SHORT TAKES : London Theaters Hit by Jinx
LONDON — Falling scenery, curtains that won’t go up and revolving stages that refuse to turn have caused a series of mishaps in London theaters in the last 10 days, prompting a safety investigation.
The latest incident occurred Thursday night at a gala opening at the Royalty Theater of “A Clockwork Orange.” The curtain refused to go up for the second half of the Royal Shakespeare Company production.
The star-studded audience downed free drinks offered by the embarrassed management as stage staff struggled for 15 minutes before getting the curtain to go up.
On Monday, the Stephen Sondheim musical “Sunday in the Park with George” at the Lyttelton Theater was halted in mid-performance when a wooden tree, part of the scenery, fell from a hook as it was being carried off the stage, narrowly missing an actor.
On April 24, a hydraulic jack at the Olivier Theater broke down, preventing the revolving stage from turning. The play “The School for Scandal” was canceled in mid-performance.
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