Sienna Miller signed my Comic Relief sketch at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in April 2011 when she was performing in Terrance Rattigan’s wartime play Flare Path.
Drawing: Sienna Miller and Terrance Rattigan in Flare Path
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Category Archives: Theatre
Drawing: Patrick Stewart in Shakespeare
The Cut Bar at the Young Vic is a popular theatre restaurant. Named after the street location rather than the state of its patrons…. mostly, it provides a convivial place to wait for the talent as they slip through to the stage door and the bar’s western hall.
I had heard that Sir Patrick wasn’t likely to sign going in, so left this sketch of him in his role as William Shakespeare in Bingo at the theatre rather than suffer a rejection in person. I was finishing a quiet ale in the aforementioned establishment, when Captain Picard walked past me. I was sketching at the time and he complimented me, we exchanged some pleasantries, but I decided not to mention my request. The Shakespeare sketch was returned, signed.
Drawing: Roger Allam
Roger Allam was the original Javert in the London production of Les Misérables – one of his many high profile parts in an illustrious theatrical career, which has included winning three Olivier Awards.
He signed this sketch at Shakespeare’s Globe in October 2010, playing the role of Falstaff in Henry IV Parts 1 and 2 for which he won the Olivier Award for Best Actor. He is currently back on stage at the Globe playing Prospero in The Tempest and on the telly as Magister Illyrio Mopatis in the popular Game of Thrones.
Drawing: Dame Edna and Barry Humphries
Sent my sketch of Dame Edna Everage to the New Wimbledon Theatre in January 2012 and received this back:
Drawing: Benedict Cumberbatch in After The Dance
Due to the popularity of this post, here are two more of my Benedict Cumberbatch sketches:
Benedict signed these sketches at the National Theatre stage door after a performance of After The Dance in August 2010
Drawing: Keira Knightley and Elisabeth Moss in The Children’s Hour
Keira Knightley and Elisabeth Moss signed this sketch for me at the Comedy Theatre stage door after a performance of The Children’s Hour on the 30th March 2011.
Drawing: Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller in Frankenstein
Danny Boyle returned to theatre direction with an adapted version of Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein by Nick Dear at the National Theatre in London in 2011.
Benedict Cumberbatch and Jonny Lee Miller alternated the two lead roles of Victor Frankenstein and the Creature. On the 17th and 19th of March 2011, the production was broadcast to cinemas around the world as part of the National Theatre Live programme.
Benedict and Jonny both shared the Olivier Award and the London Evening Standard Award for Best Actor for their respective performances. However, the Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards’ Best Performance by an Actor in a Play was given solely to Benedict.
They both signed my programme after I saw one of the two world premiere opening nights in February 2011 (Benedict was the Creature, Jonny was Frankenstein) but a signed sketch never came back from the theatre. I drew another one and waited until Jonny was attending a Dark Shadows premiere in Leicester Square in May 2012 and he gladly signed for me. But I couldn’t get Benedict until he was at the latest Star Trek: Into Darkness world premiere, also in Leicester Square. Amongst a real frenzy I managed to get his attention. He loved the sketch, and dedicated it for me, saying “great drawing”.
Drawing: John Gielgud
I left this sketch of theatrical knight Sir John Gielgud at the Garrick Club in London back in 1994. He returned it soon after signed along with his compliments card.
Drawing: The Book of Mormon
The Broadway musical juggernaut The Book Of Mormon rolled into London’s West End last month and has been doing the ‘biz’ ever since. Written by South Park‘s Matt Stone and Trey Parker and winner of 9 Tony Awards, the show opened to mixed reviews by the British critics, but the public have taken to it in droves. Tickets are scarce, but we managed to grab a few on Red Nose gala night, with all the profits from that performance going to Comic Relief.
Transferring from the US National Tour are American leads Gavin Creel (Elder Price) and Jared Gertner (Elder Cunningham). London’s own Alexia Khadime plays the lead female role – Nabulungi.
Fresh from the role of Eponine in Les Misérables at the Queen’s Theatre, Alexia’s pedigree includes Elphaba in Wicked and Nala in The Lion King.
Drawing: James McAvoy and Claire Foy in Macbeth
Glasgow-born James McAvoy has just completed the lead role in a sell out season of ‘the Scottish play’, with English actress Claire Foy as Lady Macbeth.
After an eighty day run as London’s Trafalgar Studios, James goes straight into filming the next instalment of X Men alongside the two Knights, Patrick Stewart and Ian McKellen, who have both also starred as the murdering Scot. James commented that it would be fun having three Macbeths in the one place “We might have a Macbeth-off – my Macbeth’s better than your Macbeth!”
The production received rave reviews, but the interaction with the audience didn’t always go to script. He suddenly stopped mid-scene when someone in the front was filming with his mobile phone. He refused to continue with the play until the device was firmly put away. James also stopped in the middle of the climatic sword fight to help an audience member who had collapsed. He called for help, cracked a joke or two, then continued the scene with the same intensity, according to one witness who tweeted the event. On another occasion, he told two drunk women who kept talking through the early scenes to “shut up”. They eventually complied and later fell asleep.
When he signed my sketch, going in for the Friday evening’s performance, he was telling the gathered ‘graphers that he had injured an eye and his hand due to the intense physicality of the play. Luckily it was his left hand, so he could still sign!
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