Grinnell College to Stream British Production of “The Audience” on March 8

College Enhances the Community by Showing Productions of the National Theatre in London

Published:

February 26, 2020

Scene from "The Audience": Helen Mirren plays Queen Elizabeth II and Margaret Thatcher is played by Haydn Gwynne

Helen Mirren plays Queen Elizabeth II, who consults with and provides consolation for Margaret Thatcher, played by Haydn Gwynne.

Event Information

Time: 3 p.m.
Date: Sunday, March 8, 2020
Place: Harris Center Cinema, 1114 10th Ave., Grinnell

The Audience is a lively imagining of the private weekly meetings between Queen Elizabeth II and each of her twelve prime ministers. Known as The Audience, these meetings are highly secretive. No one knows what they discuss, not even their spouses.

Spanning her 60-year reign, the production proceeds nonlinearly: from Winston Churchill to Margaret Thatcher and finally David Cameron. In between these official appointments are the monarch’s conversations with her eleven-year-old self, who looks forward with trepidation at her future.

The advising goes both ways, with the Queen providing and receiving counsel on all matters public and personal. Praised by reviewers in the United Kingdom, The Daily Telegraph calls it “wholly tremendous … Mirren also captures the Queen’s moments of vulnerability.” According to The Times, “The Audience” is “funny and truthful. I loved every minute.”

Grinnell College welcomes the participation of people with disabilities. Accommodation requests may be made to Conference Operations.

The College welcomes the presence of minors at all age-appropriate public events and for informal visits, with the understanding that a parent, legal guardian, or other responsible adult assumes full responsibility for their child’s safety and behavior during such visits or events. In these cases the College expects that an adult responsible for the visiting child takes measures to ensure the child’s safety and sees that the child complies with directions of College personnel. Grinnell College is not responsible for supervision of minors on campus.

This venue is equipped with an induction hearing loop system, which enables individuals with hearing aids set to T-Coil to hear the program.