of the
British Empire
(DBE)
Diana Rigg
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chapters of this site: goto:
added February 1999 : Subpage TIMELESS A-PEEL This site has NO avengers ! |
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Sheffield Theatres: Suddenly Last Summer
Almeida Theatre:
(actual information at the bottom of this page, chapter Almeida)
Phèdre and Britannicus (both also BAM New York)
Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?
(also Aldwych Theatre; evening Standard Award, South Bank Show Award and Variety Club Award)
Medea
(Almeida Theatre and New York; Variety Club Award, Evening Standard Award and Tony Award
for Best Actress)
All for Love
Royal National Theatre:
Mother Courage and Her Children,
Phaedra Brittanica,
Macbeth,
The Misanthrope,
Jumpers
Other Theatres:
Berlin Bertie (Royal Court)
Follies (Shaftesbury)
Anthony and Cleopatra (Chichester Festival)
Little Eyolf (Lyric Hammersmith)
Heartbreak House, (Haymarket)
Night and Day (Phoenix)
Pygmalion, (Albery)
Abelard and Heloise (Wyndhams and NewYork)
Putting it Together (Oxford Fire Station)
Royal Shakespeare Company:
The Devils, Macbeth, The Physicists, The Taming of the Shrew,
A Midsummer Night's Dream, Becket, Comedy of Errors, King Lear, Twelfth Night
T.V.: Rebecca(ITV; Emmy Award for Best Supporting Actress) Moll Flanders (Granada) Mother Love (BBC; BAFTA Best Actress Award) Bleak House (BBC) Witness for the Prosecution, King Lear (Granada) Hedda Gabler (Yorkshire T.V.) Little Eyolf, The House of Brede(American) The Avengers
FILM includes : A Good Man in Africa, Evil Under The Sun (Variety Club Award, Best Actress) A Little Night Music, A Midsummer Night's Dream, On Her Majesty's Secret Service, The Hospital
Diana Rigg was made a DBE in 1994
See German site Diana Rigg Movies (SK: DR01) for detailed information and some pictures
In the blood
Diana Rigg starred in Hammer´s original Theatre of Blood movie in the Seventies. Now her daughter, Rachael Stirling, is reprising the role on stage at the Lyttelton.
Diana Rigg and daughter Rachael Stirling. Photograph: Jane Bown
In the blood
High on cheese and high on camp; irreverent, and irrelevant, and ...
Sunday May 15, 2005,
Read the complete article by Euan Ferguson at The Observer:
http://observer.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,1483982,00.html
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Dear Stefan,
A humble admirer of Diana Rigg |
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Actresses Diana Rigg (R) and daughter Rachael Stirling leave One Knight Only, a variety performance in aid of the Asian Tsunami Appeal, at the Theatre Royal, Haymarket on March 20, 2005 in London. |
Information by "a humble admirer of Diana Rigg". Thank You !
Michael Grandage's production of Tennessee Williams' play stars Diana Rigg and Victoria Hamilton.
Albery, Opening night: 19 April 2004, Closing: 24 April 2004
Richmond Theatre, Opening night: 19 April 2004, Closing: 24 April 2004
The play begins after Sebastian died the previous summer. His mother clings to him in death as she clung to him in life. In the sultry heat of New Orleans she plans her revenge on the girl she believes stole Sebastian from her. Diana Rigg's recent work includes Humble Boy and Mother Courage and her Children (National Theatre) and Medea (Almeida and New York) for which she won a Tony Award. Victoria Hamilton's most recent work on stage includes A Day in the Death of Joe Egg (New Ambassadors and New York) and Home and Beauty (Lyric). Since the production opened in Sheffield, it has had rave reviews.
Another Olivier Award winner, Christopher Oram, is the designer, while the Lighting Designer is Howard Harrison and the Composer is Adam Cork.
Victoria Hamiliton, most recently seen in Sweet Panic at The Duke Of York's, has also appeared in both the West End and on Broadway in A Day In The Death Of Joe Egg. Diana Rigg's most recent stage work includes Humble Boy and Mother Courage And her children (National Theatre).
Michael Grandage, who directs the piece, is Associate Director of Sheffield Theatres and recently took over from Sam Mendes as the artistic director of the Donmar Warehouse.
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| 2004-Suddenly Last Summer: The Cast Is Top Notch...An Actor´s Dream... | ||
Links:
London Theater Information - londontheatre1.com
www.bbc.co.uk
The London Theatre Guide.
You may be interested to know that UK specialist independent label, Harkit
Records plan to release Diana Rigg singing "Sentimental Journey" & Forget Yesterday" completely remastered and remixed in September on limited edition
12" vinyl and CD.
For more details soon check their site at:
http://www.harkitrecords.com
Best, Michael [michael@superfish.demon.co.uk]
2002: ICP - British Stars Sign with ICA for Touring
Zuschrift von Christian, Dezember 2001
Hallo Stefan,
Danke für Dein Mail!
Habe vor kurzem ein recht interessantes Mail bekommen, dessen Inhalt ich Dir noch unbedingt
zur Kenntnis bringen möchte.
Frohe Weihnachten und einen guten 'Rutsch' wünscht
Christian [christian.haslinger@netway.at]
Und hier die Nachricht:
...December 5, 2001, Wednesday
HEADLINE: ICP - British Stars Sign with ICA for Touring
BODY: HOMEX - Melbourne
-------------------------
British Stars Sign with ICA for Touring 2002 Icons of the British stage, Dame
Diana Rigg and Sir Derek Jacobi will
be appearing in an ICA production scheduled for mid-2002.Mounted in association
with the Royal Shakespeare Company, the play
(to be announced early in the new year) will tour Australia and New
Zealand and then to three cities in Asia. The Managing Director of International
Concert Attractions Limited,
Andrew Kay, met with the two British stars in London last week."Dame Diana and
Sir Derek are looking forward to touring with ICA,"
said Mr Kay. "They both are aware of our successful tours "down
under", and with our soon-to-be-established base in Hong Kong, ICA is
able to offer artists of this magnitude the chance to perform in the
best venues in this part of the world." Both artists have extensive
stage and screen credits to their names, but they are probably best
known to audiences in this part of the world for their award-winning
television series, The Avengers and I Claudius, respectively.
Meet the stars with LTT
Dear Stefan Kucinksi
Have just discovered your website on Dame Diana Rigg which we found very interesting.
We thought you might like to know that here at London Theatre Tours we have just organised a very exclusive and unique event featuring Dame Diana.
On Saturday September 22nd, at a central London restaurant she will answer questions about her amazing career. If you, or anyone else you know, is interested in more details then please do get in touch.
We look forward to hearing from you. Tricia Miller [trish@londontheatretours.com]
ebenso Christian:
Zuschrift von Christian Haslinger [christian.haslinger@n..at], Juli 2001
Hallo Stefan!
[...]Gratulation zu deiner wunderbaren Dame-Diana-Rigg-Seite. Endlich eine Website, in der auch ihre großen schauspielerischen Leistungen
gebührend gewürdigt werden. Ich habe Diana Rigg bis jetzt 4x auf der Bühne in London gesehen und war jedesmal restlos begeistert.
Wie du bestimmt wissen wirst, hat Diana Rigg am Royal National Theatre mit dem Stück Humble Boy am 9.August Weltpremiere. Es ist mir
nicht gelungen eine Karte für eine dieser Aufführungen zu bekommen, obwohl der offizielle Vorverkauf erst am 9.Juli begonnen hat. Ich habe es an
diesem Tag per Fax versucht, bekam aber eine negative Antwort vom RNT. Angeblich sind seit Mitte Juni alle Tickets für sämtliche Vorstellungen
(August/September) ausverkauft.
Nur zu deiner Information: Am 22.September besteht die Möglichkeit mit Dame Diana im Zuge einer Wohltätigkeitsveranstaltung einen Lunch
in einem noblen Londoner Restaurant einzunehmen.
Kostenpunkt: 55 Pfund inkludieren Beantwortung von Fragen über ihre Karriere durch Diana Rigg und einen 3-course-lunch.
(Siehe: info@londontheatretours.com)
Viele Grüße aus Linz
Christian
cont. September 2001
Hallo Stefan,
Hatte Glück. Hab das Stück 2x gesehen. Jeweils 2,5 Stunden Schlange stehen
haben sich auf alle Fälle gelohnt.
Dame Diana war nicht nur brilliant sondern sieht immer noch sehr gut aus.
Die ganze Besetzung war großartig und das Stück ist wirklich intelligent,
lustig und berührend.
Unter
Gruß Christian
Danke Christian !!
Brooklyn Academy of Music, Majestic Theatre, 5th - 17th Jan 99
| Phèdre & Britannicus | |
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Racine's Two Great Tragedies in Repertoire
Following their final performances at the Albery, Jonathan Kent's productions of Phèdre and Britannicus transferred to the Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York from 5 - 17 January 1999. Ted Hughes' new version of Phèdre opened the Almeida Season [1998] at the Albery, and was joined in repertoire by Robert David MacDonald's new version of Britannicus.
Cast: David Bradley, Holly de Jong, Avril Elgar, Julian Glover, |
Information by the Almeida Theatre, 25 Jan 1999 :
Dear Stefan,
Thank you very much for your e-mail.
Thank you very much for your interest in our theatre.With best wishes,
Kate Morley, Press & Marketing Assistant, kmorley@almeidatheatre.demon.co.uk
New York newspapers and magazines that had articles about the plays and/or reviews :
New York Times Sunday, 3 January 1999, Arts & Leisure Section, pages 5 & 8, two articles
about the plays.Thursday, 7 January 1999, Section B, pages 1 and 5, "Phedre" review; and an
article about the BAM spring season. Monday, 11 January 1999, Section B, pages 1 and 5, "Britannicus" review. Sunday, 17 January 1999, both reviews. USA Today Thursday, 7 January 1999, Life section, "Phedre" review. New York Post Thursday, 7 January 1999, "Phedre" review. Sunday, 10 January 1999, "Phedre" review. Monday, 11 January 1999, "Britannicus" review. New York Newsday Thursday, 7 January 1999, Section B, pages 2 and 11, "Phedre" review; and an article about Greek drama. Monday, 11 January 1999, "Britannicus" review. New York Daily News Monday, 11 January 1999, both reviews. Variety magazine 11 January 1999, Legit section, "Phedre" review. 18 January 1999, Legit section, "Britannicus" review. Village Voice newspaper 19 January 1999, "Phedre" review.
26 January 1999, "Britannicus" review. New Yorker magazine 11 January 1999, photo of Dame Diana and Toby Stephens. New York magazine 25 January 1999, both reviews. Hollywood Reporter 12 January 1999, "Phedre" review. intheatre.com 1 February 1999, both reviews. backstage.com "Phedre" review. thestage.co.uk both reviews.
This information was sent to me by a very dear reader of this site. Thank you, S.M. !
To all readers of this site: Has anybody one or some of the mentioned above issues ?
Please write to me :
Stefan Kucinski, Alzenau, Germany
Links, that I visited:
The Brooklyn Academy of Music: http://www.bam.org
The New York Times : http://www.nytimes.com
Almeida: http://www.almeida.co.uk
Almeida at the Albery: Phèdre, 3rd Sep 98 - 12th Dec 98
Almeida Theatre Information: Almeida
Ted Highes' translation of Racine's Phaedra, starring Diana Rigg and directed by Jonathan
Kent, opened at Malvern and was transfered to the West End. This project reunited the team which created
the award winning production of Euripedes' Medea.
Albery Theatre: Phèdre by Racine
adapted by Ted Hughes, directed by Jonathan Kent, designed by Maria Björnson, lit by Mark Henderson, music by Jonathan Dove, presented by the Almeida Theatre. With Diana Rigg, Toby Stephens and Julian Glover.
For all Diana Rigg's power, she is too calculating to be convincingly consumed by a sexual obsession, in love with Hippolytus her stepson. Björnson inspired design injects a dose of romanticism into the formality of Theseus' palace while Kent's production is stepped in an old-fashioned bravura. Most astonishing is Toby Stephens' chaste Hippolytus, whose pectorals quiver with horror when Phèdre confesses her love, but who's consumed by bashfulness when confessing his own love to Joanna Roth's excellent Aricia. Most affecting is David Bradley's simple account of Hippolytus' death. Suddenly Racine's tragedy moves well as impresses.
The first performance of Phèdre was at the Almeida's new festival for Malvern
on August 6, 1998. The first performance of this productuon of Britannicus was
at the Albery Theatre on October 29th, 1998.
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Albery
St Martin's Lane, WC2N 4AH Tube Leicester Sq Telephone 0171 369 1730
PHEDRE
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Quotes: "The West End had dared to be dangerous" "Diana Rigg….the most daring and magnificent performance of her career" "Jonathan Kent's powerful and pulverising production" "Toby Stephens' performance as Hippolytus is a revelation" "A superb supporting cast" "Toby Stephens' Nero must surely be the best performance of his career to date." "I doubt if anybody could have predicted the blazing success of this extraordinary venture" |
Diana Rigg Receives Best Actress Award
Dame Diana Rigg, 58, received the London Evening Standard Drama Award for Best Actress for her 1996 stage roles in Mother Courage and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf. The ceremony was held November 29th at the Savoy Hotel. The award was presented to her by Sean Connery. This is the second time in four years that Rigg has received the award. Paul Scofield was voted Best Actor for his title performance in the play John Gabriel Borkman.
"They do say the profession gets increasingly difficult but my career seems to have been inside out, I'm playing the bigger parts now that I'm older," said Rigg. "That's probably right because I wasn't ready for them before so I'm grateful for them now." She added: "Stage work is very tiring and it eats into your life, so I'd like to do more television and films."
Rigg is currently garnering excellent reviews as "Martha" in
Edward Albee's Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf, at the Aldwych Theatre in London.
Appearing opposite Rigg is David Suchet, who plays George. Suchet is best known to US
audiences as Agatha Christie's "Poirot" on MYSTERY!
The play premiered at the Aldwych on
October 30th, and began regular performances on November 6th. Bookings are being taken
through March 1997. A review of the play is available at
The London Theatre Guide.
Dame Diana Rigg and daughter Rachael at the Evening Standard Drama Award's ceremony.
(Photo from The London Times)
Additional information, [20th Jan 1999, by Barry] :
Rachael performed on stage for the National Youth Theatre in "The Odd
Couple" (female version, 1997) and "Dancing at Lughnasa" (1998), both at the Arts Theatre in
London.
General information about the awards: see page http://www.albemarle-london.com/awards.html
Diana Rigg and David Suchet (Poirot on TV's Mystery!) star in this major revival of Edward Albee's savage masterpiece. George, a middle-aged history professor (Suchet) and his wife, Martha (Rigg), invite a young couple over for a dinner, which quickly becomes a wild ride of darkly funny sarcasm, horrible revelations and scary mind games. "After her triumphant Medea and...Mother Courage, Diana Rigg continues to stretch herself with what surely will prove a peak in an already impressive career. She is witty, devastating and, finally, moving...." (Time Out). "The best acting I have seen this year." (Irbing Wardle, Sunday Telegraph).
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Comments:
In Partnership with AT&T.Evening Standard Award for Best Actress- Diana Rigg.Quotes: "This outstanding new production starring Diana Rigg and David Suchet at the top of their form" Daily Telelegraph | |||||||||||||||
[pictures: with regards by Barry, Jan 1999]
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Comments:
Evening Standard Award for Best Actress - Diana Rigg.
Tony Award (see picture) for Best Actress.
New York Drama Desk Award - Best Original Sound Design- John A. Leonard.
The Variety Club Award for Best Actress- Diana Rigg.
The Times Readers' Accolade for Best Actor or Actress in the West End-Diana Rigg.
Transferred to Wyndham's Theatre, West End.
Quotes:
"A classy evening...It is quality stuff and I admired it greatly." The Guardian
"Jonathan Kent's powerful production of Medea is likely to live on in the memory." The Independent
"This intelligent, rigorously controlled production has delivered a powerful emotional punch."
Daily Telegraph
"A classic." The Sunday Times
"Jonathan Kent's magnificent production." Evening Standard
Jonathan Miller :
... the most interesting theatrical space in LondonDiana Rigg :
Again and again actors, directors and designers return to work at the Almeida. The pay is Equity minimum and the conditions backstage are basic. So why are we there ? Quite simply because the work comes first.Ralph Fiennes :
Thank God for the Almeida
Diana Rigg in Medea
April 9 - May 16, Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, London: Rosa: Berlin Bertie (Howard Brenton); Danny Boyle; Sandy: Kevin Allen; Alice: Penny Downie; Joanne: Susan Lynch; Berlin Bertie: Nicholas Woodeson.
Berlin Bertie (Royal Court, 1992) is a play about the impact of the fall of the Berlin Wall in terms of uniting two sisters, both fleeing aspects of their lives, presided over by Bertie, a superannuated Stasi agent. Unusually for Brenton, this was a largely psychological study of their confrontation, based on a true-life story, and their final comic salvation is decidedly theatrical.
Berlin Bertie
By Howard Brenton
In the early 1990’s the world was in turmoil, the Berlin wall had come down and similarly barriers of belief were breaking down all over Europe and the Middle East. Such is the setting for Brenton’s savagely funny psychological study of two sisters, one in flight from her adopted home in East Berlin, the other from the terrifying responsibilities of social work in London. And hanging over all is the sinister figure of ‘Bertie’, a superannuated Stasi agent. An Easter week-end of explosive confrontation ends in an oddly comic salvation.
Based on a real life story researched by Brenton in Berlin and set in the midst of the shifting sands of social change, this is a play with stark resources ten years later.
Dame Diana Rigg during an interview transmitted by channel ORF2 (Austria) in 1998.
The picture with the phone (A171) is from The Hothouse, Armchair Theatre 1964.
This information was sent to me on videotape by Gerhard, Vienna. Thanks a lot !
Greetings Stefan
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..that's all what I've got:
Directed and designed by Peter Brook.
Diana Rigg as Cordelia.
Royal Shakespeare Company
Cast: King Lear: Paul Schofield; Kent: Tom Fleming; Edmund: Jamed Booth; Goneril: Irene Worth; Albany: Peter Jeffrey; Fool: Alec McCowen; Regan: Patience Collier; Cornwall: Tony Church
Very special thanks to the Royal Shakespeare Company for the
pictures ! RSC:
http://www.rsc.org.uk
When Diana Rigg gave up RSC [Royal Shakespeare Company] for her role at the Avengers, her place at the RSC was taken by Glenda Jackson.
ELIZABETH R 1971
Who says Glenda Jackson never wears make-up ? Cold, ball-breaking, indisputably regal, her
Elizabeth was the apotheosis of a decade famous for its high-quality TV drama.
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Audiobooks :
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Diana Rigg was born July 20th, 1938 in Doncaster, Yorkshire. She has one older brother, Hugh, born in 1934. Her Father is Louis Rigg, an engineer who built railroads in India when Rigg was a little girl. Her Mother iss Beryl Rigg (nee Helliwell). When she was two months old, ...
The complete and actual bio can be found at
http://www.mindspring.com/~jglane/avenger.htm Jackie Lane, Mindspring, Avengers
- an excellent site - english language - Best wishes and regards to Jackie Lane ! Stefan.
Correspondence can be sent to Diana Rigg in the U.K. in care of
London Management
235 Regent Street
London W1A 2JT
England
and in the United States in care of:
Lionel Larner, Ltd.
130 West 57th Street
New York, NY 10019
Other References:
Current Biography, 1974
Who's Who, 1995
The Complete Avengers, Dave Rogers, 1989
Awards
Almeida
Tube Angel
Telephone Box Office 0171 359 4404
Please follow this link to the Almeida Theatre for actual information
Actual Note, November 2000
From: Logan, Anthea [alogan.legal@p-and-o.com]
[...] The Almeida is due to close for refurbishment in February 2001 and followers are obviously
wondering what plans there are in place for re-location whilst the work is
done.
Thank you very much, dear Anthea ! If there is news about that matter, please let me know - I will update this page and publish the information here ! Stefan
Almeida: An International Theatre
The Almeida was first opened in 1837 as the Islington Library and Scientific Institution. The premises comprised a lecture theatre, a library, a museum and a laboratoy. Over the years it has been used as a music hall, a Salvation Army citadel and a factory for carnival novelties.
During the 1980's, in the course of a phased building plan, the Almeida became a 300 seat theatre taking full advantage of the existing architectual framework. A performance space was created where the relationship between artists and audience is at once heightened and intimate.
In 1990 the Almeida Theatre Islington, North London, became a full-time producing theatre under the artistic leadership of Jonathan Kent and Ian McDiarmid, offering audiences a stimulationg environment for the performance of challenging seasons of classical and new plays, opera and new music.
The Almeida is not confined by its bricks and mortiar. Projects such as the Almeida Theatre Company's Hackney Hamlet in 1995 paved the way for the Almeida's current development as an artistic nerve-centre with the aim of taking more of our work to more people. The Almeida has just established an annual summer residency in Worcestershire, providing a season of international drama in new Malvern Festival and is currently presenting a season at the Albery Theatre in the West End to run in parallel with the Almeida Islington. The Almeida's acclaimed production of O'Neill's The Iceman Cometh with Kevin Spacey, opens on Broadway in March 1999. The Almeida Theatre is the recipent of the 1998 London Evening Standard Award for the Achievment of the Year.
The company regulary tours nationally and internationally and visited New York in 1994 with Medea (Diana Rigg - Tony Award, Best Actress) and in 1995 with Hamlet (Ralf Fiennes - Tony Award, Best Actor).
Since 1990 the Almeida Theatre has won over 30 theatre awards including the 1993 Laurence Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement.
Address
The Almeida Theatre Company Ltd
Almeida Street
Islington
London
N1 1TA
Box Office
Almeida Theatre
ALMEIDA ISLINGTON: How to Book
By Phone: 0171 359 4404 (24 hrs)
Ticketmaster: 0171 494 5381 (no booking fee)
Directions to Almeida Islington
Almeida Theatre
Almeida Street
Islington
London N1 1TA
Tube:
Highbury & Islington (Victoria line)
Angel (Northern line)
Rail:
Essex Road
If you would like regular information about forthcoming productions we have a mailing list - £6 (£10 for non-European countries) for a year. Further details can be obtained from the box office on 0171 359 4404. We look forward to seeing you at the Almeida soon.
With best wishes, Kate Morley, Press & Marketing Assistant
Kate Morley [kmorley@almeidatheatre.demon.co.uk]
8/2002 Betreff: Diana Rigg
Hi Stefan,
I just stumbled over your Diana Rigg website. Looks great, especially that
it is dedicated to her stage proficiency rather than as one usually finds it
to her Avenger's career.
It's quite a curious story how I recently came across Diana Rigg. I am quite
a fan of English literature, esp. English theatre, above all Shakespeare. In
May I went once more to London to see some productions there (at the Globe
and the Royal Heymarket). I happened to visit the London Theatre Museum. Part
of the exhibition there was a section where they showed a video about the
English stage and theatre history and scene; and, guess what, it was Dame Diana
Rigg who appeared in that video talking with her beautiful, smooth and
elegant pronunciation about the English theatre tradition, she actually guided
through the whole video.
It really struck me and made me remember the Avengers of the sixties when I
was a teenager devouring these crime comedies quite unparallelled at the
time. I suddenly realised that Diana Rigg has never been a great movie star
although becoming famous by her Avengers role, and that she obviously has played
quite an important role in the English theatre scene over the last 30 or more
years.
It was sort of eyeopener. It made me do some search on the internet. And
here we are.
I am sure, from now onI will keep an eye on her when looking for interesting
things coming up in London or elsewhere. I never saw her live onstage, but
now I would love to.
Kind regards Karl Bernhard Beils [kbbeils@gmx.de]
: page forward ]
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Webhosting:
Diese Seite habe ich bei 1&1 angemeldet, Version ohne Werbeeinblendungen. Mehr Infos dazu: siehe Link 1&1 ! Bei Fragen dazu: Mail an mich, bitte mit Betreff "Webhostingfrage": Stefan Kucinski, Alzenau, Germany |
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