Winter 2019 (Back at The Players Theatre)
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THURSDAY 16 January
Doors: 7.30pm Film: 8pm Burning (15) Burning is a mystery thriller based on a story by Japanese writer Haruki Murakami; a psychological drama set in the modern Korea. When Jong-su meets vivacious Haemi he knows she is way out his league, but to his delighted surprise she takes up with him and they start a relationship. So when he goes to pick her up from the airport on her return from a trip, he is shocked to see she has a new man in tow, Ben, an obviously wealthy, very smooth young man. He is smug, assured and perhaps just a little bit creepy and, when Haemi suddenly disappears, Jong-su is convinced Ben is involved. Burning is a brilliantly made one-off; puzzling, intelligent and ultimately mesmerising. |
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THURSDAY 30 January Doors: 6.30pm Performance: 7pm NT Live: Present Laughter A giddy and surprisingly modern reflection on fame, desire and loneliness, Matthew Warchus directs Andrew Scott in Noël Coward’s provocative comedy Present Laughter. As he prepares to embark on an overseas tour, star actor Garry Essendine’s colourful life is in danger of spiralling out of control. Engulfed by an escalating identity crisis as his many and various relationships compete for his attention, Garry’s few remaining days at home are a chaotic whirlwind of love, sex, panic and soul-searching. Captured live from The Old Vic in London, Present Laughter is a giddy and surprisingly modern reflection on fame, desire and loneliness |
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FRIDAY 31 January
Doors: 7.30pm Film: 8pm The Kindergarten Teacher (12A) Maggie Gyllenhaal is utterly brilliant as Lisa Spinelli, a kindergarten teacher by day, who takes poetry classes by night. Her two worlds collide when a five-year-old Jimmy Roy (Parker Sevak) reveals himself to be a poetic prodigy. Anxious to protect his gift from a world she believes doesn’t understand, her fascination with the boy spills over into obsession. This smart, sharp film entrances with the deceptive simplicity of the complex matters it deals with and is a showcase for the brilliance of Maggie Gyllenhaal and a reminder she is among the best actors working today. |
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THURSDAY 13 February
Doors: 7.30pm Film: 8pm The Chambermaid (15) Lila Avilés’s terrifically assured first feature finds magic in the routines of a young hotel worker. Eve (Gabriela Cartol) is a maid in a luxurious Mexico city hotel working on the 21st floor, but dreaming of promotion to the glamour and additional pay and perks of the VIP floor, the 42nd. Diligent and conscientious, she amuses herself by sifting through guests’ possessions to get insights into their lives. When she has interactions with guests, some are weird, some funny, some infuriating. Cartol gives a wonderful performance, filled with humour and poignancy in this superbly atmospheric film. |
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THURSDAY 20 February
Doors: 6.30pm Film: 7pm NT Live: Cyrano de Bergerac By Edmond Rostand, in a new version by Martin Crimp Directed by Jamie Lloyd James McAvoy returns to the stage in an inventive new adaptation of Cyrano de Bergerac, broadcast live to cinemas from the West End in London. Fierce with a pen and notorious in combat, Cyrano almost has it all - if only he could win the heart of his true love Roxane. There’s just one big problem: he has a nose as huge as his heart. Will a society engulfed by narcissism get the better of Cyrano or can his mastery of language set Roxane’s world alight? Edmond Rostand’s masterwork is adapted by Martin Crimp, with direction by Jamie Lloyd. This classic play will be brought to life with linguistic ingenuity to celebrate Cyrano’s powerful and resonant resistance against overwhelming odds. |
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SUNDAY 23 February
Doors: 2.30pm Film: 3pm Fighting With My Family (12A) Here is a heart-warming comedy based on the incredible true story of WWE Superstar Paige. Born into a tight-knit wrestling family, Paige and her brother Zak are ecstatic when they get the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try out for WWE. But when only Paige earns a spot in the competitive training program, she must leave her family and face this new, cut-throat world alone. Florence Pugh shows there’s no role and no genre she can’t handle with aplomb, effortlessly taking on this nuanced comedic role. |
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FRIDAY 28 February
Doors: 7.30pm Film: 8pm If Beale Street Could Talk (15) The incredible documentary about James Baldwin, “I Am Not Your Negro” blew our audience away last season. Now here is one of his novels brought to the screen by the director of “Moonlight” Barry Jenkins. The story of two young lovers torn apart by prejudice, bigotry and injustice. Gorgeous, powerful, and stunningly crafted, If Beale Street Could Talk is a masterpiece. A visually stunning and emotionally intense meditation on young love, family and social injustice in America. The book was written 20 years ago, but it is utterly relevant today. |
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THURSDAY 21 May
Doors: 6.30pm Film: 7pm NT Live: The Welkin a new play by Lucy Kirkwood One life in the hands of 12 women. Rural Suffolk in England, 1759. As the country waits for Halley’s comet, a young woman is sentenced to hang for a heinous murder. When she claims to be pregnant, a jury of 12 matrons are taken from their housework to decide whether she’s telling the truth, or simply trying to escape the noose. With only midwife Lizzy Luke prepared to defend the girl, and a mob baying for blood outside, the matrons wrestle with their new authority, and the devil in their midst. James Macdonald (Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?) directs Maxine Peake (The Theory of Everything, Funny Cow) and Ria Zmitrowicz (Three Girls, Mr. Selfridge) in this bold and gripping thriller from Tony Award nominated writer Lucy Kirkwood (Chimeric Skins). Broadcast live from the National Theatre in London. |
