Four stars in the Financial Times this morning and it's looking like a busy weekend. I got soaked yesterday but the sun has come out and I must dash to the Courtyard. Sorry the blog's been a bit quiet the last few days, it was all we could do to stay dry and the laptops stayed at home. But we're having a blast and it's great to see all The Doubtful Guest lot again. Don't forget that The Doubtful Guest opens on Tuesday at the Traverse!
WhatsOnStage have just published a lovely interview with Hugh, click here to take a look.
Unfortunately I can't find the FT's review online (although I've read the print copy) and suspect it may be for subscribers only. But I'll keep digging this afternoon and post a link if I can find it. It's a lovely write-up.
Roll up, roll up for Hugh at Pleasance Courtyard, 7.05pm and The Doubtful Guest at Traverse from Tuesday 18th.
PS Thanks to Venice van Someren for this Edinburgh photo, which amused me!
Saturday, 15 August 2009
Four stars in the FT
Friday, 14 November 2008
Hoipolloi's international touring map (calculated in smoots)
Posted by David Ralfe (Marketing & Admin. Assistant, Hoipolloi)
View Larger Map
I admitted in a previous entry that I’m in the thrall of Google Analytics. Now Simon and I have found a new Google toy. This is a map showing all our recent international tour destinations, and where we’re going next.
It’s got all kinds of amazing features with which to wile away a Friday afternoon. I’ve discovered that Hugh Hughes’ journey from the Hoipolloi office to Singapore, and then around Australia will total 18470.1km: that’s 9973.04 nautical miles or the length of 369402 Olympic swimming pools.
Meanwhile, a USA tour of Story of a Rabbit, which we’re currently planning, could be as long as 377478 Ramsden’s chains or 6.76000e+6 smoots. (Click to find out what either of those things are. The story behind smoots is very entertaining!)
If you haven’t done so already, please have a quick look at my last blog entry about the WhatsOnStage Theatregoers’ Choice Awards. If you could spare two minutes to give us your vote, we’d be really grateful.
Have a great weekend!
Friday, 7 November 2008
Get out the vote!
November in Britain...
This delicately poised phrase evokes a cascade of picturesque images... of nights which begin at 4pm... of Christmas shopping... of seasonal depression... and, of course, the nominations for WhatsOnStage.com's Theatregoers' Choice Awards.
Can you guess where this post is going?
Yes, that's right, CLICK HERE (please) and vote for Hoipolloi!
Every November, What'sOnStage.com open nominations for their Theatregoers' Choice Awards. This is your opportunity to give your favourite shows the recognition they deserve.
Most of the awards only cover London theatre, so you'll obviously want to vote for Story of a Rabbit, which was staged at the Barbican's BITE Festival in June. Hugh Hughes is eligible for Best Actor, Best New Play and Best Solo Performance.
There's also an award for the best piece of regional theatre, so if you enjoyed The Doubtful Guest give us a thumbs up there too.
If you don't vote, you can't complain, so exercise your civic rights. Happy voting!
(Thanks to Pablo York for the photo!)
Monday, 20 October 2008
Gathering stars...
Posted by Simon Bedford (Marketing & Touring Manager, Hoipolloi)
Two lovely five-star reviews for The Doubtful Guest rolled in last week during our run at Cambridge Arts Theatre.
The first, from Varsity (a Cambridge University student paper) had this to say:
"Hoipolloi’s Artistic Director writes ‘we hope that age won’t matter when watching The Doubtful Guest’, and the first thing you notice in the auditorium (which you are encouraged by the cast to consider) is that all sorts of people are there. This production has something to offer each one of them, and in that single, glorious idea lies Hoipolloi’s greatest strengths – the excitement to leave no stone unturned and the ability to lever them up from every angle."
Click here for the full review!
The second, from Whatsonstage.com, was equally complimentary:
"Edward Gorey was someone about whom I knew very little; this production sends me straight to the library to find out more. Which is probably as high an accolade as you can bestow on a stage adaptation of a written work... Like all good folk legends and fairy stories, it’s for adults just as much as for youngsters. Gorey illustrated Edward Lear, and one can sense the affinity. Catch it if you can."
Click here for the full review!
Friday, 23 May 2008
Rabbit reviews and radios...
Posted by Sara Green (Marketing and Admin Assistant, Hoipolloi)
It is official - the first UK tour of Story of a Rabbit is well and truly under way!
With a successful opening at the Norfolk and Norwich Festival, an exciting run at The Junction in Hoipolloi’s home town of Cambridge and great performances in Liverpool and Brighton, Hugh and Aled are over halfway through.
The show has been receiving very positive reviews and it's been exciting to receive them here at the office as we are able to see the success of the show on paper as well as from the enthusiastic phone calls from Hugh that we get every day.
One of the best reviews is from What’s on Stage which opens with “it takes nerve as well as skill to make a show about death into an entertainment".
The review goes on to explore the subject matter of the show and how people deal with death, something that affects everyone. After all, as the reviewer says:
“The rabbit died, for no particular reason. Rabbits do that. In April 2001, Hugh was woken by a telephone call from his brother. It was to tell him that their father had died suddenly, of a heart attack while winding the church clock. People do that. They have heart attacks, even fathers of families.”
To read the full review of the show click here.
Another great review is by Jakki Phillips from Brighton Argus. Here is a short excerpt:
"Hughes's twinkling optimism gives the show an incredible life force which is reinforced by the badges we are given as we leave. They say "Here one minute...gone the next," and, like the show itself, make you want to grasp life with both hands but most importantly, phone your dad.”
To read the full review click here.
As well as these there is the brilliant Guardian Blog which has recently featured a little discussion about the show and the unusual nature of the audience participation that Hugh encourages. To read the comments click here.
So two fantastic reviews and a mention on the Guardian Blog, what more could we ask for?
How about the radio interviews that Hugh has done that have gone down a treat across the country. We had Aled and Hugh being interviewed by Aled’s old primary teacher and well known actor Dean Sullivan which was hilarious and touching as well as the most recent clip on Classic FM in which Hoipolloi’s very own Simon Bedford (apparently known as "long-length"-because of his amazing height) gets a mention. To listen to the podcast click here.
All in all, we're very pleased!
Story of a Rabbit's having a short breaking from touring at the beginning of next week before it returns to Ipswich on 30 & 31 May. But things don't quieten down yet for Hugh. He's off to Moscow with Sioned for two performances of Floating.
For more information on the both shows and how to book tickets for the rest of the Story of a Rabbit tour visit our website.
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