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bingwriterxo · 11 months

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the shakespeare exhibit - part 1

pairing: tara carpenter x reader

summary: in which tara finds herself in a weird place in the museum

warnings: none

word count: 1700+

author's note: this was a request (find here)! hope u guys enjoy :D the english major in me really popped the fuck out in this one 🤭

next part

Spending a rainy Sunday in the Museum of Modern Art was far from what Tara wanted to do, but she had been outvoted by the rest of her friends, all of whom thought that it would be fun (well, all but Chad, who wanted to stay in and have a movie marathon).

She found herself wandering aimlessly through the halls, glancing this way and that at different exhibits, though nothing really piqued her interest. Sam and Danny had escaped to the Egyptian gallery, Chad and Ethan were exploring the gift shop, Mindy and Anika had rushed off on their own almost as soon as the group walked through the front doors--if Tara had to put money on it, she would guess that they were making out in the bathroom--and Quinn was flirting with the ticket booth guy.

Tara pulled her phone from her back pocket.

Tara (3:46pm): can we go soon im bored

Sam (3:48pm): Danny and I are only halfway done!

Chad (3:49pm): anyone got some extra cash??? really want this weird t-shirt

Ethan (3:49pm): i got u buddy

Mindy (3:51pm): fh2p9hr2$!8tn

Sam (3:51pm): Mindy, what?

Mindy (3:52pm): sorry butt text

Mindy (3:52pm): me and nika r busy

She huffed when no one in the group chat seemed to be on the same wavelength as her and shoved her phone back in her pocket, continuing her shuffling. She wasn't even sure where in the museum she was, and she didn't really care.

Or, at least, she didn't care until she heard that voice.

"And here we have a painting depicting the celebration that occurs in the beginning of one of Shakespeare's earlier plays, Titus Andronicus."

Tara looked to her right, where the voice was coming from, and was met with a large sign that read Pop-Up Shakespeare Exhibit! She frowned. Shakespeare? she thought. Seriously?

"Now, this celebration is quite important to the rest of the play as..."

The voice was luring her in. Okay, maybe I can dig Shakespeare.

She wandered into the room, eyes flitting around as she searched for the person that the voice belonged to. Instead, she was met with numerous paintings of different scenes from Shakespeares' plays, or people that influenced him or were important during his time period.

And why the fuck is this man so iconic? she thought as she quickly scanned over each painting, finding nothing extraordinarily special about them. This shit is boring.

Still, she ventured farther in, determined to find the reason she had entered the exhibit in the first place. She wasn't, however, paying much attention to her feet or the paces in front of her, and the next thing she knew, she had bumped into someone else.

"Oh, sorry," she said.

"It's okay! That's my bad!" you replied, and Tara's eyes widened as she glanced in your direction. You were the voice that she was trying to find, and now that she had found you...well, she wasn't really sure what to do.

Honestly, she hadn't expected you to be so, in layman's terms, hot, and she could feel herself blushing up to her ears as she stared at you, awestruck and nervous and itching to talk to you all at once.

You offered her a wide grin and gestured toward the painting the two of you had ended up in front of. "Big fan of King Lear?" you asked.

Tara glanced at the painting. Two men stood in a vaguely grassy area, one old and the other younger. The older one had his arms thrown out, and despair was clearly controlling his emotions. The younger one was simply standing back and watching. What the fuck is this shit? she thought before realizing that you were awaiting her response.

"Yeah, definitely!" she lied. "It's probably my favorite Shakespeare play."

You furrowed your eyebrows. "Really? You strike me as more of a..." You trailed off as your eyes flitted down her body, taking her in. Tara gulped. "I would say Twelfth Night kind of girl."

Tara shrugged. "Well, I can be surprising." She pointed lamely at the painting. "Besides, I love history plays."

"Oh!" You raised your eyebrows as your eyes widened, and you chuckled. "King Lear isn't a history; it's a tragedy."

"Right! I--That's what I meant," she rushed out, trying to backtrack. "But, I mean, couldn't all of Shakespeare's plays technically be histories? They're all old."

You giggled, and Tara found that she liked that sound even more than she liked your voice. "That's not really how it works." You pulled your bottom lip between your teeth and glanced at the watch on your wrist. "If you want, I could give you a tour through the exhibit and explain some of the plays to you. My next group isn't coming for another hour."

I would rather Ghostface pop out of one of these paintings and attack me than have these boring-ass plays explained to me. She wanted to say that--god, did she want to--but you were looking at her with a soft smile and even softer eyes, your hands buried in your back pockets as you shifted on the balls of your feet, and her reply was tumbling from her lips before she could stop it.

"That would be great!"

* * *

You were only halfway through the exhibit, talking about some lady named Portia who could only marry the man that chose the correct casket--how fucking stupid, Tara thought--when you turned to her, a pitiful smile pulling at your lips.

"You find this boring, don't you?" you asked, though there was no judgment in your voice. If anything, Tara could detect a hint of teasing.

She shook her head. "No, no. Portia and Bassanio and caskets are all very...interesting." When you tilted your head at her, your eyes sparkling with disbelief, she sighed in defeat, allowing her shoulders to slump slightly. "Yeah," she admitted, "it's kind of boring."

You shrugged half-heartedly, a crooked smile on your lips. "That's okay. Shakespeare's definitely not for everyone." You looked back at the painting you stood in front of. "I mean, even I hated half the plays when I first read them."

"Then why are you a tour guide for this exhibit?"

"Money," you confessed. "I'm a broke college student who has tuition to pay for. Plus, I've read all of these plays ten times over, so I know them pretty well."

Tara wrinkled her nose. "Why would you subject yourself to that?" she asked. "I couldn't even imagine reading these plays once, let alone"--she gestured in the air--"as many times as you've read them."

"I'm an English Lit. major, so it's kind of my thing." You sighed in a dreamy sort of way, and Tara couldn't help as her eyes flitted down to your lips, her tongue dragging across her bottom one. She quickly shifted back to your eyes when you looked at her. "But it's not everyone's thing. I get it."

She frowned. "Sorry if I, like, wasted your time."

You waved her off. "Don't worry about it. I like talking about the plays, and if anything I said in the last fifty minutes got through to you, then I did my job."

Tara nodded. "Oh, it definitely did. Yeah, I learned so much about Shakespeare today," she said, sarcasm dripping from her voice.

You chuckled. "Sure you did."

She took a deep breath in and then rushed out, "If I could prove to you that I learned something, would you let me take you on a date?" She watched as your eyes widened in surprise before being narrowed by the smile that took over your face.

"Okay," you agreed. "I'll ask you a question, and if you can answer it, then I'll give you my number. How's that?"

"Yeah," she said, grinning. "That works."

You glanced around the parts of the exhibit that you had taken Tara through, and she watched as you thought for a moment, your eyebrows furrowing in concentration and your hand scratching at the side of your neck.

"Oh!" you said after a minute. "I've got it." You turned to her, a wicked smile on your face. "In Twelfth Night, what's the name of Viola's brother?"

Oh shit, Tara thought. I should've listened harder when she was talking about that play. But it's not my fault she looked so cute when she was talking about the different theories of human gender.

She blinked at you, trying to come up with the name, or, frankly, any name that you had mentioned during your little tour. You waited patiently, watching her as the gears turned in her head.

Orsino? No, no--that's the Duke. Was it Cesario? Toby? Malvolio? None of those. Oh! It was--

"Sebastian!" she practically yelled.

You giggled at her enthusiasm and pulled the pen from your front pocket. As you clicked it open, you said, "I guess you do listen." You took her arm, pushed up her sleeve so that you had enough skin to write, and jotted down your number on her forearm. She looked at it when you were done, blushing at the sight of a poorly-drawn heart at the end. "Text me, yeah?"

"Totally," she breathed out. "Yeah, I'll do that. For sure."

"Okay." You glanced at your watch. "My next tour's starting in, like, a minute, so I've gotta run." You quickly looked around the exhibit and, upon finding no one near, leaned close and pressed a short kiss to her cheek. "Bye!"

Tara was left in the center of the Shakespeare exhibit, watching as you walked back toward the entrance, with a burning cheek and butterflies stirring in her stomach. She looked at the portrait on her right.

"Shakespeare, you're not good for much, but apparently you're good for getting cute girls' numbers," she muttered.

bonus: "so, what exhibits did you go to, tara?" sam asked as the group sat in a little coffee shop down the street from the MoMA.

"uh, the shakespeare one," tara mumbled.

everyone's eyes widened. "what?" came the resounding reply from all of her friends.

"you hate shakespeare," mindy stated.

"yeah. when they tried to teach us about it in senior year, you literally left the classroom," chad said.

"why the hell would you spend all your time in a shakespeare exhibit?" sam asked, furrowing her eyebrows at tara.

anika reached over and pulled at tara's shirt sleeve, revealing the numbers hidden beneath. "i think that might be why."

tara groaned as everyone started talking over one another, asking questions (sam) and squealing (quinn and mindy) and grumbling (chad and ethan).

"god," mindy started when everyone was finally quiet, "you are so gay, t."

#tara carpenter x reader #tara carpenter #tara x reader #jenna ortega x reader #jenna ortega #scream 6 #scream 5 #museum tara

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avaelangel · 5 months

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I am sad.

For unrelated reasons, but I am also concerned about what The Boys universe has in store for us. So here you go some random LiMoreou headcanons, because I want to feel something.

Warnings: cheese and no real time restraints.

They for sure do that couple hand-over-the-shoulders thing. Jordan does it while in male form, and Marie sort of adopts it when they're in the girl form. Jordan might be a bit startled about it at first, maybe even will change back just to be annoying. Marie will do one better and try to tackle them into bending down.

Jordan will probably try and teach Marie combat. She would be reluctant about it, but will come to a conclusion (maybe with Emma's help) that it's just a way for them to spend time together. It would be hard not to get distracted, though.

Marie at some point will try and get in between Jordan and something that threatens them in any way, regardless of what form they are in or who is the threat. This might happen when Jordan's parents come again.

They both would adopt each other's behaviors which would include being protective over Emma. Emma would be weirded out that Jordan cares, but will find it funny how them and Marie glare at any guy or girl that looks at her wrong.

Oh, there's no spooning rules for Marie and Jordan. Every night is different. Sometimes one of them can't really breath from the intensity of an embrace.

Jordan and Marie didn't have a shoulder to cry on growing up. After some time they both will realise that they have each other. I think, in both cases they will be good in soothing a crying love, but Jordan will think about solving the problem first and will need a moment to reaccess.

For sure would try to be the clingiest of couples if someone calls them gross.

Totally would have video game nights. Marie never had a console! Jordan has soooo much to show her.

First date in an arcade. Junk food, photobooth pictures and the most cursed plushies they could win for each other.

Jordan wears a lot of staples (t-shirts, tanks, turtlenecks of one color) which will find their way into Marie's closet. Maybe fun pants will immigrate too. Jordan will come stomping to raid Marie's closet then when that black sweatshirt with a skull disappears.

They are for sure going thrifting together. A million percent.

(this is a weird one, but) Jordan knows an abysmal amount of poetry from the days of chasing wrong people. When they start randomly reciting some Shakespear sonnet to Marie, she's so scared. But when Jordan does it to startle her again, Marie actually enjoys it. Jordan isn't bummed for long, because it starts a long conversation about literature.

Marie does indulge in Property Brothes marathons. She didn't get it first, but didn't say anything. Around season 6 she would actually understand the appeal.

That would spawn an idea to just hang out in paint stores and hardware stores.

Jordan for sure can put up a shelf and stuff. Once, they pulled out a fancy drill with a battery and Marie almost swoons for real.

#okay i will stop now #i just love them your honor #let them be happy #i do not trust anyone in that universe and in the writers room though #jordan li #marie moreau #mariejordan #limoreau #gen v #might write that crying bit

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klausinamarink · 4 months

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The New Highs and Lows of a Ball Boy

rating: G | cw: ankle injury | tags: volleyball, pre-relationship, Jeff is Eddie’s best friend, sweetheart Steve, secret Shakespeare fan Steve, post S1 | wc: 1000

written for @steddieholidaydrabbles | Dec 22: Sports AU

This is humiliating. Eddie thought miserably as he stood next to the wheeled box of volleyballs. He wasn’t even allowed to sit down on the bench. The coach couldn’t let him help with the net’s setup

He glanced again at the gym’s clock. 3:27. God, he should be doing the Hellfire campaign right now.

But nope. Jeff had forced him to postpone the next campaign to Tuesday because the boy’s volleyball team had some extra practice today for some upcoming state tournament Eddie gave little fucks about. Then Jeff had (albeit apologetically) dropped the bomb that he wanted to drag Eddie to the gym as their replacement ball boy.

Eddie did not like that and refused to budge.

Until Jeff had looked Eddie in the eye and said, “Postpone and do this favor for me or I will tell the club about the trash can incident.”

The unwavering confidence Eddie had at the time immediately froze into dread. “You wouldn’t-”

“What’s the trash can incident?” Frankie had asked.

Jeff had opened his mouth to answer but Eddie frantically shut him. “Fine! I’ll postpone Hellfire and be your stupid ball boy!”

He hasn’t stopped regretting this decision.

Across the gym, the jocks were doing some stretches. Of course, one of them was Steve Harrington because god forbid a single sport team be untouched by the King of Hawkins.

He caught Jeff’s eye and gave him the most pissed off stare, conveying the you did this to me message. Jeff just smiled and waved at him cheerfully like a child getting his dad’s attention. A couple jocks noticed and laughed, though Jeff immediately turned around and said something that backed them off.

Well, Eddie couldn’t hate him forever.

Few minutes later, the net was up and the coach whistled for everyone’s attention. He said some things that Eddie zoned out on. Another whistle and the players scrambled to their teams. Some of them took positions on opposite sides of the net and others sat on the bleachers. Eddie tried not to scowl at Jeff and Steve being on the same team.

See, as much as he decries it, Eddie does enjoy watching sports. Preferably baseball on the TV networks Wayne would tune in sometimes after work. Not because he was a fan but because it was much easier to cheer on a team in your room instead of dozens of other students who saw the jocks as untouchable stars instead of assholes.

So while he had not idea how the fuck volleyball works, he kept his eyes on Jeff whenever he had the ball and slammed it over the net. He was much better than Steve, who seemed to be doing nothing at his corner of the gym.

And then Steve finally made a move. Eddie watched in real time as Steve ran right behind Jeff and another kid, jumped up to hit the ball over the net, and landed back down only his left foot to roll right underneath.

Steve collapsed completely, immediately clutching his ankle. Even Eddie cringed at the sight. For a few minutes, everyone gathered around Steve and watched as the boy tried to put weight on his now-bare foot, only to shut his eyes and vigorously shake his head.

“Sit on the bench next to Munson, Harrington.” The coach ordered. Eddie just stood as Steve hobbled himself over to the bench and sat down. He gasped for breath as he ran for a marathon.

“You were shit anyways.” Eddie blurted out. He almost regretted it when Steve turned his head towards him. Instead of snarling at him to fuck off, Steve laughed, his eyes crinkling.

“Gonna be honest, I’m kinda new to volleyball.” Steve wheezed, rubbing his ankle tenderly. The skin was terribly red and swelling a bit. Jeff appeared and gave him an ice pack, which Steve thanked him for.

Jeff looked at Eddie and mouthed, “Don’t start anything.”

Eddie just grinned and flipped him off. Jeff rolled his eyes, lightly punched his shoulder, and returned to the court as practice continued.

“Why would the King even try volleyball this late within the spring court?” Eddie asked flourishly.

Steve squinted at him for a moment before shaking his head, “Hey man, don’t call me the King, ‘kay? I actually hate the name.”

“But it’s your crown, so heavy is it to wear!” Eddie held both hands against his own hands, feigning a scandal.

Steve snorted, his lips turning up with a smirk, “My crown’s in my heart, not on my head. Not decked with diamonds or stones nor to be seen. It’s just content.”

Eddie felt his jaw drop to the floor. He stared at Steve, taken aback by the words and the slightly mournful tone he’d spoken in. Steve looked back at him, his smirk falling into a small, insecure frown. Wait, since when had Steve Harrington looked insecure? Why did he also look close to crying?

No time to unpack all of that, Eddie shook himself back to reality and cleared his throat. “D-Did- did you just quote Shakespeare?”

The vulnerability was gone and Steve sent him a charming smile that did dangerous things to Eddie’s gut. “It’s paraphrased, but yeah.”

Eddie felt a grin breaking through his face and leaned over Steve. “Never knew you were such a theater kid. What a charmer.”

He saw the way Steve's cheeks turned a shade darker, how his Adam’s apple bobbed with a small swallow, and how his eyes briefly flicked to Eddie’s lips.

If they weren’t alone, Eddie was certain they would be honest to god grabbing each other’s faces and-

A sharp blow of the whistle jerked Eddie back. The coach was pointing wordlessly at the extra volleyballs. Eddie quickly picked a random ball and threw it to the court. When he looked back at Steve, he was too attentively pressing the ice pack on his ankle.

On the court, Eddie saw Jeff staring back at him with a suggestive wiggle of his eyebrows.

#klaus writes #steddie #stranger things #steddieholidaydrabbles

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shakespearenews · 11 days

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youtube

#shakespeare #william shakespeare #guthrie #guthrie theater #marathon #of shakespeare #theater #theatre #mpr #Youtube

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dtspersonalnightmare · 5 months

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The Volturi Kings-

watching a movies with you

(As a couple, no pronouns used so GN Reader)

Aro Volturi-

You had begged him to watch a movie with you and he only said yes because he loved you too much to make you sad but to make it fair he wanted to decide the movie you were watching and you were fine with it but who could have kown how funny it would get? So it literally started with Aro looking through the movies. In the end he chose Underworld (which is funny as Micheal Sheen plays Lucian) so you cuddled up and started to watch the movie. You kept teasing Aro for Lucian looking like him as the character is a werewolf. Aro on the other hand was complaining about the movie being so unrealistic the whole time. In the end you just went to the player and took out the movie. "I am going to choose a movie else you'll keep complaining!", you grumble putting it away and looking through the movies for one you thought might get liked by Aro. In the end you decided for Hamlet as this was a classic by Shakespear and Aro may not be the biggest fan of Shakespear but atleast he wouldn't complain all the time. Then you cuddled up again and watched the movie together this time in a much better atmosphere. Hamlet definetly was a great idea and so you had your fun while Aro just enjoyed the cuddling and watched the movie not complaining anymore as the new movie was much better and Aro probably only in the end realised that it was Hamlet and not because he didn't realise the similarity (meaning everything being exactly the same) but because he couldn't believe that even so long after Shakespear lived they still thought of his work as so important that they even made a movie. Just wait until he finds out how many diffrent versions of Hamlet exist and that Hamlet wasn't the only work of him that got addapted.

Marcus Volturi-

Other than Aro Marcus would say yes immediatly he would just be happy you wanted to do stuff together as the loss of Didyme showed him that everything could end soon and so he just was happy to spend time with the person he loves. You would watch some book addaption like Harry Potter because let's be honest Marcus definetly read it. He would definetly complain at some points but not as much as Aro so that you just accept it and keep watching together even discussing few things about movie and book. It would be really fun and in the end you would just lay your head onto his lap and keep watching like that. You wouldn't just watch the first movie but do a whole marathon watching every movie, for Marcus no problem as he is a vampire and doesn't need sleep but you didn't get turned yet. You started at ten a.m. (Marcus made sure to not have anything to do the next twenty hours) and so you would get sleepy around two a.m. but would fight it back. In the end you fall asleep in his lap as it is too comfortable. At first Marcus doesn't realize but as he does he covers you with a blanket and watches you sleep the movie completly forgotten. He just enjoys watching you so peaceful and would protect you from any harm. As you wake up you complain to him that he hasn't woken you up and he just explained that he didn't want to interrupt how peaceful and happy you seemed and you find it cute so you just forgive him (not that you could stay angry at him for long). In the end you would just start from the film you fell asleep at making a memeory none of you would forget so soon.

Caius Volturi-

Caius says yes as soon you ask he already waited for you to do so because he wouldn't want to ask you but he would definetly want to watch the hunger games because that's just Caius and eventhough he could watch it alone he rather would watch it together with you. As you ask him he just grins nodding, suprising you. He asks you to watch the Hunger games and you just agree Caius already had buyed the whole series and just puts it in and you just watch it. You sit a bit away from him awkwardly. After a while Caius comes closer by himself wrapping an arm, around you. You immediatly lay your head onto his shoulder and keep watching like that. You watch all movies and you enjoy it fully soon snuggling against Caius and he can't help but enjoy it just as much. You two make bets who will die next which makes just as much fun (if you already know the film you win easily but if not Caius easily beats you as he has a good eye if it comes to things like that). Sometimes the guards come in but they go away as soon as they see you two and other than what they all thoght at the start they think you are a perfect couple and soon everyone in the volturi ships you two and make bets about your love life. You haven't even finished watching the hunger games as it started. Caius warms up pretty fast as he trusts you fully and even laughs and smiles with you making your heart beat faster and you really happy that he trusts you enough for it and as soon as another guard enters Caius is his old self again when they leave he turns back into the person that laughs and smiles all the time the person only you get to see.

#volturi #aro volturi #caius volturi #marcus volturi #caius x reader #aro x reader #marcus x reader

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myfavoriteficss · 1 year

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Scream Masterlist

This Masterlist includes all of the Scream fan fiction I have reblogged. Enjoy.

Updated: 12/30/2023

Masterpost

1. Tara Carpenter

Written by: @bingwriterxo

the shakespeare exhibit: part 1 - part 2 - drabble 1 - part 3 - part 4 - part 5 - part 6 (18+) - drabble 2 - part 7 - drabble 3 - part 8 - drabble 4 - part 9 - drabble 5

distrust

Written by: @delfiore

The Happiest Girl In The World

Written by: @gyuhji

Forbidden

Written by: @heavenlylie

lover

Written by: @house-of-lovin

(1) over - (2) love language - (3) safety net

protect her

Written by: @jazzyoranges

Harleys in Hawaii

Written by: @junoxans

Under The Mistletoe

Movie Marathon Madness

Anywhere You Go, I'll Follow

Without You

You Saved Me

I Got You

Written by: @kaisacobra

A Little Bird Told Me

Written by: @lesbianpepsi

‘Cause I’m a jealous, jealous, jealous girl: Part I - Part II

Written by: @lonelym00n

The Devil Likes the Pirate: (1) The Devil Likes the Pirate - (2) There’s No One Else I’d Rather Kidnap - (3) Is It Okay to Run When You’re Feeling Weak? - (4) Just Friends - (5) The End - (Epilogue) The Road to Recovery

Written by: @mikavlcs

(1) Shade Astray - (2) Purity Weeps - (3) False Meridian

Written by: @simp4wom3n

The Quiet One: Part I - Part II - Part III - Part IV

Written by: @somekindofpoet

Skin Deep: Part I (18+) - Part II (18+) - Part III (18+) - Part IV (18+) - Part V (18+)

Spin Me Round (18+)

Written by: @talesofesther

late night blues

you're all I want love to be

warmth in winter

Written by: @the-oblivious-writer

Let The Light In: (1) Princess Tara - (2) Alamort - (3) Nosy Friends & Conflicting Feelings - (4) Leave That For The Adults - (5) Shit-faced - (6) Knight In Shining Armor

Pretty Girl: (1) Pretty - (2) Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse, Betelgeuse! - (3) Unspoken Words - (4) Honesty & Confessions - (5) A Soggy Picnic

After The Storm: (1) After The Storm - (2) Repeated Mistakes - (O.S) Vigilantes & Branzino - (3) The Police Will Handle It

Touch Tank

Memories

Written by: @tonyspank

Till Death Do Us Part

Written by: @toournextadventure

Movie Night: Part I - Part II - Part III (18+) - Part IV - Drabble I (18+) - Part V - Part VI - Part VII - Part VIII

Bad Dream?: Part I - Part II

Written by: @vioartemis

The one for you

2. Sam Carpenter

Written by: @carpentersghost

Champ of Pain: [One]

Written by: @httplilyyy

Breaking At The Seams

Written by: @laenordeservedbetter

Sweet Nothing

the demon i cling to

Written by: @talesofesther

souls tied, bound to burn: Chapter 1

secrets I held in my heart

constellations

3. Amber Freeman

Written by: @bingwriterxo

a drunken kiss

no strings attached...right?

Written by: @junoxans

Cause And Effect

Beer Runs (18+)

Written by: @lockettelullaby

Nailed It Baby

Written by: @lonelym00n

Green-Eyed Monster

#masterlist #tara carpenter x reader #tara carpenter #sam carpenter #sam carpenter x reader #scream #amber freeman #amber freeman x reader

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lukethompsonupdates · 26 days

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He is best known for Netflix hit Bridgerton, but Luke Thompson’s theatre pedigree encompasses Shakespeare, Greek tragedy and Ivo van Hove’s marathon A Little Life. He talks to Fergus Morgan about his passion for the stage and his worries for its future

Luke Thompson might have shot to stardom thanks to his role as Benedict in Netflix’s smash-hit series Bridgerton, but the 35-year-old actor is most at home on stage.

“I spectate on myself,” Thompson says. “I always have done. It’s been a bit painful in my life. And the only place on earth it doesn’t happen is on stage when someone else is spectating instead and so I don’t have to worry. You’re watching me so I don’t have to watch myself. I feel free. Those are the best moments of my life.”

Fortunately, Thompson has not been short of stage work. Born in Southampton in 1988, he grew up just outside Paris, returning to the UK to study English and drama at the University of Bristol, before training at RADA. He landed his first job almost immediately after graduating in 2013: playing Lysander in Dominic Dromgoole’s staging of A Midsummer Night’s Dream at Shakespeare’s Globe in London.

Since then, alongside screen roles in BBC One’s In the Club and Bridgerton, Thompson has starred in Julius Caesar at the Globe, Oresteia and Hamlet – opposite Andrew Scott – at London’s Almeida, and King Lear and A Little Life in the West End. Both he and co-star James Norton were nominated for Olivier awards for their performances in Ivo van Hove’s acclaimed adaptation of Hanya Yanagihara’s hard-hitting novel.

“A Little Life was such an intense experience,” Thompson says. “Intense in a good way, I mean. The material was very bleak, but acting is always pleasurable because you are indulging in a fantasy, even if it’s a dark one, and that is inherently fun.”

Thompson also thinks that theatre has lost some of its belief in itself. “Theatre is supposed to be provocative. I’m not on social media, but I think it can be very aggressive and vicious, and I think theatres cave to that a bit. Deep down, theatre is the opposite of social media. It is about people being in a room, exchanging opinions and emotions. I worry that social media is spoiling that a bit, which is a shame.”

What production made you fall in love with theatre?

I remember standing in the Yard at Shakespeare’s Globe in 2009 and watching Thea Sharrock’s production of As You Like It, and thinking: ‘Oh, wow, this is really funny and it actually works. When done simply and confidently, Shakespeare still speaks to us today.’ For my first job to be at the Globe a few years later was magical.

What are you finding inspiring at the moment?

I love watching Ivo [van Hove]’s company do stuff. There is something so wild about the acting in his shows. We get very bogged down with facts in this country, but Ivo understands the dream logic of plays. Some of the most moving things I’ve seen don’t completely make sense. I find that inspiring.

What do you wish you could change about the performing arts industry?

I wish theatre had more confidence. Right now, it feels unsure about how useful it is and about how taboo, complex and provocative it should be. I feel as though theatre has lost confidence in its societal function.

What is the worst thing that has happened to you on stage?

There was a scene in A Little Life in which James ran around naked for a bit, then I would bring him clothes. During one show, I couldn’t find his underpants, so I just brought him his trousers and he put them on. But I forgot that people pulled his trousers off again later and they were expecting him to be wearing underpants. James knew it was coming and I knew it was coming and we couldn’t look at each other for the rest of the play. I hope he doesn’t mind me telling that story. It was so funny.

What is the best thing that has happened to you on stage?

There are so many. That sounds naff but I don’t care. I love the challenge of going on stage night after night and trying to make something feel alive in front of an audience.

What role do you really want to play?

I would work with Ivo again at the drop of a hat. And there are loads and loads of roles I would love to play. I did a reading of a rewriting of The Seagull the other day. The role of Konstantin is really beautiful. I’d love to play that. I’d love to play Iago one day, too. Of course, I’d love to play Hamlet but it’s boring to say that.

What projects are you involved in at the moment?

I’m playing Berowne in Emily Burns’ production of Love’s Labour’s Lost with the Royal Shakespeare Company. She has set it on a Polynesian island owned by these big tech billionaires like Mark Zuckerberg or Elon Musk, of which I am one. It’s a really smart concept that unlocks a lot of very interesting stuff in the play. Season three of Bridgerton is coming out in May and June, too. And we will be filming season four soon after that. There’s a lot still to come.

Source: The Stage

#luke thompson #interview

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wlwcatalogue · 5 months

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Screening Announcement! (Dec 10th & 17th, 2023)

Update as of 6 Dec 2023: There are still decent seats left for the 6pm & 9pm showings on Dec 10th, and for all four screenings on Dec 17th!

If anyone here will be in Hong Kong this December 10th or 17th (both Sundays), and has even a passing interest in Yam Kim Fai and Pak Suet Sin (see my post on them here), queerness in East Asia and/or the 1950’s, or Chinese opera, I strongly urge you to go to one of the eight screenings of the restored version of Butterfly and Red Pear Blossom (蝶影紅梨記)!

Not only is it a great romantic comedy (yes, really), it’s also a very rare opportunity to see a classic Cantonese opera movie – or indeed any black and white Hong Kong movie – with English subtitles and in 4K resolution. For a taster, check out this excellent dance scene (not 4K) and this video from the Hong Kong Film Archive about their restoration efforts!

On top of that, it’ll be showing in the cinema of the storied Sunbeam Theatre (新光戲院), which opened in 1972 and is Hong Kong’s last commercial Cantonese opera theatre. (It must be added that being able to go there will soon become an even rarer opportunity; the venue will sadly be closing in 2025 as heritage is apparently a joke in Hong Kong.)

Here's a quick outline of the story for those who need a bit more convincing:

Penned by the Shakespeare of Cantonese opera, Tong Tik Sang (唐滌生), this retelling of Yuan-dynasty opera Tale of Red Pear Flower (謝金蓮詩酒紅梨花) starts off fairly sober - courtesan So-chau (Pak Suet Sin) and scholar Chiu Yu-chau (Yam Kim Fai) are long-distance lovers, but before they are able to meet in person for the first time, So-chau is forced to fake her death to avoid being sent off to a barbarian warlord. But then it morphs into an unexpected romantic comedy: in her escape, So-chau ends up at a relative’s house… only to find that Chiu will be moving in as a guest there that very night. Unfortunately for her, she’s been forbidden by her uncle from disclosing her identity for fear of disrupting Chiu’s studies, and Chiu is extraordinarily – albeit adorably – dumb. Apart from the two leads being played by women, it’s really easy to read queer themes into how So-chau is desperate with longing and yet unable to directly articulate her desires and identity, permitted only to hint and nudge. (As is the movie as a whole in some ways, since Hong Kong movies of that era were very prudish; even heterosexual kisses weren’t allowed onscreen.) Chiu, kind-hearted but oblivious, echoes the familiar figure of the queer crush. Also, Pak plays So-chau with the thirstiness of a marathon runner who hasn’t had a drop of water since the start of the race, so there’s that to enjoy too :)

Tickets are available on the Cityline website for HK$70 each (linked here – change the language to English by clicking “Eng” in the menu); note that you’ll need to make an account to make a purchase. Dec 10th and Dec 17th will both have four screenings each (12pm, 3pm, 6pm, and 9pm), but seating is very limited so you should definitely buy your ticket sooner rather than later!

#wlw recommendations #asian lgbtq #hong kong #cantonese opera #chinese opera #yam kim fai #pak suet sin #hong kong queer icons #yampak #yambak #pak sheut sin #bak sheut sin #theatre

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ddarker-dreams · 1 year

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There’s an AU somewhere in which Anastasia’s type is dumb ppl and she falls for Phinks instead of Chrollo. Just. Imagine. She’s so dense and he’s so star struck it would take forever for them initially to get together. Phinks probably puts on Adam Sandler movie marathons for her—to which she doesn’t get nor like but hey. She probably makes him inedible food on the regular and he scarfs it down cause SHE made it for him. My favorite relationship dynamic is pretty strong GirlBoss with a himbo

you caught my attention in the first sentence alone ,, god this would be such a good dynamic. your mind is huge. omg. chrollo would be so sad too because wym him quoting shakespeare didn't effectively cause HWR reader to fall in love with him 😔 how could this BE...

i imagine it'd look something like this:

phinks, clenching his fists tight enough that his veins are almost popping out: will you... i mean... do you want to go out? with me?

HWR reader: that sounds agreeable.

phinks: :D !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

HWR reader: what's our intended destination? i want to be adequately prepared for whatever job you have in mind.

phinks: D:

you're so right about phinks willingly endangering himself by eating HWR reader's cooking though. he's so brave. he'd probably just internally shrug and figure he's had worse, growing up in meteor city and all. the stars shining in HWR reader's eyes when he praises her 'creativity' makes the subsequent suffering worth it.

this made me think about one of the drafts from bloodlines, the scene where phinks meets HWR reader for the first time. his curse of always being a Silly Guy around her originates here.

You bowed your head and introduced yourself as well.

“... Uh, are we s’posed to call you your highness?” Phinks was the next to speak up. Pakunoda shot him an unimpressed look whereas Shalnark fought back laughter.

“I don’t think that’s necessary,” you responded after a moment’s silence. “Can I ask why you’d need to do that?”

He jutted his thumb in Shalnark’s direction. “Shal said you’re royalty or something.”

“Hey, I said akin to royalty, big difference,” This so-called ‘Shalnark’ corrected. Phinks flushed a shade of red that rivaled the blood staining his outfit.

“You fucking— you set me up, didn’t you?”

“If you properly used your ears, maybe this wouldn’t have happened—”

They bickered at each other while Pakunoda got up and sat down next to you.

#me @ myself: release bloodlines from google doc purgatory Please #starting a HWR reader/phinks agenda #hell within reach #answered #Anonymous

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antipolin · 26 days

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Luke Thompson might have shot to stardom thanks to his role as Benedict in Netflix’s smash-hit series Bridgerton, but the 35-year-old actor is most at home on stage.

What production made you fall in love with theatre?

What are you finding inspiring at the moment?

What do you wish you could change about the performing arts industry?

What is the worst thing that has happened to you on stage?

What is the best thing that has happened to you on stage?

There are so many. That sounds naff but I don’t care. I love the challenge of going on stage night after night and trying to make something feel alive in front of an audience.

What role do you really want to play?

What projects are you involved in at the moment?

#Luke Thompson #Bridgerton #Bridgerton cast #Love's Labour's Lost

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