Live-to-cinema screening of the National Theatre's production of Clifford Odets' 'Golden Boy', directed by Sam Yates, with a live string quartet on stage.
National Theatre Live brings Golden Boy to Vue Clayface in Oxford on Thursday 5 November. It's a filmed production of the Almeida Theatre run, so you're seeing a stage play on the big screen rather than a movie made for cinema. The screening runs for 180 minutes, which is a full three hours, so keep that in mind if you're planning your evening around it.
Golden Boy is a revival of Clifford Odets' American classic, set in 1930s New York at the height of the Great Depression. It follows Joe Bonaparte, a gifted young violinist whose future in music is derailed when a chance at fame and fortune lures him into the brutal world of professional boxing. It's a story about ambition, identity and the high price of success, and it's directed by Olivier Award winner Sam Yates. The production was filmed live at the Almeida Theatre, so you're seeing the performance as it happened on stage.
One of the things that sets this screening apart is that it's presented with a live string quartet on stage. The music is a huge part of the story — Joe's a violinist, after all — and having the strings playing live in the room adds a layer that a standard cinema screening wouldn't have. Between the filmed performance and the live quartet, the whole thing runs for three hours, so it's a proper night out rather than a quick trip to the cinema.
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If you're into theatre but can't make it to London, this is one of those ways to catch a professional production without leaving Oxford. It's at Vue Clayface on Thursday 5 November, and the screening runs for 180 minutes.
