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The Mousetrap at 60, Calixto Bieito on Carmen, New Russian Art

As The Mousetrap turns 60, Front Row sends three crime writers to see it; radical Catalan theatre director Calixto Bieito on Carmen; and an exhibition of contemporary Russian art.

With Mark Lawson.

Agatha Christie's classic murder mystery play The Mousetrap has now been continuously in performance in London for 60 years, and the first ever touring production of the show is currently on a 60 date tour. Front Row sent three crime writers - Frances Fyfield, Mark Billingham and Suzette A Hill - to see The Mousetrap at three different locations. All three join Mark to debate whether the production has aged well.

The theatre director Calixto Bieito is renowned for his radical productions of classic operas. His version of Verdi's Un Ballo in Maschera opened with a row of singers on toilet seats, trousers down. As his sexually-explicit production of Carmen opens, Bieito reveals how travels to Morocco, seeing his first bull fight and the plight of women in Spain fed into his vision of Bizet's very popular opera - and the relevance of Henrik Ibsen's unusual pet.

A new exhibition of contemporary Russian art at the Saatchi Gallery showcases work by emerging young artists. Gaiety is the Most Outstanding Feature of the Soviet Union: Art from Russia, charts their response to the break-up of the Soviet Union. Author and former Moscow correspondent A.D. Miller discusses what the work tells us about politics and society in a changing Russia.

Producer Ella-mai Robey.

Available now

30 minutes

Last on

Wed 21 Nov 2012 19:15

Featured

  • The Mousetrap

    Three crime writers discuss why The Mousetrap has attracted audiences for 60 years.

  • Calixto Bieito

    Interview with director Calixto Bieito.

  • Gaiety is the Most Outstanding Feature of the Soviet Union

    A.D. Miller reviews exhibition Gaiety is the Most Outstanding Feature of the Soviet Union.

Image above

Photcredit: Dave Wise.

The current cast of Agatha Christie's The Mousetrap 2011-12.

From left to right: Anne Kavanagh (Mrs Boyle), Toby W Davies (Giles Ralston), Natasha Rickman (Miss Casewell), Philip Sarson (Sgt Trotter), Zara Plessard (Mollie Ralston), Stephen Yeo (Wren), Michael Fenner (Mr Paravicini), Andrew Bones (Major Metcalf).

Broadcast

  • Wed 21 Nov 2012 19:15

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