Rattigan's Nijinsky
Nicholas Wright
Rattigan's Nijinsky
In 1974 Terence Rattigan wrote a television script for the BBC about Diaghilev, genius impresario behind the Ballets Russes, and Nijinsky, the greatest dancer of all time. He was proud of it, but the film was never produced and the script, withdrawn mysteriously by Rattigan himself, was never published. Now playwright Nicholas Wright imagines why. In this new play, a dying Rattigan meets Nijinsky’s elderly widow Romola to fight over his beloved play. In the same room, and using Rattigan’s words, Diaghilev and the young Romola fight over the tormented Nijinsky.
3.0 out of 5 based on 9 reviews
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Omniscore:
|
| Location |
Rest of UK |
| Venue |
Touring |
| Director |
Philip Franks |
| Cast |
Joseph Drake, Jonathan Hyde, Faye Castelow, Pip Donaghy, Susan Tracy, John Hopkins Malcolm Sinclair |
| From |
July 2011 |
| Until |
September 2011 |
| Box Office |
01243 781312 |
| |
In 1974 Terence Rattigan wrote a television script for the BBC about Diaghilev, genius impresario behind the Ballets Russes, and Nijinsky, the greatest dancer of all time. He was proud of it, but the film was never produced and the script, withdrawn mysteriously by Rattigan himself, was never published. Now playwright Nicholas Wright imagines why. In this new play, a dying Rattigan meets Nijinsky’s elderly widow Romola to fight over his beloved play. In the same room, and using Rattigan’s words, Diaghilev and the young Romola fight over the tormented Nijinsky.
Reviews
The Independent
Paul Taylor
"[An] unevenly acted but persuasive production"
28/07/2011
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The Daily Mail
Quentin Letts
"An interesting evening which is both docu-drama and fantasy. It’s a two-in-one — rather apt, really."
28/07/2011
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The Stage
Mark Shenton
"It is very much Rattigan’s story that holds the attention, even as it is difficult to work out how much of his play there is alongside it."
26/07/2011
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The Daily Telegraph
Charles Spencer
"Despite a slick, stylish production by Franks, this double-authored play somehow adds up to less than the sum of its parts."
27/07/2011
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The Times
Dominic Maxwell
"As the scenes lengthen and find their pace, the show starts to find its own identity"
27/07/2011
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The Evening Standard
Fiona Mountford
"Rattigan himself, suave urbanity covering broiling self-loathing in Malcolm Sinclair's compelling performance, could be the central character in a Rattigan play... Truth be told, it's tricky to spot the profundity that Rattigan himself obviously did in his work, and the constraints of theatrical staging are no help."
26/07/2011
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The Guardian
Michael Billington
"For all its surface vivacity, the play remains tantalisingly inconclusive."
26/07/2011
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The Financial Times
Ian Shuttleworth
"The sort of thing the BBC may produce today out of a misplaced reluctance to scare off viewers by demanding too much contemplation."
26/07/2011
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The Independent on Sunday
Kate Bassett
"Frankly, these episodes are not electrifying, recreated from a BBC TV script penned by Rattigan but then shelved. An overlooked masterpiece? Not judging by the snippets seen here"
31/07/2011
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