September 30, 2014

Richard Armitage:RA Wins Audible's Voice Crush Competition + New Crucible Pic from Digital Theatre + Time to Vote--See Link + New Interview Courtesy of www.richardarmitagenet.com

New behind-the-scenes pic of in from email newsletter.

                                     (above--becoming Thorin)
TIME to VOTE: As of today, RA has 25% for best actor in a play and Yael has 22%, best director:
http://www.broadwayworld.com/westend/vote2014region.cfm
                                                  ~~~~~~~~
http://www.richardarmitagenet.com/images/articlescans/IntotheStorm/Episodi-Sept2014.pdf
FROM DWARF TO HUMAN 
In addtion to Into the Storm and The Hobbit, Richard Armitage has acted in Captain 
America and even in one of the Star Wars films. He is not deliberately looking for effect 
movies, though. 
- I like to work without visual effects. I like filming where there is a feel of reality. The water 
and wind machines in Into the Storm created realism. It fascinated me that the movie dealt 
with something as topical but as commonplace as the weather, of which we are constantly 
talking about and trying to document. The news on TV about the climate are largely made 
up of material that people have filmed with their mobile phones. 
He also wanted to distance himself from his previous project. 
- I was finishing The Hobbit and looking for the next project. After playing a dwarf I wanted 
to have a normal-sized role. After a fantasy, I longed for something more realistic and 
closer to today. Warner Bros introduced various movies to me, and this movie was so 
different from The Hobbit. That made me decide on this movie, Armitage says. 
- I flew to Detroit right away, after finishing with The Hobbit. I had about 12 hours to get 
used to being human again. 
Putting one's soul into a fantasy creature or into a human demands different kind of 
background work. 
- In fantasy movies, especially in one like The Hobbit where I play a character that really 
doesn't exist, you can only rely on your imagination. Luckily, I was an avid reader as a 
child and I have a very vivid imagination. In movies where I play a character in the 
contemporary world, like in this movie an American teacher, I look for someone real to use 
as a starting point. I was remembering one of my own teachers when I was young and 
updating the character to the situation here and now. 
One of Armitage's routines is to create a backstory to his characters. 
- In the case of Gary Morris, the most important thing was his family history, what had 
happened to his family. His wife is dead, which has its effects in the relationships between 
the father and the sons. It means it wasn't a heroic backstory. I made him an ordinary man 
with a middle-class upbringing. There really isn't anything special about him until the storm 
hits his hometown. He takes his responsibilities seriously, which has created distance 
between him and his children. When he has to step into the hero's boots, hopefully the 
background work makes the action seem believable. 
A WET JOB 
The storms in the movie were created by computer, but the actors could still experience 
the force of tornadoes. 
- Every second of filming was wet and windy, it became a real endurance test. But it was 
good to do things that way because it really felt like a huge storm was just around the 
corner. The filming crew did their utmost to make the takes realistic. They were throwing in 
trees from windows and tearing down ceilings above our heads, a crane was dropping 
cars in front of me and items around me were yanked up in the air with cables. Steve was 
concentrating on real stunts at least as much as on digital effects. 
Quale had computer-genarated models of what storms would look like. However, he 
wanted the actors to think of the storms as monsters chasing them rather than as realistic tornadoes. At times he intentionally kept the actors a bit in the dark in order for them to be 
realistically surprised by a new turn of events when the storm arrived. 
While shooting the movie, the actors didn't get the chance to enjoy the impressiveness of 
the sound, though. 
- We mostly heard the sound of the wind machine, but when the sirens started wailing 
there was something in their sound that made your heart beat and set your mood towards 
disaster, Armitage says. 
For Armitage, the most difficult moment in the shooting wasn't about storms as such. 
- Technically and emotionally, the hardest part to shoot was one and the same scene. In 
that scene, Gary has to dive in a water pool to save his son. First, I was upside down in a 
very narrow space under water. When we tried to revive the boy, we did the scene in real 
time. We went over what was done in reviving a person and how long each phase would 
take. It felt real and it was a very emotional scene. 
SERIOUS BUT FUNNY 
Gary Morris is practically the only adult in the movie who behaves correctly. 
- I deliberately made him perhaps a little bit boring and serious, and when I was trying to 
find out reasons for him to smile, the storm hit. But we did have a lot of fun when we were 
shooting, Armitage says. 
The actor is obviously not interested in comedy. Even in entertaining movies, such as The 
Hobbit and Into the Storm, he is playing the most serious character. 
- It's more about what's being offered to me, Armitage defends himself. 
I have done a couple of episodes in the famaous British TV series The Vicar of Dibley. 
That was fun and new to me. It would be nice to do something more like that. 
- Often, when an actor does a role, he is being offered more of the same kind. Although I 
haven't done comedy, my friends tell me I'm a really funny guy. But nobody wants to film it! 
The Hobbit success hasn't made it any easier. 
- You always have to fight for your roles. It's a myth that you could choose your roles after 
you've had success. Even the biggest names have to fight for the roles they want. People 
are expecting to see something they've seen before, and when I go to auditions, the 
directors are surprised to see that I'm almost 6'3'' and not 4'11''. At least at the moment 
they are. 
However he knows what he would do if he could choose any project. 
- Maybe I could try to do some comedy, some romantic comedy perhaps. Something 
where I could, in stead of getting wet, stand on a sunny beach in shorts and t-shirt, with a 
drink in my hand. 

For the time being, Armitage is content with acting. But he has some plans brewing up at 
the back of his mind that he would like to produce one day. 
- Before that, however, I'll have to make sure that my acting career is going on strong 
enough to make it possible to produce other things. Maybe I could include that in my next 
Five- or Ten-Year-Plan. 
Maybe you could produce your own romantic comedy? 
- I'm more likely to be going on slightly gloomier paths, but you never know! Armitage laughs
                                              Becoming Jamie Fraser...
The CW channel's 'Reign' season2 has returned....
Hilarious ep 1 review:
All in all, Mary 2.0 is a bit of a badass, and the plague gave her so much to work with. In fact, the entire show thrives under the constant threat of horrible death. ..and despite the absence of the wonderful Henry,Reign's evolution feels a lot like Mary's: What started as an innocent show that always had potential has now grown into its own as a sexy, powerful woman. In other words, Henry would now want to have sex with Reign. Have I gone too far?

http://outlanderviewingroom.forumotion.net/

September 24, 2014

Richard Armitage:Poll:Your Fav Lesser Known Character? + Ichabod Crane Horrified by Plastic Economy(see clip) + A Wee Story(not about Outlander--See tweets;) + Director Elliott Lester Announced Richard Armitage & Ahna O'Reilly are Stars of His Upcoming Film 'Sleepwalker'


Proving that in today's world a person cannot even take "a wee" without all of Twitter hearing about it--read tweets from bottom up(no pun intended;D




September 19, 2014

Richard Armitage: Vanity Fair's Outlander Review(see link) + Wellwishers Awaiting More Details on "the cameo" and upcoming film 'Sleepwalker'

Excerpt: "The sex that happens during tomorrow night’s episode isn’t so tremendously graphic that it rivals any of the senseless f--king on Game of Thrones. But it’s more intense and personal, and in that way daring, startling even. That’s probably owed to the delicately tortured romantic connection between Jamie and his new bride, Claire. See, Claire has a husband whom she loves and hopes to return to in the 1940s, but she has to marry Jamie in the 1700s to protect herself from an evil British army officer. Of course, there was always a romantic connection between Claire and Jamie, despite her loyalty to her modern-day husband, so when she finally relents to those urges on their wedding night (they have to consummate, lest the marriage be deemed invalid), it’s done with a heady mix of guilt and abandon. It’s quite a potent combination, the florid, fleshy result of hours of careful build up. Other shows could take lessons from Outlander in how to expertly delay gratification."

The man of the hour--Ichabod Crane returns Monday with episode 1/Season 2 of Sleepy Hollow..


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tYQypIOFN6w

http://www.mifflinburgchristkindlmarket.com/

September 12, 2014

Richard Armitage:The Crucible Farewell(see photo) + Excerpts From Today's Twitter Q&A

RA tweeted photo from final ADR for Battle of Five Armies
Last night was final performance for RA's The Crucible. A friend forwarded this photo of stagedoor line which extended around the corner. Apparently a few were pushy - hopefully that didn't spoil it for the well behaved majority.
When asked about his upcoming projects in today's interview, RA replied: "a cameo in a movie based on a well known novel by Lewis Caroll(is it 2016's Through The Looking Glass?) Battle of the Five Armies press tour, Christmas with family and a big ski up a mountain. The most interesting item, mentioned on RA's list of what's next, is an "independent psychological drama" titled 'Sleepwalker' directed by Elliot Lester. Excerpts from today's Twitter Q&A:

What are your early memories of theatre? What sparked the passion?

Gingerbread Man Leicester Haymarket aged 7. Michael Gambon 'Volpone’ Janet McTeer Dolls House... RSC StratfordIan Holm Lear Alan Howard 'Women of Troy' audio.Ian McKellen Macbeth John Barton.Tony Sher 'Year of the King'

The Old Vic Theatre ‏@oldvictheatre
Which of Proctor's lines do you find the most difficult to speak? Which line moves you most?

"When will you know me...were I stone I would have cracked for shame this seven month".

The Old Vic Theatre @oldvictheatre
What were your first impressions of working with @yfarber?

Her uncompromising indomitable search for the truth, beyond the civilised, permitted acceptable...

The Old Vic Theatre
What aspects of society/culture do you think #TheCrucible best speaks to today? @rcarmitage @pamelatrang3 #AskArmitage

It speaks of prejudice and persecution and any society who has permitted it's government... to legislate in favour of such denial of human rights, be it, race, gender, religion, sexual preference and

The Old Vic Theatre
How did visiting Salem help you prepare for the role? Anything in particular that put you in character? @rcarmitage @nikitucker #AskArmitage

Seeing the foundations of Paris's parsonage, the clearing in the woods where the Girls may have danced...
the grave stones in Salem town, and a baby’s small wooden cot in Rebecca nurses house.

The Old Vic Theatre ‏@oldvictheatre
Proctor is quite an intense character, how did you prepare yourself to become him?

He's been 43 years in the making, I can't describe it in 140 characters. CowsVoiceSalemMillerMillerMiller

The Old Vic Theatre @oldvictheatre
What has been the best moment for you during the production of #TheCrucible? @rcarmitage @sharonshazkley #AskArmitage

The first time I attempted Act 4, in the rehearsal room, the whole company were gathered to witness...
and support. I could barely speak, it broke me.


The Old Vic Theatre @oldvictheatre
After playing a character for so long so intensely, how do you let them go when the role ends? @rcarmitage @reebeekins #AskArmitage

We never really let them go, I'll never play Proctor again, so I must keep him somewhere...
I think he's always been here to an extent.
Ichabod Crane returns on Monday for Season 2 of Sleepy Hollow..
Outlander wedding on Sat..