On the Road

thingsthatihaveseen · 2018-03-27T15:38:55+0100

Over the last year or so, I've been pretty busy with my day job, touring to a different town/city in the UK/Ireland every week, a pattern that will continue for a while. This is and has been enormous fun professionally, but it has played havoc to a certain extent with what I usually get up to on the photography front, as I've tended to find it pretty tricky to get to the kinds of places I would generally spend a lot of time in and with (the sea, the moors, the back of beyond). On the plus side, though, there is the constant thrill of what a new town or city brings with it every week. So over the next few months I'll hopefully be posting various themes that I've been putting together whilst I've been touring, made up of the stream of sights and sounds that I've encountered on my travels. The majority of places that we've been have tended to be bustling, vibrant, densely populated and pretty urban, so I've done my best to seek out, and capture as best I can, peace and quiet wherever we've landed. I thought I'd start with the subject that's been closest to my heart over the last year: Theatre. What follows is a taste of the kinds of places we've had the privilege of spending time with. It's not exhaustive, but it is fairly representative, hopefully not just of the buildings themselves, but the tangible sense of history that many of them still retain. All Pentax K1 (occasional K3/K3II), DFA 24-70, FA 24 90, PLM 55-300, A 20 2.8, F 17-28, Irix 15mm, Samyang 24mm Tilt Shift. 1. The Sheffield Lyceum (1897) and Crucible (1971) Theatres. Side by Side. The old faithful and the young upstart. I liked how the wide angle brought them together. 2. Belfast Grand Opera House, as seen from the stage. Built in 1895, and designed by Frank Matcham, the peerless theatre architect. 3. Belfast Grand Opera House, as seen from the Royal Box. 4. Sign, auditorium, Edinburgh Festival Theatre. I rather liked how the seat (centre) shows signs of a recent inhabitant. 5. The ornate ceiling at the Belfast Grand Opera House. Fisheye. 6. The entrance in any theatre for the Cast and Crew. This one at the Kings Theatre, Edinburgh. 7. Seat No. 29. Abstract. 8. Flys. One of the many ropes used to haul scenery up and down via a pulley system back stage. Theatre Royal Plymouth. 9. Dressing Room. Generally somewhat less glamorous than the Front of House of most theatres in my experience, but always homely. This from the beautiful Connaught Theatre, Worthing. 10. The magnificent auditorium at the Edinburgh Festival Theatre. Seats 2000. 4 shot pano stitch. 11. One of the many sets of seats you'll generally find backstage in the corridors outside dressing rooms. My guess would be historically they would probably be used by ushers/dressers. 12. Seat abstract, Edinburgh Festival Theatre. 13. Auditorium detail from the Mayflower Theatre, Southampton. 14. 14. Digs, Plymouth. One of the most important aspects of touring, digs tend to be offered at a discount rate by local theatre goers/lovers, and are an absolute God send. 15. Another seat abstract, this from Sunderland Empire , the largest theatre in the North East. 16. Detail from Sunderland Empire. A link to a bygone era. 17. Ornate column from the auditorium of Belfast Grand Opera House. 18. Seat abstract, Edinburgh Festival Theatre. 19. Seat abstract, Edinburgh Festival Theatre. Reflected light from the stage. 20. Sunset at the Sunderland Empire. 3 shot pano stitch. All thoughts/observations gratefully received as ever... Best

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roberrl roberrl

214 posts
18 years

Posted 28/03/2018 - 19:50 Link

Great images and I love the atmosphere and style of old theatres .... but those seats which provided the source for several of the images can get a a touch uncomfortable after a time.

DSP121 DSP121

161 posts
8 years

Posted 29/03/2018 - 05:22 Link

Each captured image gives a royal look!
Thumbs up to the great work

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thingsthatiha... thingsthatihaveseen

1357 posts
14 years

Posted 01/04/2018 - 13:25 Link

Thanks John, Gary, Bjorn, Stuart, Andy, Rick, Serge, Daron, David J, David T, Derek, Lenny, Karlo, Vic, Robberl, DSP121 for kind thoughts and comments re these... much appreciated as ever... yes, have been increasingly aware that this is a gt opportunity as we’ve been going round...

Lenny, am currently touring the musical Legally Blonde... don’t think we’re headed your way (Worcestershire?) unfortunately... closest we get will be the Birmingham Alexandra towards the end of May I think...

Vic, funnily enough it was panto I was doing at the Sunderland Empire a couple of months back... bit like a tardis, the theatre... very unassuming from the outside... huge on the inside... strikingly beautiful... a real treat...

Thanks and best

Bill

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