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A rtists in their late work often feel free to digress and experiment. Alan Bennett takes full advantage of this licence in a multi-levelled work that deals with sex, death, creativity, biography and much else besides. And, while it may not possess the universal resonance of The History Boys, the play has the characteristic Bennett mix of wit and wistfulness. The structure is certainly complex. We are watching a rehearsal, in the National Theatre itself, of a play called Caliban's Day: one that, inspired by The Habit of Art The Sea and the Mirror, gives voice to the unregarded. The setting, however, is the cluttered Christ Church lodging of Auden himself in his twilit days. In the first half we see the poet being interviewed by his future biographer, Humphrey Carpenter, who is initially mistaken for a rent boy. And in the second, far superior, part we watch an imagined encounter between Auden and Benjamin Britten. If one adds that Carpenter steps out of the action to become a choric commentator and that the actors constantly question the on-stage author about his text, it will be seen The Habit of Art the play has enough layers to make Pirandello blanch. At times, there is so much scaffolding you can't always see the main property. And, although Bennett seems to endorse Auden's point that "a lot of what is passed off as biography is idle curiosity," he is not above indulging our appetite for gossip about Auden's insistence on sexual punctuality. There is also a hint of sentimentality in Bennett's claim that figures such as the rent boy are marginalised when great men's lives are parcelled out for posterity: it seems especially untrue in the case of Britten when books have been devoted to his relationships. But Bennett's play is at its strongest when it deals with the theme implicit in its title: the idea that, for the artist, creativity is a constant, if troubling imperative. We see this in the beautifully written encounter between Britten and Auden. Temperamentally, the two men could hardly be more different: the one a model of restraint, the other an apostle of sexual freedom and something of an intellectual bully. But Britten's anxieties about The Habit of Art in Venice, and his fear that it may be an act of self-revelation, are movingly countered by Auden's desperate desire to be involved in the libretto. It never happened; but it acquires an imaginative plausibility and shows two great artists, towards the end of their lives, united in their belief in the power The Habit of Art the creative impulse. As Auden himself says, "what matters is the work". A play that could easily seem tricksy is also given a superbly fluid production by Nicholas Hytner and is beautifully acted. Richard Griffiths bears no physical resemblance to Auden but he becomes a vivid metaphor for the poet. At the The Habit of Art time, Griffiths reminds us of the tetchy actor who is simply playing a role. Alex Jennings offers an equally potent echo of the angst-ridden Britten, spitting out the name of "Tippett" with calculated asperity. Adrian Scarborough as Carpenter The Habit of Art Frances de la Tour as the stage manager are no less magnetic. The latter has a speech about the parade of plays that have given the National Theatre a weathered use that eloquently epitomises the basic theme of Bennett's deeply moving play: the ennobling power, in art, of sheer diurnal persistence. Alan Bennett. The Habit of Art. United in creativity Photograph: Tristram Kenton. Michael Billington. Topics Alan Bennett Theatre reviews Reuse The Habit of Art content. The Habit of Art - Full Show - Original Theatre Company

As IMDb celebrates its 30th birthday, The Habit of Art have six shows to get you ready for those pivotal years of your life Get some streaming picks. Benjamin Britten, sailing uncomfortably close The Habit of Art the wind with his new opera, Death in Venice, seeks advice from his former collaborator and friend, W H Auden. During this imagined meeting, their first for twenty-five years, they are observed and interrupted by, amongst others, their future biographer and a young man from the local bus station. Alan Bennett's play is as much about the theatre as it is about poetry or music. It looks at the unsettling desires of two difficult men, and at the ethics of biography. It reflects on growing old, on creativity and inspiration, and on persisting when all passion's spent: ultimately, on the habit of art. With recent plays like Red and Circle Mirror Transformation, watching the habit of artists at work can be and should be peeking at our own humanity. Even plays and movies like Noises Off, My Favorite Year and the The Habit of Art Bullets Over Broadway give us this great extra level of actors being actors being the comic pageant that is humanity. Looking for something to watch? Choose an adventure below and discover your next favorite movie or TV show. Visit our What to Watch page. Sign In. Keep track of everything you watch; tell your friends. Full Cast and Crew. Release Dates. Official Sites. Company Credits. Technical Specs. Plot Summary. The Habit of Art Keywords. Parents The Habit of Art. External Sites. User Reviews. User Ratings. External Reviews. Metacritic Reviews. Photo Gallery. Trailers and Videos. Crazy Credits. Alternate Versions. Rate This. Directors: Nicholas HytnerRobin Lough co-director. Writer: Alan Bennett play. Added to Watchlist. Coming to Indiana University Cinema - Spring Use the HTML below. You must be a registered user to use the IMDb rating plugin. Photos Add Image. Edit Cast Credited cast: Richard Griffiths Auden The Habit of Art Jennings Brian Elliot Levey Neil Frances de la Tour Kay John Heffernan George Barbara Kirby Joan Danny Burns Matt Martin Chamberlain Ralph Tom Attwood Tom Rest of cast listed alphabetically: Laurence Belcher Edit Did You Know? Was this review helpful to you? Yes No Report this. Add the first question. Edit Details Country: UK. Language: English. Runtime: min. Color: Color. Edit page. October Streaming Picks. Back to School Picks. Clear your history. The Habit of Art | Alan Bennett | The Guardian It premiered on 5 November at the Lyttelton Theatre at the Royal National Theatrewith the central roles filled by Alex Jennings as Britten and Richard Griffiths as Auden the latter replacing Michael Gambonwho had to withdraw from the production due to minor ill health. The Habit of Art title reflects Auden's view that The Tempest was incomplete and Caliban should have an epilogue. Caliban's Day is about a fictitious meeting in in Auden's rooms at Oxford, between Auden Fitz in his latter years and Britten Henry. Auden has hired a rent boy, Stuart Tim and when Humphrey Carpenter Donald - who will write biographies of both Auden and Britten after their deaths - arrives to interview him, Auden mistakes him for Stuart. Britten has been auditioning boys for The Habit of Art in Venice nearby, and arrives unexpectedly their first meeting in 25 years after they fell out over the failure of their opera Paul Bunyan. He wants to discuss his misgivings about the paedophilic theme of Death in Venice and the light that may cast on his own The Habit of Art, but Auden assumes Britten wants him to write the The Habit of Art. In doing so, they reveal something of their own backgrounds. The world premier production commenced on 5 November at the Lyttelton Theatre at the National Theatredirected by Nicholas Hytner. Critical reaction to the original production of the play was generally positive. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The Habit of Art. London: Faber and Faber. Retrieved 3 February Hidden categories: All stub articles. Namespaces Article Talk. Views Read Edit View history. Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file. Download as PDF Printable version. Italiano Edit links. Auden Benjamin Britten Humphrey Carpenter. Lyttelton TheatreLondonUnited Kingdom. Londonpresent day; Caliban's Day Oxford Mark Henderson. This article on a s play is a stub. The Habit of Art can help Wikipedia by expanding it.