http://www.internet-eireann.ie/power/actor/actor.htm
What with Spotlight, the definitive directory of actors and actresses,
now out on CD-ROM, this list of luvvies has no competition as yet. Currently
the number of people listed wouldn't be enough to field a cast for a West
End show but hopefully in the future you'll be able to look up the name
of the actor you fancied in last week's episode of The Bill.
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http://www.tron.co.uk/
A solid staging from Glasgow's Merchant City prole playhouse. Lots of
front of house malarkey, gritty mission statements, new plays and visiting
productions, as well as the all-important bar menu Ü delicious fishcakes
and Belgian trappist monk beer. More! More! More!
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http://www.reallyuseful.com/
Apparently one of Richard (of Richard and Judy fame) Maddeley's unfullfilled
ambitions is to play the Michael Crawford Phantom role in The Phantom of
the Opera. It's true. Of course it doesn't tell you the above information
on this site, it's just something you either know or you don't. What this
does do is tell you all the terribly interesting things you might like to
learn about Andrew Lloyd Webber, his Really Useful Company and his shows.
Many a starstruck, impressionable youngster attending lessons at the local
tap dancing school has hankered after the hoo-hah of being the next Joseph
or the next Darren Day. Disappointingly, this lacks the inspirational limelight
and theatricality of all those dreams. Instead it offers another outlet
for Mr Webber's overworked PR machine - really useful information on Cats,
Evita, Aspects, Jospeh, Starlight Express and Sunset, no less, including
current cast lists, what the critics said, a history of each production
and other sundry bits and bobs.The latest news is posted in a press room
that includes details of things like the new production of Jesus Chris Superstar
that is due to reopen the Lyceum theatre in London in November 1996. There's
also a chance to win tickets to an ALW production anywhere in the world
by answering questions like 'Name the author of the novel upon which Aspects
of Love is based'. The site is largely Stateside-focused but includes detailed
listings of every production playing globally under the headings Asia, Australia,
Canada and Europe, which is handy. All Really Useful recordings are catalogued
along with other merchandise, which can be ordered online, and lastly there's
a company profile and illustrated biography of Andrew Lloyd Webber himself.
That's all very well but where is the stardust and glitter?
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http://www.ecna.org/placeds/
Umbrella site and organisation for the capital's premiere dance space.
This is basically several well laid out paragraphs and pages detailing what
The Place actually does. A brief summary: It serves as a major London dance
venue, is home to The Richard Alston Dance Company and London Contemporary
Dance School. As a centre of choreography, it plays a key role in promoting
independent dance, community and education projects and is the contact address
for resident dance companies The Cholmondeleys and The Featherstonehaughs.
So now you know.
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http://multiple.insertions.com/mi_html/contrib/writing/iv08.htm
Long live salsa and the spoken word! From the borderland taco shops
of Southern California come these cultural guerillas, a posse of Mexican/Americans
who've converted taco shops into temporary cultural centres for music, poetry,
prose, and ritual. These new meeting places, trading under handles like
The Steamed Bean and Chacos of San Jose, offer online samplings from works
such as The Fish, Mr Boom Boom, Senoritas, and Fuck It. More content than
form, but worth a detour to keep cross-culture alive.
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http://www.demon.co.uk/secondcity/
For a site all about the arts in Manchester (second city, geddit?),
this is in need of an attitude injection. The information on music venues,
galleries, the Cornerhouse etc is extra sparse and extra unhelpful. Sections
need updating more regularly and the whole thing needs a bit more personality.
For a vibrant city with a great musical heritage, linking to the home pages
of Oasis, The Stone Roses, Black Grape, New Order, The Buzzcocks and James
seems like a little bit of a cop out. The intention is there and there are
promises of information on new bands etc but it's about time someone got
into gear.
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http://reedycreek.stanford.edu/Carousel/welcome.html
This site promotes the US tour of a production of the classic Rodgers
and Hammerstein musical, Carousel, by an American company called Theatre
Under The Stars. Admittedly the tour ended in Sacramento in September and
so you can't catch it, but any show fan will find these pages packed full
of background detail, including interesting snippets about the show's two
most famous numbers - June Is Busting Out All Over and You'll Never Walk
Alone (as adopted by Liverpool FC). There are also details of a mailing
list for Carousel fans and a trivia quiz. If you've a song in your heart,
this is for you.
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http://www.fix.co.jp/kabuki/kabuki.html
Kabuki is a traditional form of Japanese theatre created in the early
17th century by Okuni, a shrine maiden who brought her unique dance style
to the dry river beds of the ancient capital of Kyoto, and over the next
300 years it developed into a sophisticated, highly stylised dramatic form.
This I have learned from the Kabuki for Everyone site. Kabuki may seem a
somewhat esoteric topic but the way these pages are put together makes it
accessible and fascinating. There are articles on its history, summaries
of major plays, an index of related books and films, pictures of the costumes,
sound files of the instruments used and video clips of performances. Although
invented by a woman, all roles are played by men and female impersonators
are referred to as 'onnagata'. One of the highlights is watching how an
onnagata transforms himself into a beautiful woman. There is a Japanese
language version of the site, too.
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http://diamond.idbsu.edu/gas/GaS.html
This is a superbly put-together package of resources on the collaborative
efforts of William S Gilbert and Sir Arthur Sullivan, whose joint works,
such as The Mikado, HMS Pinafore, Trial By Jury and The Pirates of Penzance,
are some of the most frequently performed operas in the English-speaking
world. However, there is little of the comedy one associates with this pair
in the overall presentation of these pages, as they are aimed at the serious
comic opera lover and house libretti and Midi sound files from most of the
14 operas they wrote together. The 'lyrics' are searchable using WAIS and
WN tools, but this isn't as useful as it sounds because one is usually directed
towards a particular score and nothing else. MInd you, the list of links
to other works of note, a discography, organisations, festivals and related
Web sites is definitely worthy of a mention. The very model of a moderated...Gilbert
and Sullivan site.
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http://www.en-ballet.co.uk/
The English National Ballet site needs a lesson in choreography. Image
and ease of navigation are relegated to the chorus while pages of text take
the leading roles and falter. Intriguing clickables to ballet news, school
programmes, supporters, personnel, performance schedules and the ballets
themselves, but each click takes ages to load dull pix and words. There's
some good historical and background stuff, but no pizzazz. Come back Nureyev,
all is forgiven!
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http://dspace.dial.pipex.com/town/square/ae051/
This is basically a prospectus for one of the UK's most famous drama
schools. There's a long way to go before this site gets remotely interesting
but wannabee thesps can access the admissions/auditions details they want.
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http://www.uktw.co.uk/info/of96005/index.htm
Details of current tours and productions from the Hull Truck stable
and the prolific pen of John Godber Ü Shakers, Blood, Sweat and Tears
and Lucky Sods. A brief synopsis of each play (sadly no cast info), plus
all the names, dates and telephone numbers of every arts centre and theatre
they're playing. Worth checking your local venue for a punchy, full on,
live night out.
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http://ourworld.compuserve.com:80/homepages/barecat/
What this site needs is a big injection of money because it cries out
for the latest crazy Web software tricks. Snaps of the museum's ultra-marvellous
mechanical sculptures and automata make this exhibition-type shop in Covent
Garden seem like one of the most exciting places to visit ever. Thing is,
you really want to see them in motion, their spooky surreal characters clumsily
cranking away, but for the time being you'll just have to jot down its opening
times and directions on how to get there. Information and prices available
via email.
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http://www.wordslam.hugo.com/
This site sees the bizarre twinning of supremely confident besuited
boys fashion firm Hugo Boss and...and...and, well, poetry. Whilst this may
seem like rather an odd sponsorship deal for Boss, it's both a bid to popularise
the fragrance Hugo and a bid to become a patron of the arts. Good job! Wordslam
covers a broad spectrum of poetry texts, from the quasi-consumerist sloganeering
of Jenny Holzer to the American classicism of Robert Frost. Boss branding
is heavy in only a few restricted areas and does not detract from some great
content.
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http://challenge.tiac.net/users/davidf/london.html
This rather plain but info-packed site is mainly for the benefit of
those interested theatre-goers outside London who don't get to buy a weekly
listings magazine. It says what's playing, where and how to get tickets,
and includes an upcoming shows section, so you'll know to book well in advance.
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http://www.poptel.org.uk/opera/
Dynamic-looking pages from one of the most innovative opera companies
out there, noted for its radical dramatics and frequent nudity. There's
heaps of warbly stuff about productions, touring, ticket bookings and tales
from the rehearsal room.
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http://www.gold.net:80/users/er36/royal-court
The Royal Court has always played an innovative role in British Theatre,
with its consistent commitment to nurturing new writing. So...the Internet,
eh? You'll find a touch-of-a-button 'what's on' information, theatre history
and the chance to get The Royal Court's mailing list for free, via email.
Plenty of room for development, but one jump ahead of the rest.
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http://www.nag.co.uk/Homes/RobertI/Theatre.html
Comprehensive what's on guide to all kinds of amateur and professional
theatre in the UK.
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