‘Skylight’ was my first experience of a
National Theatre Live screening in a cinema. I’ve always thought it was a good
idea, theatre can be expensive and inconvenient, but the National Theatre is
just so easy for me to visit that I have never even considered one of their
live shows. It was filmed well, you got a basic feel of the theatre and you did
forget about the fact you were watching it on a screen after awhile but it
still felt odd. You miss the feeling of being surrounded by people all watching
these extraordinary actors on stage. My main complaint was that you miss the
subtly which are often the perfect moments in a play; the camera zooming in on
the hands of the actors to show what was happening did point out the obvious a
bit.
The play itself was brilliant. Written by
David Hare it was emotional, intelligent and absorbed the audience into a world
of love and social politics. The whole show takes place in Kyra Hollis’ small
apartment, where she has visits from her ex-lover Tom and his son Edward. The
stars Bill Nighy, who originated the role of Tom in 1996 when the play was
first produced, Carey Mulligan and Matthew Beard were all astonishing,
capturing the contrast between the two lifestyles and emotionally connecting
with the issues highlighted in the script. However, it was Carey Mulligan who
shone slightly brighter in the way she attached herself to the character and
caught the highs and lows of Kyra’s experience.
Lots of social moral issues were brought up
within the dialogue and the setting but as the audience we understood both
points of view. The arguments that took place were not just about the
relationships but also about the feeling of a split and, sometimes,
inconsiderate society. When first written the social themes were relevant but I
think they are still a major part of society today and perhaps that is why this
revival was so well received.
National Theatre Live screenings are
definitely a good idea and, if you have a chance to catch it, Skylight is definitely
worth seeing. I would recommend the theatre for the atmosphere but that isn’t
always possible so I will probably be returning for more live screenings in the
future. Skylight itself deserves a longer run but I’m glad that the response of
the revival has been a positive one and I hope it returns in the future.
Skylight ends 6th August 2014.
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