24

Unless you have self-control as strong as steel, I think most everyone falls victim to impulse purchases. Some are worthwhile; others find their way to the back of your closet. I have had my fair share of both types of purchases, though I try to create a pro-con list in my head before forking over my credit card/cash.

This one… was sort of calculated, but it certainly was the first time since arriving in London that I’ve thrown a lot of money behind something that only lasts for a few hours.

The 24 Hour Plays Celebrity Gala is an annual fundraising event held at the Old Vic Theatre here in London, set up to help the Old Vic New Voices, the theatre’s emerging talent, education, and community programme. Inspired by the 24 Hour Plays fundraisers that started in New York, the theatre gathers 24 phenomenal talents from across the country and brings them to the stage for an exclusive night of six never-before-seen performances. Why are these shows so unique? It’s because they were written, cast, rehearsed, AND performed… in 24 hours. Talk about nerve-wracking! (Look at the 24 hour account from the Guardian here)

This year was the 10th year of the gala, which has attracted all sorts of names in the past (including some of my favorites: Andrew Scott, Anna Chancellor, Anna Maxwell Martin, Anthony Head, Benedict Cumberbatch, Catherine Tate, Dan Stevens, Dominic West, Gael Garcia Bernal, James Nesbitt, Jim Broadbent, Jonathan Groff, Katherine Parkinson, Mark Gatiss, Michael Sheen, Natalie Dormer, Richard Armitage, Romola Garai, Rufus Sewell… the list goes on!). Not only are there some stars amongst the company of actors, but there are also some notable writers (Abi Morgan, Lucky Kirkwood, Richard Curtis), composers (James Pearson), directors, musical directors, and hosts (Graham Norton, John Cleese, Stephen Fry) amongst the event’s crew.

So put everything together – the chance to see some of the UK’s finest actors together in a room, the amazing production teams, and the opportunity to see unique pieces – and I was sold. £75 for one night, done and done (and hello baked beans and toast for a few weeks! At least I didn’t pay top dollar – £250 – for the tickets, otherwise I would have seen more baked beans and toast in my future…).

A few days before the event, the final team was assembled:

Actors: Tom Cullen, Jeff Fahey, Nathan Stewart-Jarrett, Jack Whitehall*, Zawe Ashton, Tom Ellis*, Allen Leech, Annabel Scholey, Tina Hobley, Clive Rowe*, Lesley Sharp, Neil Stuke, Kaya Scodelario, Robert Sheehan, Catherine Tate*, Jamie Winstone, Ronni Ancona, Douglas Booth, Amanda Donohoe, Harry Lloyd, Lily Cole, Lisa Dillon, Anthony Head*, Nick Moran*

Directors: Michael Longhurst, Michael Buffong, Maria Friedman, Lisa Spirling, James Grieve, Lucy Kerbel

Playwrights: Jesse Armstrong, Alice Birch, Cush Jumbo, Matt Hartley, Rebecca Lenkiewicz, Matt Charman

* = especially excited to see

So with a new dress on and a lot of excitement, I marched off to the Old Vic for the show.

I may have just bought the dress a few hours before the event… 😡

All lit up and ready to go!

The ticket price included pre-show and intermission drinks, which meant for a pretty lush evening for ol’ me on a student budget. Taittinger Champagne & cocktails made with Beluga vodka? Hello, fun times (x3, but shhh)! I actually had a lovely chat with another theatre aficionado from Brighton while listening to the band at the bar. It certainly made it less awkward to be there as one of the younger attendees of the evening, certainly as one who was roaming around on her own.

[On a slight tangent: I try to best justify my purchases, so here’s my price breakdown for the ticket: £9 (champagne) + ~£12 x 2 (cocktails) = £33. £75-£33 = £42, which is mid-range ticket for the big musicals in the West End. Taking into account the specialness of the evening and that it all goes to arts education, I’d say it was worth it! If I had another cocktail or two, my bar tab would have paid it off entirely…]

At 7:30 PM, the curtains went up, and we were greeted by Kevin Spacey (yes, the Kevin Spacey), the artistic director of the Old Vic, and our host for the evening, Rob Brydon. A few words were said (and sung), a video covering the last 20 hours was played, and then it was time to move on with the show!

The first play, “Why Aren’t They Laughing?” (pw: Armstrong, dir: Longhurst, feat: Cullen, Fahey, Stewart-Jarrett, and Whitehall) focused on two comedy writers who are trying to get a writing deal with two television executives. Their scenes are being tested in front of an audience, who aren’t laughing – and they’re wondering why. Cleverly demonstrating the passage of time with quick fades of the light, the two writers desperately try to get a reaction from the audience, before they have to go for their last resort – getting naked.

“So Much Once” (pw: Alice Birch, dir: Michael Buffong, feat: Zawe Ashton, Tom Ellis, Allen Leech, and Annabel Scholey) followed the relationships of four people. Some were starting, others were ending. Some were experimenting, and some had experience. The vignettes only lasted a few seconds, but you still got a sense of everyone’s relationship with their (in)significant other.

“The Womb” (pw: Cush Jumbo, dir: Maria Friedman, feat: Tina Hobley, Clive Rowe, Lesley Sharp, and Neil Stuke) centered on a gay couple meeting their surrogate mother. Only – there was one hitch: she had a mustache. While one of the men is fixated on this detail – cringing in horror at the thought of their child having facial hair like the woman, should the baby turn out to be a girl – the other seemed to see right past it. The act culminated in some tension, the revelation of a secret cahoots, and the accidental firing of a gun.

Halfway through, we were let out for an interval. By this point, the three cocktails had gotten the better of me, so I rushed off to the loo. And thankfully, I was quick – the queue was ENORMOUS, and the building layout was not conducive for allowing traffic to pass by. Figuring I’d try to cash in on my interval drinks, I headed upstairs, but the crowds weren’t any better. The Old Vic, after all, has a pretty small reception space.

I barely made it 1/3 of the way to the first floor when I decided that the crowds were too thick to worth pursuing my cocktail(s). So I turned around – only to nearly run into Jack Whitehall. Smooth, Aki. Smooth. Luckily, he was engaged in conversation with someone else, so I got away without notice.

But then it nearly happened again: while working my way down the stairs and back to my seat, I looked back and then turned around to nearly run right smack into Kevin Spacey. I swear, had either of us been 1/2 a second too slow, there would have been a nasty collision. For those love Kevin Spacey, there wasn’t even a second to be slightly star struck.

When everyone returned to their seats, the programme started back up with “The Garden of Ms Harriet Figg” (pw: Matt Hartley, dir: Lisa Spirling, feat: Kaya Scodelario, Robert Sheehan, Catherine Tate, Jaime Winstone). A young couple are trying to buy a house, but the competition is fierce. They think the place is perfect for them, but now they have to persuade the current owner: Ms. Harriet Figg (played by the wonderful Catherine Tate). The usual ploys are pulled, but Ms. Figg won’t put up with any nonsense. In fact, she creates some nonsense.

“Rosie, Adam, Kyle & Lois” (pw: Rebecca Lenkiewicz, dir: James Grieve, feat: Ronni Aoncona, Douglas Booth, Amanda Donohoe, Harry Lloyd) was the one drama of the evening, and the one play I had difficulty understanding. It first appeared to me like a therapy session, but clearly it was more than that. It was later revealed that one of the women was bitter about the relationship between the other woman and one of the men (names didn’t stick)… because of their past romantic history. The two women talk it out and patch things up, thankfully.

“Intervention” (pw: Matt Charman, dir: Lucy Kerbel, feat: Lily Cole, Lisa Dillon, Anthony Head, and Nick Moran) ended the evening’s line-up of plays. It started as if we were glancing into a scene about the post-American Civil War, where a Confederate soldier pressures a woman to give him food. But then the scene breaks when Lisa Dillon says she couldn’t go on – because it is difficult to act opposite of Nick Moran, who “broke her heart.” After launching a tirade of accusations at him, she brings out Anthony Head, who gets emotional over his relationship with Nick Moran. They continue bringing out actors who feel that they have been “victimized” by Nick Moran, who they accused of investing in projects and then picking up and leaving immediately for the next one (which may have been based in some truth that I’m not aware of). They ended with all the actors on stage, and in song. We all cheered as the cast and crew took their bow and said their thank yous for the evening.

Unfortunately, my ticket didn’t include the after-party (which happened to be down the road from me!), which I was told was one of the best parts of the evening. However, my duties as a student called me back home for a late night of presentation prepping ahead of me. At least I had some chocolate and good memories of the evening to keep me going! After all, it was a unique evening, and I was lucky enough to be a part of it.

EDIT: … and it’s time for another round of “Spot Aki in the crowd!”

Photo from Old Vic Facebook page – original by Manuel Harlan