Play: Farm Hall

These two days, back with Up in the Cheap Seats - tonight, my third Meetup in a row, we were off to Farm Hall, in the Theatre Royal Haymarket. Based on true events, it's the story of a group of German scientists, detained in England during the Second World War. I got my ticket with a Seatplan voucher. Booked to eat at Angus Steakhouse, beforehand.

I took the precaution of popping yesterday's unfinished bottle of water in the fridge and taking it with me - if yesterday was hot, today was an oven! I had most of it finished by the time I gratefully got off the bus - at least I got a seat on the second one! And when a seat came available by the door, I scooted over to it, getting the odd breeze when it opened. Still - uncomfortably hot and sweaty. And slightly longer than it should have been - we were detoured. Happily, it wasn't a long one - just a couple of the roads around Trafalgar Square are closed for roadworks, so we went around.

A short walk got me to the airconditioning of the Angus. I always book, but never seem to need to.. I was quickly seated, and by the service station too, handily! I got a lovely, American-sounding server - very chatty too, happy (as she said) that it was a Monday, and not too busy. I wasn't hungry enough for a starter - had already decided on steak, and went for the sirloin. With peppercorn sauce, onion rings, and fries. And wine. Quite enough.

And yes, the steak was gorgeous - one of those that it would simply be an insult to add sauce to; I used that for the fries, which needed something. The onion rings were good too. By the time she plopped a dessert menu in front of me, I'd already asked someone else for the bill - I guess that request fell by the wayside. As I explained, I simply didn't have enough time. And it's not cheap here, so I was rather glad to call it quits at one course..

By the time I left, the organiser had posted that the Upper Circle was closed, so we'd be meeting in the Royal Circle bar instead. Where I was sat anyway, so that was handy! Fewer steps, as I remarked. It did occur to me that they had probably all got upgrades - and sure enough, of the lot of us, I probably ended up with the worst seat. I ran to the loo first, then joined the others in the small bar - only to discover that the only white wine on offer was picpoule! Lord, I can't stand that, too acidic - I passed.

Anyway, my seat wasn't a bad one - the only disadvantage was that I was near the inside edge of a row of people who always seemed to be sat before me; well, I guess that was more their disadvantage than mine!

Well, this takes place in a surprisingly scruffy living room - was it really that bad, I wonder? Anyway, as one remarks during the course of the play, for a prison, it's a great one - they seem to be fed and looked after very well, and they have board games and cards - I think they also have books, although for learned men, they do very little reading! Perhaps the subjects didn't appeal. During the course of the play, they get a piano - which they have to fix themselves, it's falling apart.

That's pretty much all that happens for the first half - honestly, such a dull, dry play I've never seen! Based on transcripts - they were bugged, of course - and I suppose, really, what was going to come out of that? Things liven up a bit as we come to the interval, when the guy in charge tells them that America has dropped an atomic bomb..

The second half sees them arguing with each other - well, at least now they have something to direct their attention to. I preferred them when they were boring.. Basically, the discussions take two strands: whether - and how - this was possible, and what would have happened if they had managed it first, working in Germany. With all sorts of bickering among them, it's only Heisenberg who actually sits in a corner and tries to figure it out on paper.

A roomful of academics - I can hardly imagine a worse fate (to be fair, I've spent enough time among them). The bickering sounds authentic. I had to smile when the audience laughed at the scientists' disparaging attitude towards undergraduates though - come on, everybody knows they're a nightmare! Afterwards, there was a lot of discussion among the group, comparing this with last year's Operation Epsilon, which I didn't see, but apparently tells the same story - better. Sounds like I missed a good one - apparently, it highlights some plot points that this play leaves out. Which leaves this one a bit confused, and not a little dry, as mentioned.

I mean, if you think about it, as Heisenberg actually says during the course of the play, it would have been a terrible thing for Germany to have developed this weapon first. It actually doesn't bear thinking about. It's just - that idea is dropped into the end of a frankly, very boring play. And left on its own like that, as practically the only interesting idea to focus on, it dies a death. Oh dearie me.

Runs till the end of the month. If you want to learn more about the bomb though, go watch Oppenheimer - it's more exciting and a lot more informative. Even the science-y bits. And actually, it's more in re-watching the trailer for that that I get an impression of just how urgent the project was - while this play does give an idea of how close the Germans came, when Cillian Murphy says it in the film,to the general (Matt Damon), a few words convey it much better. Much more interesting.

Curiously, they've now moved the traffic cones, and decided my bus stop isn't closed, which does make getting home a lot easier. Perhaps that remark I left had an effect after all..

Tomorrow, off to Fangirls at the Lyric Hammersmith. Not a standard pop fan story, this tells the tale of what happens when a young female fan's adoration for her pop idol is shattered.. This will be by Tube, so I am so, so glad that the temperatures are falling again!

On Wednesday, back with London Literary Walks - this is the St. James' Walk.

And on Thursday, film again (fourth in a week!) - a feature at the Prince Charles, who are re-showing It's Such a Beautiful Day, the animated film by Don Hertzfeldt, which will be accompanied by his new short film, Me. And of course, that'll be accompanied by a trip to Bella Italia (Cranbourn Street) .. And then I'm back to Ireland for the weekend again.