Good evening ladies and gentlemen!
Today started out as any usual day in Stratford-upon-Avon would, going to the cottage of Shakespeare's wife Anne Hathaway (not to be confused with Princess of Genovia Anne Hathaway). It was a gorgeous little place with beautiful gardens surrounding the cottage. Don't be fooled though, it was not like this during Anne Hathaway's residence. The house was originally two rooms, a kitchen and a multipurpose room that served as family room, sleeping room, and dining room for the family of up to twelve living their. During our tour, there were many more rooms, with seperate bedrooms, a kitchen and a possible dining room. As the cottage was so small, it was often hard to differentiate between the rooms as we walked through them. The gardens outside were beautiful, but also different from the pasture for chickens and sheep or other animals that would have resided there such a long time ago.
After exploring the gardens, forest and mastering the lavender maze, we hopped on a bus and headed back to London. After changing at our hostel, Roni, Jake, and I headed off on an adventure to find Poundland (essentially the Dollar Tree of Great Britain). It was amazing! They had teddy bears, chocolate, dog collars and so many more awesome things! After that, we searched for a Spaghetti House, which turned out to be right across the street from the theater we went to later. At the Spaghetti House, we had wonderful spaghetti & meatballs and bruchetta. Our waiter continuously and consistently filled our water glasses, which turns out to be a luxury in this city!
Tonight we saw The Elephant Man, a fabulous production starring the one and only Bradley Cooper, along with a fabulous supporting cast of Patricia Clarkson, Scott Lowell, and my favorite of the show Alessandro Nivola. This production is based on a true story, and very moving from the first scene of the first act to the dramatic last scene (or maybe not so dramatic, as the ending came unexpectedly and left me with many unanswered questions). I enjoyed every second of the performance, and it is so far in my top three of the productions I have seen on this trip. One of my favorite things was the simplcity of the set, composed of twelve overhead lights, a wooden platform on the stage, a few sets of curtains, and the rearrangement of a couple of furniture items. I personally am a fan of the simpler sets, as they leave more room for the viewers imagination to wonder and fill in the blank spaces as they so choose. I loved Alessandro's portrayal of Dr. Fredrick Treves, and was emotionally attached to the affection Fredick had for the Elephant Man. Patricia Clarkson also had some very touching moments as the female lead, with my favorite line and scene from the play (which of course I cannot share without spoiling some details so I'll leave it at that).
Our last stop before the hostel was Cool Britaina, which is THE tourist shop of tourist shops in London, so if anyone is every looking for last minute gifts this is the place to go! Now off to bed, as I am hoping to visit the Original Beatles Store in the morning, then another workshop and show tomorrow afternoon!
Until meet again,
Rachel Anderson
XOXO
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I definitely agree with you that "The Elephant Man" was fantastic. It's been one of my favorites as well. All of the actors did such a fantastic job. I was especially impressed that Bradley Cooper was able to portray John's (The Elephant Man's) character. People were so cruel to him solely based on his appearance! I saw similarities between John and Shylock from "The Merchant of Venice". Both plays expressed to me the importance of treating all people with respect and humanity.
ReplyDeleteAnne's cottage was definitely a refreshing thing added on to our excursion! I loved the architecture and the scenery in the backyard. It was beatiful! But, I cannot believe how small the rooms were! I agree, it was hard to tell where you were walking into. I love that you guys went to Poundlqnd, that is so fun!! I love the Dollar Store in the U.S. so that is cool to see thee is a similar thing here. And last but not least, I cannot believe we got to see BRADLEY COOPER!! He is my favorite actor by far so I was really, really, really excited!! He played the roll of John(Joseph) Merick with class and he was exquisite. I am still in awe. The best day by far!!
ReplyDeleteDespite Anne Hathaway of Genovia not being there, I still loved exploring this cottage. I still can't get over how short it was. I literally had to duck through the doorways. I think it just proves the idea that people used to be shorter and not live as long. As for the Elephant Man I too loved it. Much different genre than the plays we have been seeing and it was a bit dark but still amazing. I hate how cruel people can be. I can't believe we only have a few more days left in London!
ReplyDeleteIt sounds like you had an amazing day. Too bad I have no time for pound land but I'll put it in my list for next time. I loved the play The Elephant Man! It was fantastic to see such a devoted portrayal of such a terrible ailment. What I found to be the most fantastic but was that they did not use any prosthetics, he had to do it all with his physicality! He distorts himself so much he has to get stretched out after each performance and makes many trips to the chiropractor. He dedication is inspiring!
ReplyDeleteI was definitely freaking out at the poundland! It definitely is the equivalent to a dollar tree but in the United Kingdom.
ReplyDeleteAs for the cottage, it was so beautiful and I cannot explain the variety of flowers they had in the garden. Also the fact that one of the kitchens had the original floors in it was really cool to see, especially because we are basically walking in William Shakespeare's footsteps.