Rowan Atkinson returns to the stage
Rowan Atkinson returns to the stage in Quartermaine’s Terms at the Theatre Royal Brighton
Stage performances by Rowan Atkinson are very rare. A few years ago he played Fagin in a West End revival of Oliver! but before that he hadn’t done any kind of theatre since the 1980s.
Atkinson’s appearance in a new revival of Simon Gray’s award-winning play Quartermaine’s Terms will be special for another equally important reason: for the first time in his career, the comedian, who is overwhelmingly known for his roles in such TV series as Blackadder and Mr Bean, will not be trying to make his audience laugh. Or at least not all the time.
“He is as much a tragic figure as a comic one”
Atkinson plays St John Quartermaine, a teacher at a Cambridge language school for foreign students. Kind, pleasant and agreeable, Quartermaine is an utterly hopeless teacher – vague and dreamy. An almost permanent feature in the staff room, he is always on hand to listen to the problems of his self-obsessed colleagues. He is as much a tragic figure as a comic one, colours which Richard Eyre, former artistic director of the National Theatre, will be sure to coax out of Atkinson.
Speaking of the role, Atkinson says: “Quartermaine is not overtly comic. There is comedy in the way he behaves and interacts with others, but he is certainly not a joke teller. The jokes come out of his rather vague manner.
“We will maximise the comic effect but it’s an ensemble piece and definitely about seven characters, not one. What’s fun is to watch the interaction of them all. It is tragicomic –with emphasis on the tragic. And that’s fun to me. My aim is always to try to find a credible performance, a credible truth to the characters I play.”
Asked what he particularly enjoys about performing in front of a live audience, Atkinson comments: “What’s great from any actor’s point of view is that you are in complete command of your performance, whereas in film or TV there is lighting, editing, direction, many other manipulators of your performance and how you come across. In a theatre you are in absolute control, for the duration of your time on stage. And that’s very pleasing.”
With a limited West End run scheduled for January, advanced sales for Quartermaine’s Terms are extremely strong. Book now to ensure you don’t miss Rowan Atkinson’s first appearance in a play in 25 years!
Quartermaine’s Terms starring Rowan Atkinson:
Tuesday 8 January–Saturday 12 January 2013, 7.45pm, Thursday and Saturday matinees 2.30pm, Tickets £15–£37.50. To book tickets: 0844 871 7650* or www.atgtickets.com/brighton*
*Subject to booking fee
