alasdair explained a bit about the process of the binaural sound - bit I find it a bit difficult to decipher it all correctly, sorry. He did say that a interesting part of it is that it allows them a controlled environment where they can put all the musicians (and even the bagpipes!) behind the soundproof box so "Poor David and Cush" doesn't have to shout over all the racket.

Craig asked David and Cush what their reaction was when they heard about the concept of the binaural soundscape - to which David replied that it didn't quite exist when they first came onboard - Cush joking they were tricked into it. Then she talked about her and David going on a workshop with Max to get a feeling of how it would all work - and get a sense of how it would sound to the audience, as this was one of the few times, they got to hear that side of it. Their experience of the play being completely different to the experience the audience has.

Cush said they can hear some of the sound - like she can hear some of the animal sounds and David can hear some of the stuff from the glass box - but most of their cues and information comes from timing with each other. She said they won't be able to ever hear what the audience hears - to which David joked "We're busy".

It felt like mixing medias - as it all went quite against their natural stagecraft instinct - but Cush found that in the long run it made things very interesting - like they don't have to worry about getting something whispered to each other - as the audience will hear it anyway.

David said the odd thing is that they don't really know what the experience truly is like. He mentioned that to the sides of the stage there's a speaker for them where they will get any cues that they need to hear. Like they can hear the witches - but they can't hear where they are "positioned" - so they have to learn how to place themselves to fit with what the audience hears. They don't hear everything, though. And the audio they hear is quite quiet, so it doesn't disturb what comes through the headphones.

He thinks it's been exciting - that it's a bit like a mix between film and theatre. It's happening live - but it's also like post-production is happening between them and the audience as it's going on. They just have to trust that the audience is hearing what they are supposed to for it all to make sense.

Cush said she thinks in 10 - 20 years, as these technologies has developed, doing theatre like this will feel a lot more normal - not that they will do it ALL the time, but that they will be doing it - whereas now it's still like an experiment. What Cush really like about the concept is that if was done in a much bigger theatre - then people in the cheapest seats would be able to have an experience much more similar to those in the most expensive seats - they'd be a lot more immersed into the action.

David then talks about how it feels extremely counterintuitive to not go on stage and speak loud enough that the people in the back row can also hear you. And usually, if they can't hear you, you aren't doing your job right! But then it felt very liberating. He loves it.

Cush then talked about how it felt odd waiting in the wings for a cue you can't hear - where you traditionally wait backstage and you can hear your cues, you can hear the rythm and know when it's your turn - so it was quite disconcerting to hear silence. So it's basically down to them now knowing the show and each other's timings - like if David is standing at a certain point, she knows how long she has before she needs to say/do something. So you have to watch each other more closely and really focus on what the others are doing.

David asked the musicians if they can hear everything inside the box, to which Annie replied that they get everything except some extra bits in the soundscape. But they can hear the actors on stage. Annie said it's actually a bit of a mystery to all of them what the audience actually experiences - how the big pictures actually look like - they just have to trust that it's there "Is it there?!".

Someone asked if they had had any adverse reactions from audiences to having to wear the headphones. Quite a bit of laughter all around :P then David said "There's the odd person" and something about if someone hadn't gotten the memo before turning up...but not sure how he ended the line. Then once again says that yes, there's the odd person who doesn't like it and that's fair enough.

The same audience member then said he could see the advantage of it in a big theatre where the distance is big, but not in a small place like the Donmar - to which David very quickly, rather passionately replied that it's not about projection, it's about being able to do things you wouldn't normally be able to do live - where they can speak so quietly that they can't even hear each other when standing next to each other. So even in such a small place, people wouldn't be able to hear that. It's about creating a different play - which isn't to everyone's taste and that's fair enough. But for a play that's been done a hundred and seven million times he thinks it's very valid to try and find a new way into the play - even if it's not for everyone.

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David Tennant - the Fourteenth Doctor Photoshoot

source [ youtube ]

Pam Downe [ Costume Designer ] - It's a fabric that David chose, actually. He's probably got four or five sets of the trousers and the jacket, and maybe four coats.

Russell T. Davies [ Showrunner/writer ] - David's whole look is a nod to the old.

David Tennant: That was important, to find something that very much had the same flavor and the same feel, but also marked a sense that this is not quite the same story that we're telling

Russell T. Davies: The look of him is very precise, it's very Doctor-y but new. It's not the old look reproduced. It's a suit. It's a tight suit, but it's a different pattern. He insisted on doing that top button up and I don't know why he did that. I don't know what he was thinking but I love it. Moments like that you trust your lead actor. We all had input into it, we all have a say, but at the same time, we actually kind of sat back and went, "You're the man"

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Let there be light - Good Omens (2019 & 2023)

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David Tennant and Catherine Tate having fun on the set of Wild Blue Yonder / Doctor Who 60th Anniversary

(and Bernard Cribbins too)

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Celebrating David Tennant’s new Radio Times Cover!

Here are all of the Radio Times covers that David has appeared on.

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David Tennant wearing a black leather jacket

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The Lockdown Home Recording Studio of David Tennant

(for Big Finish and David Tennant Does a Podcast With - and podcast videos care of Georgia’s Instagram)

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Hi Neil! Lot’s of love 💖

What do you like the most about David Tennant?

He's a wonderful man. He's one of our finest actors. He's really funny. He's astonishingly Scottish. He's a great father to his kids. He's extremely flammable.

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Staged - David and Michael sharing the one brain cell

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Staged 2 - David and Michael sharing the one brain cell

A follow-up to their [ shared brain cell in the first series of Staged ]

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Staged 2 - David and Michael sharing the one brain cell (Part Two)

See also: [ Staged 2 Part 1 ] and the original [ Staged sharing the brain cell ]

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David Tennant and Michael Sheen - Matching Theatre Roles

☆  Jimmy Porter in Look Back in Anger     ■   David: 2005 (Royal Lyceum Theatre), 2006 (Royal Court Theatre)     ■   Michael: 1999 (Royal National Theatre) (also 1995 at the Royal Exchange, Manchester)

☆  Romeo in Romeo and Juliet      ■   David: 2000 (Royal Shakespeare Company)      ■   Michael: 1992 (Royal Exchange, Manchester)

☆  Hamlet in Hamlet      ■   David: 2008 (Royal Shakespeare Company & Novello Theatre)      ■   Michael: 2011-2012 (Young Vic)

(with special thanks to @icarus_drowned on Twitter for finding the Sheen Romeo photos)

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PHOTOS: David Tennant Supports His Son Ty At Tolkien Premiere

David Tennant joined his eldest son Ty at the premiere of his debut movie, Tolkien, in London this week. Ty is playing the role of a young Christopher Wiseman in the eagerly awaited biopic of the Lord Of The Rings author. Tolkien explores the formative years of the orphaned author as he finds friendship, love and artistic inspiration among a group of fellow outcasts at school. This takes him into the outbreak of World War I, which threatens to tear the “fellowship” apart. All of these experiences would inspire Tolkien to write his famous Middle-Earth novels. David spoke about Ty’s new career as an actor during promotion for his own series Camping earlier this year: “He’s in a movie called Tolkien, which is coming out soon,” he revealed proudly. “It stars Nicholas Hoult and it’s about JRR Tolkien and his chums during the First World War – Ty plays a younger version of one of those chums – and it’s a fantastic first gig to have.  After that, we’ll see how it goes.  Georgia and I had this fear when he went into it that if he was rubbish, would we be able to tell him? But as it turns out, he’s incredible. Which was something of a relief!”

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Behind the Scenes of The Next Doctor (Part 10)

From a Radio Times interview with David Morrisey (as interviewed by Benjamin Cook):

David M: The Show has caught the public imagination. That’s in no small part down to David Tennant. He absolutely inhabits the role of the Doctor. He’s a fabulous actor. Did you see him in Einstein and Eddington the other week? Brilliant!

BC: Are you surprised at the level of interest in your casting as the “other” Doctor?

David M: I’m proud of the episode, so I’m happy with whatever attention comes from that. It was a joy to do. It’s one of the best atmospheres I’ve ever worked in. It’s a full-on drama. That’s what I love about it.

BC: So you’ll be watching The Next Doctor at home this year?

David M: Of course. I have a four-year-old, but I don’t think I’ll let him watch. He might find it too strange to see Daddy fighting Cybermen.

BC: Of course, you’re the bookies’ favourite to take over from David as the 11th Doctor. Are you tempted to have a little flutter?

David M: [Laughs] It’s just flattering to be in the frame. What David has done is phenomenal, and whoever gets it after him will be a very lucky person. You’d want to keep the spirit of the Doctor, but do it in your own way.

Other The Next Doctor parts available [one] [two] [three] [four] [five] [six] [seven] [eight] [nine]

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David Tennant answers the question: How was it shooting [Good Omens] with Michael Sheen?

FACTS Convention - Belgium - September 2018 - source [ X ]