The Bay at Nice and Wrecked Eggs (1986)
Intro
Two plays by David Hare, performed together at the Cottesloe, National Theatre, London (opened 9 September 1986).
Performance length: 2 hours and 35 minutes (including an interval between the plays)
Photos
Photos one to five are taken from The Bay at Nice. The first photo shows Sophia Yepileva (played by Zoe Wanamaker) and Valentina Nrovka (Irene Worth). The second photo shows Sophia and Valentina joined by Peter Linitsky (Philip Locke). The third photo shows the Assistant Curator, with Valentina and Sophia. The fourth and fifth photos show Valentina and Sophia.
Photos six and seven are taken from Wrecked Eggs. The sixth photo shows Grace (Zoe Wanamaker) and Loelia (Kate Buffery). The seventh photo shows Grace.
With thanks to Kerrie and Nadine for some of these photos.
Overview
The Bay at Nice is set in 1956, at Leningrad Art Museum, to which Valentina Nrovka has been invited. The assistant curator hopes that Valentina's personal knowledge of Matisse will help her to authenticate a painting of the bay, a work which may or may not be by the artist.
The elderly lady became closely acquainted with Matisse in Paris, where she enjoyed a carefree existence during her youth. Returning to Russia, in order to raise her daughter, Sophia Yepileva, Valentina sacrificed her bohemian lifestyle and adjusted to the communist regime.
As a teacher and the wife of a successful bureaucrat, Sophia enjoys a much better standard of living than many of her peers. She is unhappy, however, and wants to divorce her husband in order to marry a much older, poorer man, Peter Linitsky. Valentina responds to this plan by urging Sophia to accept her responsibilities, just as she did.
The end of another marriage is the subject of Wrecked Eggs, which takes place in modern day Rhinebeck, New York State, where Grace has been invited to a highly unusual party: she is the only guest at Robbie and Loelia's celebration of their forthcoming divorce.
For Loelia, who longs for freedom, lawyer Robbie is too conventional. She wants out, and her husband appears to have accepted their separation. Grace, all too aware of her own unstable personal life and the challenges of singledom, encourages Loelia to reconsider her decision.
Crew
Director: David Hare
Designer: John Gunter
Lighting Designer: Rory Dempster
Music: Nick Bicât
Staff Director: Kenneth Mackintosh
Production Manager: Jason Barnes
Stage Manager: Diana Boddington
Deputy Stage Manager: Angela Fairclough
Assistant Stage Managers: Matthew Lynch and Martin Newcombe
Sound: Nic Jones
Assistant to the Designer: Annie Evason
Assistant to the Lighting Designer: Ian Williams
Costume Supervisor: Sally Plum
Production Photographer: Frank Herrmann
Poster and Programme Designer: Michael Mayhew
Notes
The Bay at Nice and Wrecked Eggs received their premiere performances in this joint production, directed by the playwright, David Hare. At the time, Zoe and her fellow cast members were part of the National Theatre Group working under the direction of Hare and Richard Eyre.
In addition to this joint production, Zoe has appeared with the National Theatre Company in The Importance of Being Earnest (1982), Mrs Klein (1988), The Crucible (1990), Battle Royal (1999), His Girl Friday (2003), The Rose Tattoo (2007), and Much Ado About Nothing (2007).
Zoë has worked with four out of the five artistic directors at the National to date (i.e. Peter Hall, Richard Eyre, Trevor Nunn, and Nicholas Hytner). Strong ties with the company have led to her becoming a National Theatre Associate, giving her the power to influence the theatre's artistic policy.
Merchandise
The Bay at Nice and Wrecked Eggs canvas and print - National Theatre Posters
Plays 2 by David Hare (includes The Bay at Nice)
Most images used on this site are the copyright of their photographer, Ms. Wanamaker, and/or the production company of the show. Use of these images is covered under the fair use limitation in the USA, and the fair dealing limitaton in the UK.
This site is a non-commercial endeavour.