Share your impressions of a bad perfromance

Last month my friend and I got complimentary tickets for a new production to be presented by our local Drama Theatre. None of us had heard about the playwright and the play was put on by a young director who had just come to our city, but we decided to go anyway. Generally speaking, we attend our theatre regularly and find it exciting to see a play on its opening night.

Having met in the foyer an hour before the performance we went to the auditorium. An usher showed us to our seats. Frankly speaking, we were a bit surprised to see that the members of the audience were few. Theatre-goers didn’t seem to be very enthusiastic about the premiere.

Finally, the lights went down, the curtain came up and the actors appeared before the footlights. Having seats in the stalls we got a good view of the stage and could see clearly that the scenery and the costumes were ineffective. The costume designer and the set designer may not have understood the plot. Neither did we, to tell you the truth. To cut a long story short, the plot was weak and tedious.

As for the performers… Well, first of all, I am sure the director shouldn’t have cast that actor as the hero. Roughly speaking, he was only fit for being a stagehand. The only thing he could do was to play to the gallery. (And as long as the gallery wasn’t sold out, he was playing to nobody.) The actress in the leading female part kept forgetting her lines. (The best prompter in the world couldn’t have helped her!)

On the whole, the acting of the cast was amateurish. I think we are lucky to have had seats close to the orchestra pit, because due to the loud music we couldn’t hear some of the lines. The actors didn’t deserve applauding and the audience remained cold and listless. I guess, everybody felt like walking out.

When the curtain dropped, hisses rose from all parts of the auditorium. The production got terrible reviews and turned out to be a total flop.

A favourable film review

I am absolutely sure that cinema is the best civilizing device ever developed. I adore romantic comedies and consider them to be the best cheap entertainment. They are such a joy to see! That’s why whenever I see a trailer for a new film I immediately go to the box-office to buy tickets.

The comedy I saw last week was no exception. It was a screen version of a book I hadn’t had a chance to read. Now, after seeing the film, I feel inspired to read the book as well, hoping that it is as good as the script written by a famous screenwriter.

The film is set in London, telling a story of a young girl looking for love. Though shot in the studio, the film doesn’t lack realism. The plot is uncomplicated, but we never expect a romantic comedy to have a sophisticated story, do we? A perfect production with imaginative sets, photography, costumes and make-up is enough to make it a blockbuster.

The finest filmmaking techniques and excellent special effects help the plot to become truly funny. The acting of the all-star cast is superb. The leading actors are at their best and give a breathtaking performance. They make the audience applaud as if forgetting that the actors on the screen can’t hear them.

Of course, I can’t claim this film to be the best in a long time, but it is well reviewed in the newspapers and is sure to provide a harmless pastime for many young people. The film is on now at a number of our cinemas and it is sure to attract capacity audiences and become a good box-office.