Tag: Pillars of the Community

Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis in Pillars of the Community

This post was originally written in 2016. With Damian set to star in Jack of Spades alongside Lesley Manville, it feels like the perfect moment to share it again. Enjoy!

It all began when a dear colleague—someone who shares my deep love for theatre—asked me to name my favorite male and female stage performances of 2015. Easy.

Lesley Manville in Ibsen’s Ghosts.
Damian Lewis in Mamet’s American Buffalo (with Mark Strong in Miller’s A View from the Bridge a very close second).

So what was it about these performances that made me fall in love with them?

One word: precision.

Then I thought about the heart-breaking performance Lesley Manville gives in Ghosts which, in fact, brought her an Olivier Award in 2014 (I saw the play later when it visited Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2015). I know Manville mostly from her work on big screen such as Secrets and Lies (1996), Vera Drake (2004), Another Year (2010) and Mr Turner (2014) all of which were some of my favorites in the year they were released. But I really did not know about her stage work. So I googled her.

And here is the first image I hit! Continue reading “Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis in Pillars of the Community”

Happy World Theater Day: Damian Lewis on Stage

theatercollage2

Happy World Theater Day! Let’s celebrate this beautiful day dedicated to the wonderful art form that is theater with a little walk down the memory lane to live and re-live bits and pieces of Damian Lewis’ brilliant stage career!

Damian discovers theater at a young age at Ashdown House, the boarding school he went at age eight: “Each summer we staged a Gilbert and Sullivan Operetta. It was all so English. I used to sing the solos. I had a sweet treble voice.” His first ever role was a policeman The Pirates of Penzance, a Gilbert and Sullivan. And, by age 12, he had already played in 12 Gilbert and Sullivan Operettas.

Well, we don’t have pictures from these operettas but the school pic below can help us imagine our little guy on stage! Continue reading “Happy World Theater Day: Damian Lewis on Stage”

Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis in Pillars of the Community

It all starts with a good colleague with whom I share love for theater asking me to name my favorite male and female stage performances in 2015. Easy. It’s Lesley Manville in Ibsen’s Ghosts and Damian Lewis in Mamet’s American Buffalo (with Mark Strong in Miller’s A View From the Bridge as a close second). And what is it about these performances that make me LOVE them?  Just one word: Precision.

topperfs

Then I think about the heart-breaking performance Lesley Manville gives in Ghosts which, in fact, has brought her an Olivier Award in 2014 (I saw the play much later when it visited Brooklyn Academy of Music in 2015). I know Manville mostly from her work on big screen such as Secrets and Lies (1996), Vera Drake (2004), Another Year (2010) and Mr Turner (2014) all of which were some of my favorites in the year they were released. But I really do not know about her stage work. So I google her. And this is one of the first images I hit!

source: telegraph.co.uk
source: telegraph.co.uk

Ha! Small world. Have you heard of the saying that Brits have 10 actors? I am about to believe that! 😀 And it’s time we dig into the play! Continue reading “Throwback Thursday to Damian Lewis in Pillars of the Community”