The 4 things I love most in theatre

This week I have seen 3 plays, and they have really made me think about why I love theatre, and what makes me fall in love with certain shows.

• On Tuesday, An Oak Tree (2 actors; 1 is the writer, the other is a random actor who has never seen or read the play before. You only find out who this will be on the night. And on this night, it just so happened to be my favourite actor, John Heffernan - purfick!)

• On Wednesday, Everyman

• On Friday, Constellations

And these are the 4 things I love most in theatre:

1. Simplicity. Where a performance uses a simple premise beautifully, allowing me to plug directly into its emotions. It's why Samuel Beckett is my favourite playwright - forget your intellect, he plays directly on your nerves (see separate blog post here). Also, Once the Musical; Constellations
2. Where every aspect works together to form a perfect piece of theatre. Matilda the Musical, London Road, Frankenstein, The Nether, Everyman, Constellations. Where the writing, music, acting, choreography, directing, set and costumes all sing as one!
3. Where a performance divides critics. I love a play that gets just as many negative as positive reviews. Port, 2071. My favourite being Edward II, which got 5* and 1*. That showed it was meeting its aims and doing something radical and fresh (see separate blog post here). I don't think I've ever been so excited in a theatre.
4. Performances that foreground the fact they are a performance. Edward II, An Oak Tree, the work of Daniel Kitson (Analog.ue, Tree, which both fit into category 1 too), the work of 1927 (The Animals and Children Took To The Street, Golem, which also fit into category 2). My favourite singer is Glen Hansard: he tears his heart out performing his songs, but in the middle of this will also ask for the mic to be turned up, will interact with the audience and bring them into the song, will break a guitar string and fix it while carrying on...