Drawing: Nicholas Rowe in King Charles III at Wyndham’s Theatre

Posted on January 7, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

British actor Nicholas Rowe is currently part of the brilliant cast appearing in Rupert Goold‘s popular production KING CHARLES III at London’s Wyndham Theatre.

Mike Bartlett’s play imagines what might happen if the Queen dies and the Prince of Wales becomes King, written mostly in blank verse.

Charles Spencer in The Telegraph describes it as the “most spectacular, gripping and wickedly entertaining piece of ‘lese-majeste’ that British theatre has ever seen.”

Nicholas plays the wily and deeply devious Leader of the Opposition who suggests to Charles that he refuse his Royal consent to a privacy law imposing restrictions on the media.

Since he came to prominence as a nineteen year old in Steven Spielberg’s production of YOUNG SHERLOCK HOLMES, Nicholas has carved out a versatile career on both stage and screen, including LOCK,STOCK AND TWO SMOKING BARRELS, DA VINCI’S DEMONS, MIDSOMER MURDERS, HOTEL BABYLON and HAMLET.

I was waiting at the Wyndham’s stage door which is located on a very busy alley-way, next to the Leicester Square tube station. It was the first saturday of the new year, approaching 2 pm, so the pre-matinée rush was on. However it was easy to pick Nicholas out from the crowd because of his height and distinctive looks and the fact he was casually strolling towards the stage door, albeit slowly as he stopped to chat to people. He was very friendly as we discussed all manner of things from politics to future projects as he happily signed my sketch before heading in to do his bit for the constitutional crisis.

Drawing: Linda Gray in Cinderella at the New Wimbledon Theatre

Posted on January 5, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Isn’t that Sue Ellen from Dallas??? Oh, no it isn’t. Oh, yes it is! Well, it is Linda Gray who played JR Ewing’s long-suffering drunken wife in the cult TV series Dallas making her panto debut in Cinderella at London’s New Wimbledon Theatre. Although it’s not Linda’s first appearance on the London stage, it is her first in the British festive tradition. She was encouraged by Patrick Duffy, aka Bobby Ewing, Dallas‘s other surviving star, who played Baron Hardup (Cinderella’s father) in London and told her, “you’ve got to do it!” Linda mixes a touch of the Texan with the familiar fairy tale, playing the stetson-toting, hip flask swigging Fairy Godmother who helps Cinders get to the ball. Her stage credits included the role of Mrs Robinson in The Graduate on both the West End and Broadway stages in the early 2000’s. And here’s a piece of trivia: it’s Linda’s uncredited leg in the iconic 1967 poster for The Graduate film. Her anonymous stocking-clad stem stood in for the film’s star Anne Bancroft at $25 a leg. Cinderella continues at the New Wimbledon Theatre until 11 January 2015.

Drawing: Katie Brayben and Margot Leicester in Charles III at Wyndham’s Theatre

Posted on January 3, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Mike Bartlett’s audacious new play, King Charles III about the ascension of Prince Charles to the throne after Elizabeth II passes on, resulting in a constitutional crisis, royal family meltdown and ultimately a British coup. It is also a bold play, written as a Shakespearean piece in iambic pentameter. It made its world premiere at the Almeida Theatre, London in April 2014 before transferring to Wyndham’s in the West End until March this year.

Amongst the faultless cast assembled by director Rupert Goold are Olivier nominated Margot Leicester and singer/songwriter Katie Brayben.

Writing in The Telegraph, Dominic Cavendish stated, “the cast are uniformly excellent. There’s a 24 carat contribution from Margot Leicester as a funny, fawning but unmistakably feisty Camilla”. Katie plays the stalking, black veiled ghost of Princess Diana. She will soon be seen playing the legendary Carole King in the Broadway hit musical Beautiful at the Aldwych next month.

Both Katie and Margot signed their respective sketches at the stage door after a Saturday evening performance before Christmas.

Drawing: The Dragon at Southwark Theatre

Posted on January 2, 2015 by Mark Winter / Chicane

The Tangram Theatre Company’s brand new take on Yevgeny Schwartz’s brilliantly funny 1943 critique of Stalinist Russia, The Dragon, is currently running at the Southwark Playhouse in London.

Led by their award winning director Daniel Goldman, their productions are described as, “joyous, exciting, messy, chaotic, irreverent, intelligent, silly, fun and surprising”. The Dragon is all of these things and more. It’s an anti-panto and wicked allegory lampooning the soviet bloc. Daniel likens it to, “The Princess Bride meets Captain America and Animal Farm“.

Adapted by Daniel and his company, who form an impressive ensemble cast that includes Anthony Best, Hannah Boyde, Justin Butcher, Jo Hartland, James Marshall, James Rowland, Peter Stickney, Stella Tyalor, Rob Witconb and Charlotte Workman. They cover all the (un)usual suspects required for this fairy tail – Lancelot, the Knight-errant and cut price superhero; a narrating feline, a pretty and innocent in-and-out-of-distress damsel, her always distressed mother, a mad mayor-cum-diabolical-dictator, his sleazy intelligence-challenged son, visiting strangers bearing gifts, a cow…. oh, yes and a three headed dragon.

I was introduced to the term ‘samizdat satire’ by one reviewer. It’s the romanticisation of a soviet form of dissident activity and the practice of evading officially imposed censorship, which was certainly the environment in which the Russian-Jewish playwright wrote this piece.

The Dragon ends on 10 January 2015.

Drawing: Brigitte Bardot

Posted on December 30, 2014 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Brigitte Bardot, widely referred to simply by her initials, was an icon of the 1950s and 1960s – the ‘chic unique’ was the original sex kitten. What set her apart was a combination of her eyes, pout and attitude which I tried to capture in this quick sketch.

Brigitte has such a distinctive graph… as you would expect and is always very obliging when requested for an autograph. I sent her this sketch recently, wishing her a happy 80th birthday. It came back, signed, in next to no time.

Globally adored, Brigitte was the first continental actress to achieve Hollywood fame. During the 1960s she and Marilyn Monroe were the most celebrated pin ups of their day. Time magazine called her, ‘the princess of pout, the countess of come-hither… Brigitte Bardot exuded a carefree naive sexuality.”

After retiring from films, Brigitte has devoted her life to animal activism, establishing her Foundation in the mid 1980s and remains outspoken and controversial for her cause.

Drawing: Liam Mower in Billy Elliot at the Victoria Palace Theatre

Posted on December 29, 2014 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Liam Mower was one of the three original ‘Billys’ rotating the role in the West End production of Billy Elliot The Musical at the Victoria Palace Theatre. It’s the story of motherless Billy in the north of England during the coal miners’ strike who trades boxing gloves for ballet shoes.

Along with cast mates James Lomas and George Maguire he won the 2006 Olivier for Best Actor in a Musical, the youngest recipient of Britain’s most prestigious theatre award.

Originally signed for six months, he became indispensable and Sir Elton John (who wrote the music) and Stephen Daldry, the director, renewed his contract three times. After being picked to play Billy on the show’s opening night in 2005 he remained 18 months in the role.

He made his final scheduled appearance as Billy on 30 September 2006 . It made local and international news, spelling the end of the original boys cast in the title role. On an emotional final night he was presented with a dog called ‘Billy’. Director Stephen Daldry said, “Rarely does one ever come across a performer with so many skills and talents, particularly when matched by Liam’s determination and good humour… one of the most celebrated child performers ever in the West End.”

He is now part of Matthew Bourne’s New Adventures dance company and is currently sharing the lead role in Edward Scissorhands with Dominic North at Sadler’s Wells where he signed this drawing.

Drawing: Ashley Shaw, Dominic North, Katy Lowenhoff and Liam Mower in Edward Scissorhands

Posted on December 27, 2014 by Mark Winter / Chicane

This year’s Christmas offering at Sadler’s Wells in London is Matthew Bournes’ revival of Edward Scissorhands based on the classic Tim Burton movie and Danny Elfman’s emotive score. It’s a gothic fairytale set in the middle American town of Hope Springs, a latter-day tragic tale of forbidden love, a bionic boy with scissors for hands, longing for love and acceptance.

The Times described it as, “the perfect synthesis of dance and drama, comedy and pathos, exuberant theatrically and heart warming entertainment”.

Dominic North returns to the title role he originated in 2005. He alternates performing Edward with Liam Mower (the original Billy Elliot). Ashley Shaw and Katy Lowenhoff do the same as Kim Boggs, who is torn between Edward and the brutish Jim Upton.

I left these sketches at the theatre last week and Dominic, Liam, Katy and Ashley all signed them for me – a nice Chrissy pressie.

The show runs until 11 January 2015.

Sketch: Sir Ben Kingsley

Posted on December 26, 2014 by Mark Winter / Chicane

I had just sent this sketch of Sir Ben Kingsley to him for signing literally on the same day I wen to the third instalment of the Night At The Museum franchise European premiere at the Empire in London’s Leicester Square. Guess who turned up? He plays Ahkmenrah’s father in the film, so I missed getting him to sign the drawing in person, where he was his usual obliging self signing for everyone.

In a career spanning over 40 years, Sir Ben has won an Oscar Grammey, BAFTA, two Golden Globes and Screen Actor’s Guild Awards to become one of Britain’s most celebrated actors. He was knighted in 2002, telling the Queen at the ceremony at Buckingham Palace that, “winning an Oscar pales into insignificance – this is insurmountable.”

I didn’t have to wait long. The sketch arrived back, signed and dedicated the following week.

Drawing: Annabel Scholey in Passion Play

Posted on December 24, 2014 by Mark Winter / Chicane

British actress Annabel Scholey played the alluring Kate in last year’s West End revival of Peter Nichol’s Passion Play at the Duke of York’s Theatre.

The 25-year-old marriage of James and Eleanor (Owen Teale and Zoe Wanamaker) is disrupted by his affair with Annabel’s femme fatale. The playwright has also created their alter egos, Jim and Nell (Oliver Cotton and Samantha Bond) which allows the lead characters to express their private thoughts and anxieties.The technical device was not given to the femme fatal Kate, who comes across as a heartless predator.

Oxford-trained Annabel has balanced her career with a bunch of Shakespearian parts-she played Queen Anne to Kevin Spacey’s Richard III at the Old Vic – and a stint as a vampire in the cult BBC series Being Human.

She signed this sketch of her as Kate at the Theatre in June 2013.

Drawing: Zoe Wanamaker and Samantha Bond (Eleanor and Nell) in Passion Play

Posted on December 23, 2014 by Mark Winter / Chicane

Two of the great contemporary British actors of our time, Zoe Wanamaker and Samantha Bond combined in David Leveaux’s beautifully judged revival of Passion Play at the Duke of York’s Theatre last summer.

Peter Nichol’s searing play of a modern marriage disrupted by a ‘blast of sexual infidelity’ is technically daring with the two leading characters each portrayed by two actors for public and private thoughts.

Zoe and Samantha play the competing versions of the same innocent character, soon shattered and betrayed in a 25 year marriage she believed to be happy and strong.
Owen Teale and Oliver Cotton play the love rat husband and his alter ego.

When it opened in 1981 at London’s Aldwych Theatre critics recounted a joke about Moses coming down from Sinai with the Commandments and announcing, “First the good news – I’ve got ’em down to ten. Now the bad news – adultery’s still on.”

Samantha’s maiden name is apt – her best known screen role is in the James Bond series, playing Miss Moneypenny, secretary to M. She appeared throughout Pierce Brosnan’s tenure as 007 which began in 1994 and ended in 2002 with Golden Eye, Tomorow Never Dies, The World is Not Enough and Die Another Day.

Zoe’s extensive list of stage and screen credits includes the Harry Potter series. Fo her theatre works hs ha sheen nominate four times of the Tony and nine times for the Oliver awards, wining two. She has also received three BAFTA nominations.

Both signed this sketch for me at the theatre in Juen 2013.