It’s curtains for the interval – Chris Campbell, literary manager at the Royal Court, comments
“Directors would rather there was no interval, especially the younger ones who fondly imagine the audience to be gripped by their visions. While theatres make a lot of money from intervals, there has to be a realistic assessment of what an audience wants from the rhythm of an evening.”
Graham Spicer, aka ‘Gramilano’, is a writer, director and photographer based in Milan. He was a regular columnist for Opera Now magazine and wrote for the BBC until transferring to Italy. His articles have appeared in various publications from Woman’s Weekly to Gay Times, and he wrote the Danza in Italia column for Dancing Times magazine. Graham was the historical advisor on Codice Carla, the 2023 documentary on Italian ballerina Carla Fracci.
Graham also works as a dance photographer, and his photos have appeared in many books, theatre programmes, and magazines, including Dancing Times, Dance Spirit and Ballet2000, as well as all the major Italian newspapers.
He is a member of the Dance Section of The Critics’ Circle.
I’m usually grateful for the interval as it gives me a chance to escape the director’s ‘vision’ – and especially at the Royal Court, where it provides the perfect opportunity to go home!
Well said! After escaping from a particularly dire show yesterday afternoon, I dreaded at one point that there would be no interval. After an hour and a half it finally arrived and our row shuttled off to the car park. The drinks in the bar were certainly more welcome than a second act.
Being a playwright, I’ve always found the interval to be the most difficult part of a play to write – Durango Miller .