Friday, December 5

Tag: Anna Madeley

The Little Foxes – Young Vic
London

The Little Foxes – Young Vic

A rare revival for Lillian Hellman's play, set at the turn of the 20th century. With a title taken from the Bible's Song of Solomon, The Little Foxes is a family drama set in Alabama's cotton country. Regina, Ben and Oscar are siblings living closely together, a family who gained wealth and power when Oscar charmed and married Birdie, daughter of Southern aristocracy and rich plantation owners. They patronise their black servants and are driven by money. When Regina's husband Horace, sick and tired, fails o respond to a business deal, plans to gain the money with or without him. Lyndsey Turner’s production captures all the nastiness behind closed doors,  particularly of the unsuccessful marriages at its heart. There are moments of both physical and emotional violence, and...
Les Blancs – National Theatre at Home
London

Les Blancs – National Theatre at Home

Writer Lorraine Hansberry was a remarkable woman who, despite her early death at age 34, conquered Broadway as the first black writer to see her play ‘Raisin in the Sun’ performed on stage in 1959.  She followed her father into activism and wrote for the newspaper ‘Freedom’, working alongside Africans and African Americans.  This work; and seeing a production called ‘Les Negres’ (The Blacks), inspired Hansberry to write ‘Les Blancs’, which she began writing in 1960 and completed it just before her death.   After her death the play was adapted by her ex-husband Robert Nemiroff.  The 1970 Broadway production was staged at the Longacre Theatre and the National Theatre’s production took place in 2016. The play follows the visit of journalist Charlie Morris (Elliot C...