The Playlist: 2016 at the theatre

As with previous years, ‘The Playlist’ is a musical summary of the year’s theatre-going. The rule is (mostly) simple: find a piece of music that encapsulates either the production or my response to it, or both as the case often is. The only catch is I cannot re-use a piece from a previous year, even if it is the same text (return seasons of a production are excused).

Thus follows The Playlist for 2016.

1.      Jasper Jones: Oranges, Cezary Skubiszewski

2.      Fase, four movements to the music of Steve Reich: Clapping Music, Steve Reich *

3.      The Fantasticks: Soon It’s Gonna Rain, Harvey Schmidt *

4.      The Rabbits: Where?, from The Rabbits, Kate Miller-Heidke *

5.      Thomas Murray and the Upside Down River: Deciso, from Sonata for Strings No. 3, Peter Sculthorpe *

6.      The Golden Age: Kanangra, Nigel Westlake

7.      The Barber of Seville: Overture from The Barber of Seville, Gioachino Rossini*

8.      Arcadia: Arcadia, Adrian Johnston

9.      The Blind Giant is Dancing: Fanfare from Miss Julie, THE SWEATS

10.  Ladies Day: Rough Sex, Decoder Ring

11.  Year of the Family: The Family, Nick Cave & Warren Ellis

12.  Little Shop of Horrors: Prologue / Little Shop of Horrors, Alan Menken & Howard Ashman *

13.  Romeo and Juliet: Canterbury, Christopher Gordon

14.  Picnic at Hanging Rock: Climbing the Rock, Bruce Smeaton

15.  Lungs: Between Two Lungs, Florence + The Machine

16.  Machu Picchu: I Carry You With Me, Dustin O’Halloran

17.  Golem: Rooftop Chase, Daniel Pemberton

18.  Unfinished Works: Goodbye, Kevin Shields

19.  The Great Fire: Bushfire, Bryony Marks

20.  Bard to the Bone: Brush Up Your Shakespeare, Cole Porter

21.  King Charles III: Coronation, from King Charles III, Jocelyn Pook *  

22.  Disgraced: Love, Joseph Tawadros

23.  The Cherry Orchard: The Trees, Max Richter

24.  Belleville: Journey 2, Max Richter

25.  Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead: More Court Music, Bernard Hughes

26.  Telescope: The End of the World, Skeeter Davis *

27.  The Events: We're All Here, from The Events (Instrumental), John Browne *

28.  The Taming of the Shrew: Silent Rumble, Ludovic Bource

29.  Bartholomew Fair: Overture / London, from The Life and Adventures of Nicholas Nickleby, Stephen Oliver

30.  Things I Know To Be True: More, Nils Frahm *

31.  The Literati: Symphony – Canzona, from The Fairy Queen, Henry Purcell

32.  All My Sons: Prospectors Arrive, Jonny Greenwood

33.  Scorched: Daresh, Grégoire Hetzel

34.  The Olympians: Olympians [High Contrast Remix], F.Buttons

35.  Hamlet: Prince of Skidmark: Fanfare, from Hamlet [Edited], William Walton

36.  Back at the Dojo: Land, Patti Smith *

37.  Inner Voices: Pilgrim’s Chorus, from Tannhäuser, Richard Wagner *

38.  Away: Finale, from A Midsummer Night’s Dream [Edited], Felix Mendelssohn *

39.  Carmen: Prélude, from Carmen Suite No. 1, Georges Bizet *

40.  A History of Falling Things: Childhood, Alexandre Desplat

41.  Twelfth Night: Theme from Twelfth Night, Giya Kancheli

42.  A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Mad Ole Titus, Elliot Goldenthal

43.  Edward II: Cocktail Party Blues, Simon Fisher Turner

44.  Three Sisters: Masha’s Song, Dario Marianelli

45.  The Hanging: Through the Pines, Flynn Wheeler & Christopher O’Young

46.  Beirut Adrenaline: Like Spinning Plates, Radiohead

47.  Look Back in Anger: Oh! Darling, The Beatles

48.  Spring Awakening: Fuck Me, Mary and the Boy

49.  Dancing at Lughnasa: Dancing at Lughnasa, Bill Whelan

50.  A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Over Hill Over Dale, Stu Barker *

51.  Metamorphoses: Movement I, from Mythodea, Vangelis

52.  The Drover’s Wife: Native Funeral, Johnny Klimek & Reinhold Heil

53.  A Midsummer Night’s Dream: Overture: Atmospheres, György Ligeti *

54.  Power Plays: No Church In the Wild, JAY Z & Kanye West *

55.  The Turquoise Elephant: It's The End Of The World As We Know It (And I Feel Fine), R.E.M.

56.  Cymbeline – RSC Live in Cinemas: Prologue, Dave Price *

57.  Faith Healer: No Thought of Ireland, Alexandre Desplat

58.  Switzerland: The Murderer Awaits, Daniel Pemberton (rpt)

59.  Othello: Armory, Daft Punk

60.  A Flea in Her Ear: Bees and Cake, Patrick Doyle

61.  Girl Asleep: Dreamer, Supertramp *

62.  Taming of the Shrew: I've Come to Wive it Wealthily In Padua, Cole Porter

63.  Macbeth: Drumming, Part I, Steve Reich *

64.  Babes in the Woods: A Slice of Pudding, The Magic Pudding Band

65.  Antony & Cleopatra: Boundless, Joseph Tawadros

* INDICATES TRACKS THAT WERE FEATURED IN THE PRODUCTION.