The Birthday Party bows out, Madam Hooch returns, a portrait of Zoë features in an exhibition – and more news

24 April 2018 21:36

The five-star Birthday Party concludes its run

After an incredibly successful run at London’s Harold Pinter Theatre, Ian Rickson’s 60th anniversary revival of The Birthday Party, starring Zoë, bowed out on 14 April. The production of Pinter’s disturbing classic garnered numerous five-star reviews, with The Times praising Zoe’s portrayal of the too-trusting landlady Meg as ‘absolutely terrific’.

Interviewed on BBC Radio 2 last month, Zoë described acting in The Birthday Party as ‘one of the happiest experiences I’ve ever had’. Her co-star Stephen Mangan recently echoed those sentiments.

If you missed The Birthday Party or would like to remind yourself of its brilliance, check out the rehearsal photos and production photos on the show's Facebook page. If you fancy some food for thought, you might also enjoy Spiked magazine’s detailed discussion of the production (and Pinter’s play in general), which was published towards the end of its run. ‘The Birthday Party has surely never looked better, fresher or funnier,’ it emphasises.

The recent review in The Theatre Times is similarly glowing: ‘Greatness comes hand in hand with Zoë Wanamaker’s perfect interpretation of a childless woman in her sixties who yearns for a male son and has found her devotion to motherhood in [her] unshaven tenant with whom she even at times flirts, denoting some kind of incest. Her astounding grotesque and caricaturesque performance together with her perfect diction bring about a character that keeps the play flowing’.

Isn’t it sad that the party’s now over! Hopefully it won’t be too long before Zoë is back treading the boards in another compelling production.

Madam Hooch returns to Hogwarts!

Seventeen years after the release of the first Harry Potter film, Zoë’s eagle-eyed games mistress is set to make a comeback. Zoë has voiced a ‘virtual’ Madam Hooch for Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery, an official app that’s due to be released on 25 April for both Android and iOS devices. Players are invited to turn back the clock and join the ranks of Hogwarts students during the 1980s, long before the bespectacled boy wizard enrolled.

As reported by leading Harry Potter fansite The Leaky Cauldron, Zoë is joined by several other well-known actors from the films, such as Michael Gambon (Professor Dumbledore), Maggie Smith (Professor McGonagall) and Warwick Davis (Professor Flitwick), helping to give new students an authentic (and magical!) Hogwarts experience.

Download the app and you’ll be able to try your hand at spells, potions, duelling – and, of course, flying lessons!

The voice of the Olivier Awards 2018

Zoë’s voice talents have clearly been in great demand recently. For the third consecutive year, she was chosen to provide the voiceover for the Olivier Awards ceremony, introducing the categories and nominees. The spectacular show, which celebrates the best of British theatre, took place at London’s Royal Albert Hall on 8 April. Highlights were broadcast on TV in the UK and are currently available on catch-up services the ITV Hub and STV Player. Outside the UK, you can watch the ceremony via Facebook.

Zoë didn’t appear on stage at the Oliviers this year, but here’s a reminder of the fabulous dress she wore to the 2017 ceremony.

New portrait of Zoë at the ROA Gallery

Zoë will be among the famous faces featured in Portraits, a major exhibition by artist Terence McKenna, at the Royal Opera Arcade Gallery in London. McKenna’s portraits, which the gallery calls ‘warm, intimate studies of character’, will be on show from 30 April to 5 May.

Zoë chosen for the Leading Women campaign

Zoë is one of the public figures featured in the University of London’s Leading Women campaign, which marks the 150th anniversary of women gaining access to university education. The campaign celebrates (in the university’s words) ‘exceptional women [...] leading through their inspirational educational and professional achievements'.

The chosen women are all associated with one or more of London’s higher education institutions (in Zoë’s case, the Central School of Speech and Drama).

Supporting the Moonlight Walk

Zoë has leant her support to St Wilfrid’s Hospice in Chichester, ahead of its 10th Moonlight Walk. You can register now for the walk, which will be held on 5 May and is designed to raise money for the hospice’s crucial work.

Passionate about Passion Play

Asked to choose a play she’d love to see revived, BroadwayWorld UK writer Aliya Al-Hassan opts for Peter Nichols’ darkly comic Passion Play. She praises the powerful 2013 West End production, which starred Zoë as Eleanor, a victim of infidelity, and Samantha Bond as her alter ego.

‘The production reunited director David Leveaux with Wanamaker for the first time since their Olivier Award-winning collaboration on his superb version of Electra [in 1997],’ Al-Hassan notes. ‘Wanamaker and Bond were both hypnotising and portrayed the visceral anguish of betrayal [...] It was a brilliant performance from both actors.’

I completely agree – Passion Play is unforgettable.

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