Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} Quadrille by Noël Coward Quadrille. By Noel Coward. (Phoenix.) THE play's the thing, but. not when the Lunts are on the stage. It is then no more than an excuse, a scaffolding to be shoved up and covered with brocade, any old floorboarding under the rich carpet. The Lunts' theatre is the actor's theatre, not the playwright's, not the producer's, and the author serves them best who writes a play that makes no demand on the audience and distracts it not at all from the playing. That is the sort of play that Mr. Coward has put together : a sentimental period piece of not the slightest consequence which does its humble duty by the Lunts and allows Cecil Beaton to have a good time among the furnishings and fashions of the 'seventies. It was ungracious of some to suggest that this is not Coward at his best : I say, considering the end to which it is the means, that it is an excellent play—hardly, in fact, noticeable as a play at all. So the evening may be spent in carefree, single-minded admiration of the way in which Alfred Lunt instantly, constantly, infallibly transmutes the pale, heavy lead of text into pure gold of voice and gesture. He is a bearded bearish Yankee railway-king : his voice pushes back the limits of expanding America ; his hands mould the Rocky Mountains ; his boots are seven-leaguers. But, no rough diamond ever glittered with more premeditated care. See how, not at home but neither for that matter ill-at-ease in Belgravia, he fiddles with his coffee-cup, turning it upside-down on his saucer. The smallest piece of business has been hand-made and tested, as the engineers say, almost to destruction, before it is fit for the public's eye. So with Lynn Fontanne : her fabulous modulations could turn a leading article in The Times into a sweet litany ; and the burden of her husband's masterly bearishness sets off her own high- comic strokes, as a real live Marchioness, to perfection. As I say, Mr. Coward ensures that we are not distracted from pure enjoyment of this virtuosity ; from the first scene we know, without being troubled to think, exactly what is to happen : how this railroad king and the Marchioness will pursue their runaway spouses and in the pursuit fall in love ; how, in the second scene of a long third act, the quadrille will be openly acknowledged as the romantic pas-de- deux that it has really been from the beginning. On second thoughts, though, Mr. Coward might have provided a climax worthy of the name. It would have done no harm. IAIN HAMILTON. Madonna pairs with Noel Coward for her next role. CASTING Madonna is continuing her acting frenzy: She’ll star in ”Quadrille,” an adaptation of the Noel Coward play about a British woman and an American magnate who, when chasing after their two spouses who are having an affair, fall in love themselves. This is the perfect draw for those who want ”Random Hearts” without that downer of a plane crash…. There’s finally a new movie in the works that may rival ”Scarface” for most cocaine per frame. ”Blow” will dramatize the true story of how coke first became a hip drug in the 1970s, and Johnny Depp will star as legendary dealer George Jung, one of the biggest drug traffickers of the time. James Gandolfini (”The Sopranos”) and Penelope Cruz (”All the Pretty Horses”) will costar…. Meg Ryan will pocket $15 million to headline ”Proof of Life,” a drama about a woman who falls for the hostage negotiator trying to free her husband. Awww, isn’t that the very definition of a ”meet cute”…. Jennifer Tilly and Daryl Hannah will team for the strip-club-set ”Dancing at the Blue Iguana,” to be directed by Michael Radford (”Il Postino”). THE JIG IS UP ‘N Sync were mobbed when they arrived to shoot what was supposed to be a top-secret cameo on ”Touched by an Angel” in Salt Lake City. Unfortunately, some radio DJs announced their location, and teens stormed the set, although it is possible that they were there to mob Della Reese and the popsters just got in the way. DECLAWED? Just when ”The X-Men” was finally ready to roll, there may be last-minute casting trouble. Variety reports that Dougray Scott (”Ever After”), who was set to play Wolverine, may have to back out because his shoot for ”Mission: Impossible 2” is running long. Fox is trying to make it happen, but if nothing can be worked out this week, a new actor will have to be found. ROCK CONTEST You can star in Beck ‘s new video, and you don’t even need a SAG card, let alone two turntables and a microphone. He is holding a contest on his official website where one winner will get to appear in the video for the second single off his new album, ”Midnite Vultures,” which will be in stores Nov. 16. The contest ends on Oct. 14. OFF THE AIR One teen show down, 436 to go: ”Manchester Prep” , the Fox TV drama based on ”Cruel Intentions,” has been canceled even before its premiere, after network execs all the way up to Rupert Murdoch himself were made uneasy by the dirty-talking high schoolers, according to Variety. Don’t feel bad: The show had been scheduled to air opposite ”Friends,” so you wouldn’t have seen it anyway. BACK FROM THE DEAD ”Um… things that are old… things that are an easy buck… things that are rehashed!” That’s right, the game show resurrection will continue with VH1’s ”Rock & Roll Pyramid,” based on Dick Clark’s classic ”$10,000 Pyramid.” There have also been rumblings that other networks want to nab the concept for a ”$1 Million Pyramid,” in an ingenious monetarily creative leap from ”Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?” HONORED Proud Tina Turner was given a lifetime-achievement honor at Britain’s Music of Black Origin Awards. The prize originated four years ago because the organizers felt black performers deserved their own show since they accounted for 40 percent of all singles sales and 21 percent of album sales in England. GREED RUMORS DEBUNKED Those rumors that you too can be buried next to Jimi Hendrix were untrue: You’ll have to spend eternity next to non-guitar heroes like the rest of us and like it. When Hendrix’s family recently announced that they had bought a 60-plot site to which they would move the late musician’s grave, an unofficial fan site posted a notice that the other 59 plots would be on sale to fans. In a statement setting the record straight, Hendrix’s father Al said, ”Fans have always asked me why Jimi’s grave is muddy and hard to find, and after winning back Jimi’s legacy, I discussed it with the rest of the family, and we felt that Jimi should have a new memorial with benches and more room for the fans to visit. This decision was made from love, not for profit or gain, and I’m deeply hurt by the suggestion that I would have thoughts like that.” The erroneous webmaster has apologized, and has shut down her site. ANGER-MANAGEMENT TIME ”As the World Turns” star Nathaniel Marston , 24, was arrested in Manhattan yesterday for allegedly beating the hell out of an ATM machine. He was charged with criminal mischief, and an official said that after punching the machine, he ”ripped [its] facade.” Perhaps the up-and-coming actor was angered by the intrusive ATM security camera: Damned paparazzi! OBITUARIES Jazz legend Art Farmer died on Monday from a heart attack at the age of 71. Farmer played trumpet and flugelhorn with such artists as Lionel Hampton and Horace Silver, and in the 1990s he merged his two instruments into his own invention, the flumpet…. All capes will be flying at half mast: Wrestling giant Robert ”Gorilla Monsoon” Marella died of a heart ailment at 62. Marella started in the ring in 1960, and was a commentator for the WWF in the ’80s, sometimes teamed with Jesse ”The Body” Ventura. Noël Coward. Why Famous: Noël Coward began his theatrical career as a child actor on the London stage before coming one of its most successful playwrights, actors, directors, producers and composers. His plays were deceptively light, witty, urbane and amusing and Coward cultivated a persona that went with them. he was frequently depicted with a cigarette holder on hand or silk dressing gown. Coward wrote 27 plays, his most famous include "Private Lives” with Laurence Olivier in his first major role, “Blithe Spirit”, “Cavalcade” and “Bitter Sweet". He wrote for film also, “In Which We Serve” was a WWII epic for which he was awarded an honorary Academy Award and the classic romantic film “Brief Encounter”, directed by David Lean. Coward also composed musicals and songs that have become standards, such as “Someday I'll, Find You,” “I'll See You Again,” “Mad About the Boy” and “Mad Dogs and Englishmen.” He was knighted by Queen Elizabeth in 1970. Born: December 16, 1899 Birthplace: London, England, United Kingdom. Died: March 26, 1973 (aged 73) Cause of Death: Heart failure after suffering from arteriosclerosis. The Guildhall Art Gallery’s Noël Coward exhibition. The free exhibition, originally scheduled to open in summer 2020 to mark the 100th anniversary of Coward’s West End debut as a playwright, brings a wealth of dazzling visuals and effervescent wit to London as the capital emerges from lockdown. No stranger to challenging events and lifting the nation’s spirits, Coward’s sixty-year career encompassed two World Wars and the Great Depression and once again, he offers light, laughter, and beauty in dark times. This fresh and vibrant look at one of the UK’s most popular playwrights and songwriters also reveals new facets to the man and his work that speak to our own time – from his championing of the work of women and black artists to the role that his identity as a gay man played in the formation of his unique stage persona. The final section of Noël Coward: Art & Style celebrates his continuing impact upon contemporary design and fashion. The exhibition, which will run until 23 December, brings together rarely-seen original artwork and costumes, photographs, documents, three- dimensional objects, audio and video to tell the story, all in a theatrically immersive environment true to Coward’s spirit. Cecil Beaton by Paul Tanqueray, 1952 (at work on designs for Noë l Coward’s play Quadrille) In realising his work, Coward joined forces with some of the finest couturiers and theatrical designers of his time, from Edward Molyneux, Norman Hartnell, Victor Stiebel, and Mainbocher to Cecil Beaton, Oliver Messel, Doris Zinkeisen, Irene Sharaff, Oliver Smith, and long-time collaborator Gladys Calthrop. The exhibition also celebrates the achievements of this astonishing creative circle with original vintage dresses, paintings, and set and costume design sketches. These designers and their visions also helped shape Coward’s carefully crafted off-stage image as a style icon, a model of elegance and charm that extended from his personal wardrobe to his passion for painting, and the chic decoration of his various homes. This major exhibition vividly demonstrates the pivotal role that art and style played in Coward’s life on- and off-stage, the enormous impact that he had upon the fashion and culture of his time, and the ways in which his visual legacy and influence continue to resonate to this day. Feature Image by Vandamm Studio ©Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts Gertrude Lawrence and Noë l Coward in Private Lives, 1931, Times Square Theatre, New York. For the latest headlines from the City of London and beyond, follow City Matters on Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. Topics similar to or like Quadrille (play) Musical by Noël Coward based on the 1892 play by Oscar Wilde, Lady Windermere's Fan. After a provincial tour, the musical premiered at the Globe Theatre, London, on 10 June 1954 and ran for 188 performances until 20 November 1954. Wikipedia. Play in three acts by Noël Coward. 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