Vincent River (play) explained

Vincent River
Characters:Anita (Female, aged 53)Davey (Male, aged 17)
Setting:"A run-down flat in Dagenham, East London"
Date Of Premiere:6 September 2000
Place:Hampstead Theatre, London
Original Language:English

Vincent River is a one act stage play by Philip Ridley. It was Ridley's fourth stage play for adults and premiered at the Hampstead Theatre, London on 6 September 2000.[1] The production was the last major collaboration between Ridley and director Mathew Lloyd, who had previously directed the majority of Ridley's other theatrical works.[2] [3]

It is believed that the play in part draws from Ridley's unpublished radio play October Scars the Skin which was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 on 16 January 1989. The story like Vincent River involved a mother of a murdered homosexual who befriends his son's lover and also featured a character called Vincent.[4] [5]

Plot

The story plays out in realtime and is set in a rundown flat in Dagenham.

There a woman called Anita is moving in following the death of Vincent, her son who was killed in a homophobic attack which resulted in her discovering that he was a homosexual in the aftermath of his murder.

In the play we see her interact with Davey, a boy who claims to have been the first to find Vincent's corpse and who wants to know as much as he can about Vincent from Anita.

Notable Stage Productions

Country Date Location People Details
England 6 September 2000 The Hampstead Theatre, London. Directed by Matthew Lloyd. World Premiere
Country Date Location People Details
Slovenia 26 October 2007 SKUC Theatre, Ljubljana. Directed by Alen Jelen.
  • Anita - Zvezdana Mlakar
  • Davey - Jure Henigman
Slovenian Premiere
England 30 October 2007 Trafalgar Studios, London. Directed by Rebecca McCuheon. West End Premiere[6] [7] [8]
America 10 June 2008 59E59 Theaters, New York Directed by Steve Marmion. American Premiere

Performed as part of the Brits Off-Broadway festival.[9] [10]

Australia 4 January 2009 Tamarama Rock Surfers, Bondi Beach Directed by Jonathan Wald. Australian Premiere[11]
England 18 May 2010 Landor Theatre, London Presented by Thomas Hopkins and Theatrica Ltd.

Directed by Robert McWhir.

"10th anniversary production" (2010 London revival)[12] [13]
England 2 November 2010 Old Red Lion Theatre, London Presented by Charmers productions.

Directed by Gary Reid.

  • Anita - Debra C.Barker
  • Davey - Frank Keogh
2010 London revival (2nd London revival of 2010)[14] [15]
  • Shortlisted for the 2011 London Festival Fringe Best Play Award.[16]
Israel 7 August 2015 Tahel Theatre
  • Anita - Meyrav Gruber
  • Davey - Avi Mazliah
Israeli Premiere[17]
England 27 February 2018 The Hope Mill Theatre, Manchester. Directed by John Young.
  • Anita - Joyce Branagh
  • Davey - Dominic Holmes
England "Regional Premiere" (Manchester 2018)
England 20 March 2018 The Park Theatre, London. Directed by Robert Chevara. 2018 London Revival[18]
Wales 19 September 2018 a site-specific production at Jacob's Market, Cardiff Produced by No Boundaries Theatre.

Directed by Luke Hereford.

  • Anita - Victoria Pugh
  • Davey - Aly Cruickshank
2018 Cardiff Production
Australia 13 October 2020 Christ Church, Milton, Brisbane Produced by The Curators' Theatre

Directed by Michael Beh

  • Anita - Amanda McErlean
  • Davey - Patrick Shearer
Queensland Premiere
  • Major revival[20]
  • 5-star reviews

On Film

In 2005 Marianne Epin and Cyrille Thouvenin starred in the play at the Théâtre du Marais in Paris, which was also filmed and released as a television movie. It is available on region 2 DVD.

The play has been compared to the 2014 film, Lilting, starring Ben Whishaw, Cheng Pei Pei and Andrew Leung and written and directed by Hong Khaou. The story similar to the play is about a man who approaches the mother of his deceased gay lover to try and connect and understand their loss.

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Vincent River. Bloomsbury. 26 March 2023. 26 March 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230326173450/https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/vincent-river-9781408104491/. live.
  2. Web site: CV of director Matthew Lloyd . 29 September 2018 . 17 September 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180917215437/https://d2a8mgfo90puea.cloudfront.net/files/cvs/Matthew-Lloyd-CV-with-header.pdf?mtime=20180731200145 . live .
  3. Web site: Review of Vincent River. www.cix.co.uk. 26 March 2023. 18 February 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170218084844/http://www.cix.co.uk/~shutters/reviews/00145.htm. live.
  4. Clarke . Jeremy . June 1990 . Grisly Ridley . Third Way . 13 . 5 . 14 . Hymns Ancient & Modern Ltd . 29 September 2018.
  5. Web site: BBC Programme Index. genome.ch.bbc.co.uk. 16 January 1989. 26 March 2023. 26 March 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230326173445/https://genome.ch.bbc.co.uk/eacd3666baae402784e7833bdbea8516. live.
  6. Web site: Webpage of the 2007 production of Vincent River on the Trafalgar Studios website . https://web.archive.org/web/20071021023701/http://www.theambassadors.com:80/trafalgarstudios/sp_p4039.html . 21 October 2007 . 30 September 2018 . live.
  7. Web site: Vincent River, Trafalgar Studios, London. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220817/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/theatre-dance/reviews/vincent-river-trafalgar-studios-london-399505.html . 17 August 2022 . subscription . live. Independent.co.uk. 8 November 2007.
  8. Web site: Scrap-heap drama is a clapped-out old banger. 8 November 2007. 2 April 2018. 30 September 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180930033900/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/drama/3669128/Scrap-heap-drama-is-a-clapped-out-old-banger.html. live.
  9. Web site: Hetrick . Adam . Findlay and Field Will Star in Vincent River for Brits Off-Broadway . Playbill . 16 May 2008 . 1 October 2018 . 2 October 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181002064548/http://www.playbill.com/article/findlay-and-field-will-star-in-vincent-river-for-brits-off-broadway-com-150165 . live .
  10. News: Stasio . Marilyn . Vincent River . 1 October 2018 . Variety . 18 June 2008 . 2 October 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181002064617/https://variety.com/2008/legit/reviews/vincent-river-2-1200508941/ . live .
  11. Web site: Vincent River. www.australianstage.com.au. 9 January 2009. 26 March 2023. 26 March 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230326173456/https://www.australianstage.com.au/200901082155/reviews/sydney/vincent-river.html. live.
  12. Web site: . Former 'EastEnders' Duffett and Jordan Star in VINCENT RIVER, 5/18 - 6/5 . Broadway World . 29 November 2018 . 27 April 2010 . 29 November 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181129225157/https://www.broadwayworld.com/uk-regional/article/Former-EastEnders-Duffett-and-Jordan-Star-in-VINCENT-RIVER-518-65-20100427 . live .
  13. Web site: Vincent River Landor Theatre from 18 May 2010 . Londontheatre.co.uk . 29 November 2018 . 27 April 2010 . 29 November 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181129225147/https://www.londontheatre.co.uk/theatre-news/news/vincent-river-landor-theatre-from-18-may-2010 . live .
  14. Web site: Webpage of the 2010 production of Vincent River on the Old Red Lion website . https://web.archive.org/web/20101113050612/http://www.redliontheatres.co.uk:80/whats-on-now.htm . 13 November 2010 . 2 October 2018 . dead.
  15. News: Lovett . Jonathan . Vincent River review at Old Red Lion London . 2 October 2018 . The Stage . 5 November 2010 . 2 October 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20181002064818/https://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/2010/vincent-river-review-at-old-red-lion-london/ . live .
  16. Web site: Webpage of the 2011 London Festival Fringe Award on the London Festival Fringe website . https://web.archive.org/web/20110805081817/http://londonfestivalfringe.com:80/general/awards2011/bestplay . 5 August 2011 . 1 October 2018 . dead.
  17. Web site: וינסנט ריבר לראשונה בישראל בתיאטרון תהל. www.wherevent.com. 26 March 2023. 26 March 2023. https://web.archive.org/web/20230326173451/https://www.wherevent.com/detail/%D7%A7%D7%91%D7%95%D7%A6%D7%AA-%D7%AA%D7%94%D7%9C-%D7%95%D7%99%D7%A0%D7%A1%D7%A0%D7%98-%D7%A8%D7%99%D7%91%D7%A8-%D7%9C%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%A9%D7%95%D7%A0%D7%94-%D7%91%D7%99%D7%A9%D7%A8%D7%90%D7%9C-%D7%91%D7%AA%D7%99%D7%90%D7%98%D7%A8%D7%95%D7%9F-%D7%AA%D7%94%D7%9C. live.
  18. Web site: Park Theatre. . parktheatre.co.uk. 26 March 2023. 27 February 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210227011310/https://www.parktheatre.co.uk/whats-on/vincent-river/about. live.
  19. Web site: Wood . Alex . Off-West End Awards 2019 winners announced . WhatsOnStage . 3 February 2019 . 20 February 2019 . 21 February 2019 . https://web.archive.org/web/20190221000414/https://www.whatsonstage.com/london-theatre/news/off-west-end-awards-2019-winners-the-rink_48439.html . live .
  20. Web site: Web page of the Curators' Theatre production of Vincent River. 23 July 2023. 6 March 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210306114116/https://www.curators.com.au/shows/vincent-river. live.

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