Loot (Modern Classics)

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None of the characters are particularly likable, as the father considers whether to remarry and the nurse is trying to position herself to find a sugar daddy, but perhaps the worst is the police inspector, who will use whatever methods necessary to find the cash.Joe Orton Exhibit: Grand Unveiling with Kenneth Cranham and Leonie Orton Barnett Saturday 24 September 2016 David Wilson Library Foyer, University of Leicester

Taylor, Paul; "Loot, Park Theatre, London, review: Michael Fentiman's stylish and entertaining revival", The Independent, 28 August 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2018 some things are worth saying – shouting, jeering – in every generation"★★★★ Libby Purves, Theatre CatIn Joe Orton’s dark farce Loot, I’m playing a corpse. Mrs McLeavy is her name, and she’s at the centre of a bank robbery involving her son, a fellow thief, her husband and a nurse. When the play was first performed, the lord chamberlain insisted that a mannequin be used as the corpse, rather than casting an actor. We’re presenting the play as Orton intended, with other cuts also reinstated.

Definitive weapons-grade offensive Orton. Would Joe be proud with this production? Undoubtedly" ★★★★ QX Magazine Orton and Halliwell wrote a number of unsuccessful works together but achieved bizarre notoriety in 1962 when they were convicted and imprisoned for the seemingly innocuous crime of defacing library books. The court passed down a harsh, 6-month sentence for what was ostensibly a prank. However, in an age where homosexuality was still illegal, the fact that the prank included pasting semi-erotic pictures on to covers of what they considered to be 'very dull' books probably influenced the judiciary. Orton later commented that they had been persecuted harshly because they had been discovered to be gay men openly living together. Leonie told the Sunday Times: “This is what Joe originally wrote, but it was censored at the time. It’s a sad anniversary, yet good that what Joe actually felt and wrote is to be staged for the first time.” Described as a "tour de force of bad taste and high farce", 'Loot' is considered as irreverent, amoral and bizarre. Orton thought even more highly of it: "I have a lot of vices but false modesty is not one of them. And the best thing about Loot is the quality of the writing." Tampering with the conventions of popular farce, Orton creates a hectic world and examines English attitudes and perceptions in the mid twentieth century.Loot was Orton's third major production, following Entertaining Mr Sloane and the television play The Good and Faithful Servant. Playing with the conventions of popular farce, Orton creates a hectic world and examines English attitudes and perceptions in the mid-twentieth century. The play won several awards in its London run and has had many revivals. I Had It in Me, Leonie Orton (Barnett), 2016, Leicester: Quirky Press, pp. 173, 186, see Chapter 14, 'The Latter Part' about the mystery of Joe's London diary

After graduating, both Orton and Halliwell went into regional repertory work: Orton spent four months in Ipswich as an assistant stage manager; Halliwell in Llandudno, Wales. Both returned to London and began to write together. They collaborated on a number of unpublished novels (often imitating Ronald Firbank) with no success at gaining publication. The rejection of their great hope, The Last Days of Sodom, in 1957 led them to solo works. [9] Orton wrote his last novel, The Vision of Gombold Proval (posthumously published as Head to Toe), in 1959. He later drew on these manuscripts for ideas; many show glimpses of his stage-play style. Kenneth Cranham, winner of the 2016 Olivier Award for Best Actor, reminisced on more than 50 years in theatre, shared memories of his unique relationship with Leicester-born playwright Joe Orton, and discussed his favourite leading roles from Hal in Orton’s Loot (1966) to André in Florian Zeller’s The Father (2015-16), winner of three Moliere awards, including Best Play. This event was chaired by Emma Parker and featured Orton’s sister, Leonie Orton Barnett, and was organised in conjunction with the University of Leicester to mark the 50th anniversary of the London premiere of Loot. Wiegand, Chris; "How to play dead: the corpse’s view of Joe Orton’s Loot", The Guardian, 7 September 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2018 Lootis an example of a playwright working at his best. It's a farcical romp, still absolutely relevant today...This robust, riotous outing is much-welcome"★★★★WhatsOnStageIn 2017, film-maker Chris Shepherd made an animated short inspired by Orton's Edna Welthorpe letters, 'Yours Faithfully, Edna Welthorpe (Mrs)', starring Alison Steadman as Edna. [49] The pinnacle of satire, the darkly comic tale unfolds like a Coen Brothers remake of 'Fawlty Towers'. The audience was whooping, cheering, whistling & clapping like possessed seals…at the interval!"★★★★★ EntertainmentFocus