Theatre by the Lake

I want to come back to our trip to the Lake District and Keswick. We went to Theatre by the Lake twice (my wife's brilliant idea). Lovely place, idyllic one even, literally surrounded by nature. A few steps away from the theatre we could see flocks of sheep in the field and within eyesight we could see the lake, with the ducks . The walk there and back (a slow walk back) were worth the price of admission. Whether there was clouds or clear skies, the sunsets were strikingly beautiful. The picture at the right does not give it justice.

We saw first Shining City by Conor McPherson, then Northanger Abbey, adapted from a Jane Austen novel. I never cared much about Jane Austen (my mother-in-law must think I am a blasphemer right now, maybe my own mothet too come to think of it), but I actually enjoyed that one. It was partially because it was gently mocking gothic fiction, a genre I enjoy. There is always a good deal of affection in good parody, and that was good one. I don't know how the original novel is, but I thought the adaptation was a smart adaptation. I enjoyed it mainly because I love the art of acting, no matter if the play is a great one or a minor one.

Shining City, I loved completely, so much so that I bought the text the very next day. My wife and talked about it all night afterwards and we still come back to it. It was that smart. Obviously it is a haunting story, literally as it is about a ghost, but this ghost, if it has a human appearance, is guilt. I will try to blog about it more deeply. Let me just say now that I loved it. Oh, and the production was a perfect example of small is more: the play was presented in a small studio, the audience was surrounding the stage, we were like unwilling voyeurs witnessing the drama.

Seeing those two plays reminded me how much I love acting and how much I miss the stage, how powerful it is as a medium. My interest for it has been rekindled recently, through reading of plays (well, one play so far) and through these two nights at the theatre. We should have more of them, even though it makes me envious of the people on stage. I know from experience that they have the best seats in the house.

Compter les moutons

Voici un petit billet qui fait partie de mon compte-rendu de voyage... Je vais bloguer sur mes vacances au compte-goutte comme ça, histoire de ne pas diluer les sujets dans une longue chronique. Une chose qui m'a frappé avec le Lake District et avec Keswick en particulier, c'est la proximité avec les animaux de ferme, surtout les moutons (parfois aussi des vaches). Il y en avait de toutes les formes et de toutes les couleurs, des blancs, des gris, des jaunâtres, des têtes noires, blanches, j'en passe et des meilleures. Dans le parc près du Theatre by the Lake, on pouvait marcher près d'eux. Ils sont cependant assez timides et s'enfuient dès que l'on s'approche trop d'eux.

Outre l'image saisissante qu'offre cette proximité pour qui n'y est pas familier, la présence des moutons m'a valu une montée d'empathie animalière: je ne crois pas manger de l'agneau de sitôt, au grand plaisir de ma femme. Je trouve les moutons un peu trop sympathiques ces temps-ci.