Mad House
Hours before bidding London adieu, Miranda and I settled into amazing seats bought on rush for the matinee performance of this new play featuring David Harbour and Bill Pullman. Quite a powerful one-two punch. The play itself was interesting. Here's a conundrum for theatrical producers. In order to get a new play produced on the West End, such that audiences will buy tickets and make it a profitable endeavor, it helps to cast big-name film and television actors. The challenge this presents is that it can be difficult to see beyond the actor's "star" quality. Bill Pullman had it easier. He was playing a dying old man and his stocking cap hid his signature hair. The actor disappeared and the character emerged. David Harbour's task was much more difficult. I don't know that I ever stopped seeing him, or Sherriff Jim Hopper, and fully connected to the person he was playing. It didn't help that he used some of the same vocal dynamics. Then there is the play itself, which trafficks in the well-worn paths of family dysfunction. Mostly to positive effect. There were great acting moments of connection and injury that we felt by the whole theater and I liked the ending.
Afterward,we hustled to queue up to say hello to the lead actors and were informed by the security guy that they may not get to everyone in the queue. Pullman came out and it was delightful to see him up close and compliment his performance. But for the Miranda the main attraction was meeting a principal actor from her current fixation, Stranger Things. Sadly, it was not to be. An announcement was made that Harbour had left to attend another engagement. So we hurried to gather our bags and meet the rest of the family for the overnight train to Scotland.
Skye
We rocked and swayed through the night on the Caledonian sleeper and woke to the beauty of Scotland. We just barely crammed our luggage into the rental car and drove out of Inverness to Skye by way of the infamous Loch Ness. No monsters to speak of that we could see (but that doesn't mean they're not there!) The landscape just got more and more beautiful as we made our way to Skye. On the recommendation of our taxi driver in Inverness, we diverted to the 6-car ferry that carried us the short jump to the Isle. Over the next four days, we climbed to the Old Man of Storr in driving wind and some rain, fought off swarms of midge flies to see the Fairy Pools, and reveled in the magnificence of Quaraing on picture perfect day. On the fourth day, we drove two hours for the kids' surprise: a trip on the Jacobite steam train that travels over the famous viaduct from the Harry Potter films. It was everything we could have hoped for. The next morning we loaded up the rental one more time and set off for Edinburgh, Fringe, and our last week abroad.
La Clique
First night of Fringe I saw La Clique at the Hub on the Meadows. They didn't open the venue until nearly 45 minutes past the posted showtime, but I will say that it was definitely worth the wait. There were aerialist contortionists, a hoop guy, a sword swallower, a unicyclist, and more. Not only were the acrobatics and physical feat amazing to behold, but they were also done with first-rate showmanship. What a great way to kick off Fringe. Oh, and Jesus even made an appearance.
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