Harold Pinter Theatre
Date: 18 October (Friday), 7:30pm
Seats: Royal Circle, B7-8
(Seen with Richard!)
Notes: Ian McKellen is a legend. He is so well known for many things, from Gandalf to Magneto, and he has been around so many famous actors and actresses. And when he turned 80, instead of throwing a fabulous party (which to be honest, he may have done anyway), he went on tour doing a solo show around 80 venues. He is now settled in London and we booked tickets which were above our usual budget (of about 25 pounds) to get to see him live.
We met 45 minutes before the show and picked up a swift sushi dinner so that we weren’t going hungry... And then we headed straight in! We were booked in the Royal Circle, the second floor up and although even in Row B we were supposed to have the safety rail in view, which we did but it was barely noticeable so I definitely would recommend those seats for the price.
This was really a show for theatre lovers. The first act, Ian opened with the famous speech that Gandalf does in Lord of the Rings (YOU. SHALL NOT. PASS!) and then he talked about his family, his childhood, and how he got into acting. He began by attending shows and fell in love with the theatre, and then he wanted to be behind the scenes, then on stage... It really resonated with me. My favourite moment in Act 1 was actually when he talked about poetry, then he recited Gus the Theatre Cat by T. S. Eliot! I love those poems and the Cats musical, and Ian is playing Gus in the film which is out in December; it was quite magical to hear him recite this.
Act 2 was really interesting. Ian has done a lot of Shakespeare in his time, and he had with him a copy of every single Shakespeare play. Then, with the house lights up, he invited the audience to call out the names of Shakespeare plays - we were able to name them all eventually. As they were called out, he picked up each copy and told a small story - about something famous and interesting in the play, about his roles in them, and for some he even recited sections (Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Hamlet). That was really interesting and makes me want to see more Shakespeare - particularly I want to go and see the RSC at Stratford-Upon-Avon next summer! So hopefully I can do that.
Sir Ian McKellen really is an amazing human being, and he has so many interesting stories to tell! We really have been lucky to experience him live, and he really is doing amazingly at 80 and beyond. I feel so lucky to have had that experience.
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