INK Previews

[natashalost]

Posted: 3/31/19 at 3:00pm

Ink is written by James Graham and directed by Rupert Goold. Previews begin April 2 with opening night set for April 24.

SYNOPSIS: It’s 1969 London. The brash young Rupert Murdoch purchases a struggling paper, The Sun, and sets out to make it a must-read smash which will destroy - and ultimately horrify - the competition. He brings on rogue editor Larry Lamb who in turn recruits an unlikely team of underdog reporters.

CAST: Bertie Carvel (Rupert Murdoch), Jonny Lee Miller (Larry Lamb), David Wilson Barnes (Brian McConnell), Bill Buell (Frank Nicklin/Hetherington/Percy Roberts), Andrew Durand (Beverly/Christopher Timothy), Eden Marryshow (Ray Mills/Lee Howard), Colin McPhillamy (Sir Alick/Rees-Mogg/Chapel Father), Erin Neufer (Anna Murdoch/Diana/Chrissie/Apprentice), Kevin Pariseau (Bench Hand/TV Host/Croiset), Rana Roy (Stephanie Rahn), Michael Siberry (Hugh Cudlipp), Robert Stanton (Bernard Shrimsley/Brittenden), and Tara Summers (Joyce Hopkirk/Muriel McKay).

Updated On: 3/31/19 at 03:00 PM

[CityLights3]

Posted: 4/2/19 at 4:41am

If there is one play that I am most looking forward too, INK is it.
Loved it in London and think it will hit a chord with American audiences even stronger than it did across the pond. Johnny Lee Miller has a gargantuan fantastic role of a lifetime. can the lead actor category have 10 names in it this year? It’s an embarrassment of riches of leading roles for the gents in the plays this season. And they are All superb! I expect no less from Johnny here. Bertie Carvel will get to take a Tony home with him this time if he’s as good as the London production. And I am hoping the set is as grand as I remember it as well.

I am Seeing INK this weekend. Please report back for anyone who is at the first preview or any other performance.

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/2/19 at 11:06pm

Maybe the hype got to me a little bit, and don’t get me wrong, Ink is more than a solid play and production, but I wasn’t quite as dazzled by it as I thought I might be.

I of course know who Rupert Murdoch is, but my knowledge was limited to his role in Fox News, which is not covered in this play. It’s not that anyone will have a difficult time figuring out what’s going on, but James Graham doesn’t hold your hand with who these people are nor the relationship between The Daily Mirror, Mail, Telegraph, Guardian or Sun. You pick up quickly, but I assume most Brits have a deeper appreciation for these papers the way New York audiences would have a connection to a play about The Times, Post and Daily News.

Murdoch purchases The Sun, the paper with the lowest circulation on the totem pole, and installs Larry Lamb (a truly superb Jonny Lee Miller) to have it surpass the stodgy Daily Mirror in one year’s time. It’s pretty obvious that he will achieve the goal (otherwise why would they turn this into a play!), so the interesting part is seeing how low into the muck Lamb is willing to go to sell papers.

Nothing is off limits. Sex, girls, pop/rock stars, gossip, salacious crimes and trashy give-a-ways: give into the population’s basest instincts and sell, sell, sell.

The production immediately will remind you of Enron. There is music, some singing, choreographed movement. This worried me as I hated Enron, but this is a much better play.

The set is awesome: a pyramid of stacked desks with lamps and typewriters hidden in the cracks and crevices; piles of newsprint shoved in any available nook. The lighting is very effective too. Projections of actual Sun articles flash across the back wall. Cool stuff.

Carvel may have won the Olivier for Ink, and he is excellent, but this is the Jonny Lee Miller show. He rarely leaves the stage for the full 2:45 and is turning in a hell of a performance. The ensemble (mostly Americans) is strong and keep up with the dialogue that clacks along faster than a typist hammering away on a typewriter.

They try to make connections to the present with the dumbing down of the news, moral decay caused by the celebration of the crass and sleazy; it does feel relevant without pressing too firmly on the issue. I kept thinking of The Good Fight and the generating of fake news stories and doing what it takes to manipulate the news to get results.

The play is a cerebral joy, but doesn’t allow you to become very emotionally involved. An interesting look at a year of British history with some wonderful performances.

[teresa2]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 11:29am

Does anyone know the running time for this? Thanks

[WldKingdomHM]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 11:31am

Isn't the running time in the above post?

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 11:36am

2:45/50.

[Mike Barrett]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 12:19pm

With such a strong season for plays, are you thinking this will get into the best play category? Im predicting this, along with Ferryman, TKAM, What The Constitution Means To Me, and if there happens to be a 5th slot then likely Choir Boy/Gary. Really can't wait to see this one! 

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 12:29pm

Now that I’ve seen all the new plays, I would nominate:

What the Constitution Means to Me
The Ferryman
To Kill a Mockingbird
Choir Boy
Ink (if the fifth slot exists and I hope it does)

[teresa2]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 12:32pm

Sorry it was. I must have missed it. Thanks.

[Mike Barrett]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 2:04pm

WhizzerMarvin said: "Now that I’ve seen all the new plays, I would nominate:

What the Constitution Means to Me
The Ferryman
To Kill a Mockingbird
Choir Boy
Ink (if the fifth slot exists and I hope it does)

"

Those are mine as well! Id expect Ink to garner some love here though, but I can see how you said this may play better to a London audience but idk. This isn't Fox News Murdoch but he's so prominent in the news currently I can only see that helping this show overall or at least in terms of visibility. 

[Fordham2015]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 2:29pm

Mike Barrett said: This isn't Fox News Murdoch but he's so prominent in the news currently I can only see that helping this show overall or at least in terms of visibility."

MTC is smartly using the big NY Times Murdoch expose to promote the show:

https://twitter.com/MTC_NYC/status/1113478309520789504

[Mike Barrett]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 3:47pm

Fordham2015 said: "Mike Barrett said: This isn't Fox News Murdoch but he's so prominent in the news currently I can only see that helping this show overall or at least in terms of visibility."

MTC is smartly using the big NY Times Murdoch expose to promote the show:

https://twitter.com/MTC_NYC/status/1113478309520789504"

Smart marketing. Shows it doesn't touch on anything current with him, and more shows his rise. Im intrigued! Views on view from my seat look decent for last row here but a picture can sometimes only tell so much, anyone here sit in last row at the Friedman? 

[carolinaguy]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 4:12pm

I've sat in the next to last row on one of the aisles and there was no problem. One of the more comfortable houses to navigate and see a show in.

[10086sunset]

Posted: 4/3/19 at 11:41pm

Saw this tonight and thought it truly delivered. While I tend to agree with Whizzer that perhaps I went in expecting to be more dazzled, it shouldn't take away from the play. It's well written, well staged and features two knock out performances from Jonny Lee Miller and Bertie Carvel.

Found the first act more engaging, which was more the story of Lamb and Murdoch coming together to push the boundaries of news, what is news and asking the question of how the news should serve everyone. The second act tends to not focus as much on the relationship between the the two, as it examines the cost of chasing the goal of toping the Daily Mirror's circulation. 

While Carvel is amazing, it was Miller who turns in a performance to be remembered. Ink is a night well spent at the theater.

 

Updated On: 4/3/19 at 11:41 PM

[pacificnorthwest]

Posted: 4/4/19 at 7:32pm

re: "The set is awesome: a pyramid of stacked desks with lamps and typewriters hidden in the cracks and crevices; piles of newsprint shoved in any available nook. The lighting is very effective too. Projections of actual Sun articles flash across the back wall. Cool stuff."

Having been in newsrooms literally since birth (or close enough) this description thrills me, Whizzer.

[VotePeron]

Posted: 4/6/19 at 12:09pm

Caught it this week, and overall really enjoyed it. However, the hype from London simply had me go in with too high expectations, and I was admittedly let down. Don't get me wrong, this is a fantastic play. It has great writing, knockout performances by Johnny Lee Miller & Bertie Carvel, and a slick style about it. The set is also awesome.

The storyline could not be more clear (even though I had no idea who Murdoch was), and they do a good job keeping you up to date with the intricacies of the plot. They must be cutting, as the show ended at 10:40 last night, which would put it around 2:35. It does feel long, particularly in the second act, where the mood of the show goes from Wolf of Wall Street wild to, well, bleak. Since it's predictable what will happen, it got a little frustrating (and boring) watching these characters wallow in despair for 45 minutes with no end in sight.

*Note: I see most shows in previews, but I would highly recommend not seeing this in Previews. The ensemble cast is large, and the movement sequences, with the insane set, are proving very hard for them to navigate. It felt clunky, and the cast was constantly running into each other and struggling to keep up with their choreo/blocking. They just need to run some scenes over and over again as everyone acclimates. It was distracting to me, and the actors we're constantly dying to keep up with the show, instead of living in it. 

Overall, INK is a fabulous night at the theater. But it will be a Ferryman vs. Constitution fight on Tony night.

[LucyEth]

Posted: 4/6/19 at 8:55pm

Saw this last night.  Close to three hours of sound and fury, signifying not much at all (and not wholly historically accurate).  We witness the birth of the worst kind of tabloid journalism possible, and while much of it resonates and reflects on what's happening in journalism and social media today, I can't say I ever had any "aha" moments.  It's an interesting play, beautifully performed and mounted, but I was never drawn into the story; with so much at stake for them, I never felt as if I were going on the ride with the characters or cared what happened.  Frankly, I think that the musical interludes and abstract staging had something to do with this.  On the whole, I was never bored, but never fully engaged.

 

[Zion24]

Posted: 4/6/19 at 11:48pm

this was a slog to get through.

fantastic production (sets, lighting, projections- it was all great) and great performances (johnny lee miller is fantastic) but i was bored out of my mind in Act 1 (except for when they are assembling the staff). Act 2 picked up a bit, but I thought making the connection to Fox News was pandering (especially to a NY audience, maybe it played differently in London). And the big dramatic arc towards the end (i really don't think its a spoiler, but i'll err on side of caution) was so weightless and inconsequential, so whatever dramatic achievements were made in Act 2 kinda deflated.

I hope Miller gets nominated, though. Carries the show. Also shout out to Andrew Durand and Tara Summers for livening things up a bit when on stage. 

[sppunk]

Posted: 4/7/19 at 11:14am

Saw Ink yesterday evening. My wife and I are both journalists so this should be set on a few type of play for us to love.

It wasn’t.

The best part is the set itself and Miller. Everything else left me cold and aloof. And the dancing and singing between scene is terrible - just cut that and make this 30 minutes shorter and it’d be much more enjoyable.

It was not a bad show, just a show that can’t seem to get out of its own way.

[ELP]

Posted: 4/8/19 at 2:25pm

WhizzerMarvin said: "Now that I’ve seen all the new plays, I would nominate:

What the Constitution Means to Me
The Ferryman
To Kill a Mockingbird
Choir Boy
Ink (if the fifth slot exists and I hope it does) "

WM, I am curious if you've seen "Burn This" and what you thought of it, etc? Thanks

[WhizzerMarvin]

Posted: 4/8/19 at 10:17pm

ELP, I did see Burn This and liked it a lot. I LOVED Uranowitz so much. Laughed a lot. It wasn’t a perfect, but I think it will duke it out for Best Revival with Waverly Gallery.

[ELP]

Posted: 4/8/19 at 11:24pm

WhizzerMarvin said: "ELP, I did see Burn This and liked it a lot. I LOVED Uranowitz so much. Laughed a lot. It wasn’t a perfect, but I think it will duke it out for Best Revival with Waverly Gallery."

Agree and he should easily get a Tony nomination for his hilarious and thoughtful performance! He was the highlight of the play for me.

I was more curious what you thought of Adam and Keri’s performances? I couldn’t buy into their supposed heated romance. Perhaps it was the writing or their acting or a combination thereof. It seemed as though their chemistry was forced. Wondering what you thought?

Sorry for the diversion away from this thread, but respect your opinions on all things B’way and thank you for your reply.

[VernonGersch]

Posted: 4/9/19 at 12:26am

Updated On: 4/9/19 at 12:26 AM

[SuzieM]

Posted: 4/9/19 at 12:31am

I'm so excited to see Jonny Lee Miller in this! Can someone tell me a little more about the language and themes in Ink? I'm trying to decide if I should bring my young teen. Thanks!

[Miles2Go2]

Posted: 4/9/19 at 12:47am

SuzieM said: "I'm so excited to see Jonny Lee Miller in this! Can someone tell me a little more about the language and themes in Ink? I'm trying to decide if I should bringmy young teen. Thanks!"

TKTS lists the age guidance for this as 16, but doesn’t say why. Considering  Murdoch’s reputation, I would imagine it’s due to graphic language and talk about sexual situations.