BEAUTIFUL THING by Jonathan Harvey

[MrsSallyAdams]

Posted: 6/27/20 at 9:46pm

I watched the Stars in the House reading of Beautiful Thing today. A heartwarming story of two working class teen boys who fall in love. The film is a classic but Devanand Janki's cast puts their own stamp on the work. The leading men are old for their roles but play them thoughtfully. Did anyone else catch this?

https://www.broadwayworld.com/article/VIDEO-Watch-BEAUTIFUL-THING-on-STARS-IN-THE-HOUSE--Live-at-2pm-20200627

[ajh]

Posted: 6/28/20 at 7:29pm

It’s one of my favourite plays but I couldn’t get through this. Maybe the London -specifically South London- idiom and rhythm is hard for American actors to grasp, but this lot seemed to be totally at sea. Natalie Toro is the worst offender, I’m sorry to say. She hasn’t a clue how to point a line or get a laugh, and WHAT is that accent? This is for a great cause, but in terms of experiencing Jonathan Harvey’s poignant comic gem, you’d be better off renting the film. 

[Wick3]

Posted: 6/29/20 at 9:07am

Ah I didn't know about this reading and I don't believe it's available anymore. Ah well. 

This was the first LGBT themed movie I had ever seen back in the late 90s when I was a teenager. I have the DVD and need to watch it again. Was this play ever performed on Broadway or off-Broadway? From checking youtube there was a revival in the UK for a few years ago and now looking back I wish I had seen it. Below is the trailer I found:

 

[imeldasturn]

Posted: 6/29/20 at 9:21am

The 20th anniversary production that toured the UK and London in 2013 was pretty nice and can be bought or rented here: https://www.digitaltheatre.com/consumer/production/beautiful-thing

[MrsSallyAdams]

Posted: 4/8/21 at 10:45am

I finally watched the 20th Anniversary revival that Imelda linked to. It's a solid production. Everyone's a little too gym pumped for these working class characters but that's to be expected.

The biggest difference I noticed from the 1996 film is that Jamie is clearly the leading man. The screenplay built up Sandra's role to counterbalance him. In the play he rarely leaves the stage. The actor's also a little older and more extroverted than his film counterpart. Which seems a necessity for a commercial run.

Has anyone here seen any of Jonathan Harvey's other work?