The Crucible starring Richard Armitage coming to cinemas later this year

WHAT'S ON STAGE
THEATER NEWS
By Ben Hewis • 5 Sep 2014 • London, Off-West End



The Old Vic has announced that Digital Theatre are to film their critically acclaimed production of The Crucible, directed by Yaël Farber, starring Richard Armitage. The production will be broadcast to cinemas around the world and available as a download, with dates and territories to be announced later this year.

Set in the town of Salem, Massachusetts, where in 1692, 19 adults and two dogs were hanged for witchcraft, and one man was pressed to death for refusing to plead. The Crucible tells the story of one man's fight to save his identity in a repressive Puritan community.

Arthur Miller's play was inspired by the actions of The House Committee on Un-American Activities of the McCarthy era, in front of which the playwright was invited to give evidence. It was most recently seen in London at the Open Air Theatre in 2010, with Patrick O'Kane as Proctor.


READ MORE HERE: http://www.whatsonstage.com/london-theatre/news/richard-armitage-crucible-old-vic-film_35608.html

Richard Armitage Talks Legacy

By Jack Phillips, Epoch Times | August 11, 2014



Richard Armitage, who plays Thorin Oakenshield, talked about what the legacy The Hobbit trilogy will have 10 years from now.

“I think when ‘The Lord of the Rings’ was made, it just felt like such a breakthrough in terms of cinematography. Since then, there’s been a huge shift in the technology. I think ‘The Hobbit’ has been a big experiment in technology,” he said, according to ScreenCrush.

Armitage also talked about method acting–or staying in character.

“And there was one day on The Hobbit when we were at the top of a mountain and we were left there all day in our costumes. So, we sort of stayed in character all day and we did helicopter shots and that was when I thought, ‘You know what? If I can stay with the character for 12 hours, maybe I’m inside of him? It doesn’t come and go,’” he said.

His interview comes just a few days after it was announced there would be an Extended Edition for The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug.” According to CNET, it adds about 25 minutes to the lengthy film.


READ MORE HERE: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n3/865431-hobbit-3-battle-of-the-five-armies-star-richard-armitage-talks-legacy/

Richard Armitage: A friend to help weather Storm

THE SUNDAY TIMES
PUBLISHED ON AUG 10, 2014 1:35 PM
BY YIP WAI YEE

American actress Sarah Wayne Callies assumes all English actors know one other, she says.

She is being facetious, of course, but she hit the nail on the head when she discovered that her latest co-star, Richard Armitage, is in fact friends with her former The Walking Dead leading man, Andrew Lincoln.

Speaking to Life! in a telephone interview this week to promote her new movie, Into The Storm, in which she stars with Armitage, she says with a chuckle: "After Richard was cast, I called Andy (Lincoln) to ask about him and it turns out they really knew each other from when they did Strike Back (2010) together.

"Andy told me that Richard is such a gentleman and he's so talented and all that. Unbeknown to me, Richard had done the exact same thing about me to Andy."

READ MORE HERE: http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/television/story/friend-help-weather-storm-20140810

2 New Clips From ‘Into The Storm’ – Starring Richard Armitage & Sarah Wayne Callies

FLICKS AND BITS



From Warner Bros. Pictures comes these two new clips from the tornado disaster film ‘Into the Storm.’ Opening on August 8th in the US and August 22nd in the UK, the Steven Quale-directed flick stars Richard Armitage, Sarah Wayne Callies, Matt Walsh, Alycia Debnam-Carey, Arlen Escarpeta, Max Deacon, Nathan Kress, Jeremy Sumpter, Kyle Davis, Jon Reep and Scott Lawrence.

In the span of a single day, the town of Silverton is ravaged by an unprecedented onslaught of tornadoes. The entire town is at the mercy of the erratic and deadly cyclones, even as storm trackers predict the worst is yet to come. Most people seek shelter, while others run towards the vortex, testing how far a storm chaser will go for that once-in-a-lifetime shot. Told through the eyes and lenses of professional storm chasers, thrill-seeking amateurs, and courageous townspeople, “Into the Storm” throws you directly into the eye of the storm to experience Mother Nature at her most extreme.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.flicksandbits.com/2014/08/02/2-new-clips-from-into-the-storm-starring-richard-armitage-sarah-wayne-callies/74312/

Richard Armitage: Crucible is 'a full-body experience'

BBC NEWS
By Tim Masters
Arts and entertainment correspondent, BBC News
July 3, 2014



After 12 years away from the stage, making his name in Spooks and The Hobbit, Richard Armitage is back in a "visceral" new production of Arthur Miller's The Crucible at the Old Vic.

Three days before starting rehearsals, Armitage drove from his home in New York to Danvers, Massachusetts,

Originally known as Salem Village, Danvers is most associated with the famous witch trials of 1692 - the inspiration for Miller's classic play that draws parallels with McCarthy's anti-communist investigations in postwar America.

Armitage, in his dressing room before a preview performance at the Old Vic, explains that the trip was useful preparation for his role as the Puritan tragic hero John Proctor.

"I got this sense that they were real people who had experienced this terrible contagion. These were a tough frontier people who had very little concept of what was beyond their small realm. Because of their staunch religious nature they truly believed it was the Devil that would come for them."

Armitage first encountered Proctor when he played a scene from The Crucible at drama school some 20 years ago.

"I had no idea it was a three-hour 'opera'... it resonates now and it will resonate in 10 years."

The Crucible, directed by Yael Farber, is the latest play to be presented in the round at the Old Vic.


READ MORE HERE: http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-28104957

Richard Armitage, interview: 'I think I'm quite a frightening person'

THE TELEGRAPH
By Chris Harvey5:00PM BST 25 Jun 2014

Richard Armitage photographed for the Telegraph, June 2014 

Photo: Dan Burn Forti

Richard Armitage arrives in the tiny, cluttered stage manager’s office of The Old Vic straight from rehearsals for Arthur Miller’s The Crucible. He’s bearded and dressed in thick shapeless trousers, heavy boots, and a rough collarless cotton shirt open at the neck to reveal a broad chest. He’s a tall and imposing physical presence. Anyone who knew the 42 year-old only as the dwarf Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit films might have quite a shock. Television viewers who associate him with double agent Lucas North in Spooks, nasty Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood, or the character based on SAS man Andy McNab in Sky One’s Strike Back would know different.

This role is a departure. Armitage is to play the tormented John Proctor in the playwright’s terrifying account of the 17th century Salem witch trials, in which Proctor’s adulterous relationship with a young woman sparks a vengeful chain of events that leads to the deaths of many.

He says he feels like he has been waiting for it all his life. “It’s such an epic role. It feels as big as Lear to me in terms of what that man goes through.”

The Crucible is an unfolding nightmare of accusatory spite that is seen as an allegory of the anti-Communist witch trials in Hollywood in the 1950s. Can it escape that allegory and find another, I ask him.

“It’s ultimately a timeless play, I think,” says Armitage. “It has lines that feel relevant in 1692, relevant in the Fifties, relevant today and relevant tomorrow, in 10 years, in 20 years, while we’re still destroying each other in the way that we do, in that insidious human way.”

He promises that acclaimed director Yael Farber’s production will be a full-blooded affair. “You can’t play this story without addressing sexuality in this particular society in this time, the masculinity of the men, the femininity of the women, the vulnerability of prepubescent girls. Yael is cooking something which at the moment feels like it’s - and should be - too hot to handle.”

Armitage is a noticeably calm presence but he talks with passion. I ask him how it feels to be facing The Crucible’s agonising climax over and over for the next couple of months. “It’s a big mountain to climb every night,” he says. “There’s a shattering of the character, and almost a reassembling of him towards the end.
“I leave the rehearsal room – and I carry him with me, I carry his thoughts, I dream his dreams a little bit.”

READ MORE HERE: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/theatre/theatre-
features/10915442/Richard-Armitage-interview-I-think-Im-quite-a-frightening-person.html

Richard Armitage on 'Hobbit' injury, darker film: 3 highlights (Video)

12/11/2013 by OnTheRedCarpet.com Staff

Richard Armitage has his dwarf makeup to thank after he suffered a minor injury on the set of "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug."

The 42-year-old actor plays Thorin II Oakenshield, a dwarf who joins main hero Bilbo Baggins on a dangerous quest. "The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug" is the second installment in Peter Jackson's trilogy, a prequel to "The Lord of the Rings."

Check out 3 highlights from OTRC.com's interview with Richard Armitage, including his favorite part of the film process, and see his full interview in the video above.

1. He was injured on set of the film ... but it would have been worse without the dwarf prosthetics on his face.

When asked if he was injured on set beyond a stubbed toe or scratch, Armitage pointed at his face and said, "Well this little fella between my eyes, which is considerably smaller now, was me cutting myself with Orcrist [an Elven sword his character uses as a weapon]."

"It happened underneath the prosthetic," he added. "One of our on-set doctors came & and it was bleeding through the silicone and he said, 'I'm going to have to take you to the hospital and stitch this up.' He didn't realize I was wearing a silicone forehead."

2. The movie is darker than "The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey."

"I think musically, Pete really knows what he's doing and I mean that metaphorically, like in the beginning, the first movie there was quite a lot of comedy because I think he knows that the story spirals into a dark place, primarily because we come closer to the dragon," the actor explained. "Also, from my perspective, Thorin's mental state really goes into a place which is irrational and unreasonable and really quite scary."


READ MORE HERE: http://www.ontheredcarpet.com/Richard-Armitage-on-Hobbit-injury--darker-film:-3-highlights-Video/9357043

Richard Armitage Answers the Eternal Question - Are You a Cat or Dog Person

CLICK ON LINE
by Daniel Anderson
30 September, 2013
@ClickOnline_

We recently had the chance to sit down with the one and only Richard Armitage to talk about his upcoming fantasy epic The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug. But before all that, we had a really important question to ask.

We asked our followers on Tumblr and Twitter to send us their questions for Richard and managed to get a few burning questions answered. And one of the most popular questions was a simple one - is he more of a cat or dog person. His answer, in picture form, follows.

The English actor, who plays Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit trilogy, had a little more to say on the subject. "I’m a dog person. I don’t have a dog but if I were to have an animal it certainly wouldn’t be a bloody cat! Theyre just temperamental and dogs are just cute and faithful" he continued. And he illustrated these thoughts thusly.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TVi1CDRkAe8

 - See more at: http://www.clickonline.com/movies/richard-armitage-answers-the-eternal-question--are-you-a-cat-or-dog-person/20313/#sthash.oV18D76O.dpuf

Richard Armitage And Why He Should Be Considered To Play ‘Batman’

THE INQUISITOR
5 August, 2013

To most Americans, Richard Armitage is not a name that they recognize, but rumor has it, he is being considered as the next Batman. Why should he be in serious contention to play the dark knight? Richard Armitage is a British actor who is well known and very much liked by audiences in England and those who follow period dramas.

Richard is 41, so he fits the bill as far as age is concerned. He definitely fits the bill with his looks, he is 6’2″, has a deep, rich voice, and has the acting ability to play anything he wants. Heck, he just finished playing a dwarf. Yes, at 6’2″. Peter Jackson gave him the job of dwarf leader Thorin Oakenshield in The Hobbit trilogy and he didn’t go unnoticed.

Richard is a theater trained actor, as are many of the Brits. He has had stints in several popular period dramas. His career took off in Britain when he was cast as the romantic hero Mr. Thornton in North And South. From there, he has played different roles within the genre most notably the sexy Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood for the BBC. He also became very popular for his performances in The Vicar Of Dibley and Spook in which he played spy agent Lucas North.

Read more at http://www.inquisitr.com/888087/richard-armitage-and-why-he-should-be-considered-to-play-batman/#fuviYI7iY8XwFa3e.99

Richard Armitage rumoured to replace Christian Bale as Batman

Daily Star Reporter

Published 4th August 2013

Armitage, 41, was linked to the Caped Crusader job after impressing movie bosses in The Hobbit.

He played Guy of Gisborne in BBC1’s Robin Hood and was Dawn French’s love interest in The Vicar Of Dibley.

Christian Bale quit the role after completing the Dark Knight trilogy.

Movie chiefs are weeks away from starting work on Batman Vs Superman, with producer Zack Snyder looking for an “unusual” leading man.

READ MORE HERE: http://www.dailystar.co.uk/showbiz/330385/Richard-Armitage-rumoured-to-replace-Christian-Bale-as-Batman

Richard Armitage: Great Dan & Maz Interview Richard Armitage, star of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey!

Richard played the 'Ikea Furniture or Lord Of The Rings Character?' game with Dan & Maz.... Listen here! 

RICHARD ARMITAGE WANTS TO ACT IN A FILM WITHOUT SPECIAL EFFECTS (FAN SHARE) BY: ELIZABETH DARRELL

After spending months and months acting opposite a green screen, it makes sense that actors woud get tired of it and want to act opposite real people in real settings. Richard Armitage, who plays Thorin Oakenshield in the Hobbit films, was recently interviewed by the Independent and spoke of his desire to act in movies without any special effects.

He said, "I've spent the past two years in a special FX environment for The Hobbit. I also need to find something where I'm not fighting or inflicting violence on someone, as a lot of the roles I've had, such as Lucas North in Spooks and Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood, have involved that. I don't know why that's been the case!"

Read more: http://www.fansshare.com/news/richard-armitage-wants-to-act-in-film-without-special-effects/#ixzz2QTyvDwfr

Richard Armitage: 'I wish I could jump out of character; I'd be more popular' (The Independent)

ADAM JACQUES 

I never like to go out of character when filming starts I fear that if I do, I might not be able to pick it up again. This was particularly the case with the character Thorin Oakenshield [in Peter Jackson's The Hobbit]. He's moody and broody, so people kept their distance from me during the production. I wish I was good at jumping out of character in between takes, as I'd be more popular socially.

Publicity for 'The Hobbit' was relentless I was travelling and doing junkets around the world, being asked the same questions every day for three weeks. Then at the end of the working day I'd have to get down the red carpet. It's pretty hard work. I much prefer being in front of a camera.

I love how Gary Oldman disappears into a role You see a character before you see him; you believe him as he's so invested in that character, such as his George Smiley in Tinker Tailor… That's what I'm striving for.

I'd like to act in a film without special effectsI've spent the past two years in a special FX environment for The Hobbit. I also need to find something where I'm not fighting or inflicting violence on someone, as a lot of the roles I've had, such as Lucas North in Spooks and Guy of Gisborne in Robin Hood, have involved that. I don't know why that's been the case!

read more:  http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/profiles/richard-armitage-i-wish-i-could-jump-out-of-character-id-be-more-popular-8558685.html

‘The Hobbit’ actor Richard Armitage (Thorin) previews most anticipated scene in ‘Desolation of Smaug’ By Andrew Sims (HYPABLE)

In what can be considered one of the first interviews about The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey sequel The Desolation of Smaug, actor Richard Armitage (who plays dwarf Thorin) previews which scene he can’t wait see on the big screen.

“I think the barrel sequence [in which the dwarves escape their elf captors by river, hidden in wine barrels],” he answered when posed the question by TotalFilm, “which we all thought was going to be the finale of the first film, is going to be incredible. I’ve seen all the various pieces: the aerial shots of waterfalls with barrels going down them, the very fast-moving river set where we were submerged under water, the wild river we’re floating down towards the end of the sequence… I think it’ll be one of the most thrilling parts of the second film.”

As for where his character’s relationship lies with Bilbo, “The trust between Thorin and Bilbo has now been established. He’s gone from somebody that absolutely dismisses this halfling to realising he’s an essential part of the quest. Bilbo becomes his confidant and that goes further into film three – we’re planting seeds for when Thorin is betrayed by Bilbo.”

READ MORE: http://www.hypable.com/2013/03/25/the-hobbit-sequel-desolation-of-smaug-interview-richard-armitage/

Richard Armitage: Peter Jackson doesn't understand the word 'no' (FAN SHARE)

BY: ELIZABETH DARRELL

Richard Armitage has become a global star thanks to the Hobbit. While he may not yet be a household name, many are predicting Armitage to follow in the path of Viggo Mortenson, especially because their characters are so similar.

Armitage recently discussed his role in the Hobbit, and explained that working with Peter Jackson was a dream come true. He also added that Peter's directing style was different to everyone he's worked with in the past, and that Jackson didn't seem to understand when someone said 'no'. He says, "The thing about Peter Jackson is that he just doesn't understand the word 'no'. Even when you're on your knees vomiting into a bucket about to pass out, he'll be like, 'Do you have another take in you?' And it's not in an egotistical or demanding way, it's just he throws down the gauntlet and people pick it up."

He adds, "I knew before I started there would never be another film like this for me.... It ticks every box I could ever want as an actor. And then working with Peter Jackson, who takes you to a new place in terms of work. It's probably the most important piece of work I'll ever do."

Read more: http://www.fansshare.com/news/richard-armitage-peter-jackson-doesn-t-understand-word-no/#ixzz2NWT1dBjRp

Richard Armitage: preview (audio) for an interview with Richard Armitage about King Richard III on Wednesday, 13.03.2013, at 11 a.m. on BBC Radio Leicester

Richard Armitage audio here from BBC Leicester Here

From KING RICHARD ARMITAGE WEBSITE

Richard Armitage sings Misty Mountains Song

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fpJj0RhHeQg

RICHARD ARMITAGE CENTRAL

Who's Richard Armitage? (ASIA ONE SHOWBIZ)

By Esther Ng
The New Paper
Sunday, Dec 23, 2012

Who's that guy?

Like most British actors, Richard Armitage, 41, started his career in theatre, performing in shows like the musical Cats, as well as theatre productions Macbeth and Hamlet, before moving on to television and film.

Where have you seen him?

He plays Lucas North, a spy in the acclaimed British espionage series Spooks from 2008 to 2010. Last year, he played a German spy, Heinz Kruger, a character in Captain America: The First Avenger.

Why him?

Peter Jackson, director of The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey, described Armitage as a "powerful actor with a wide range".

Considering the sum total of all the parts he has played in television and film - Cold Feet (comedy), Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace (action, sci-fi), North And South (drama) - plus he plays the cello, the flute, and sings, you would agree with Jackson.

What's new?

Armitage hopes investors will come forward to fund the filming of Richard III, a project that he has been working to get off the ground for a few years.

Armitage intends to play the 15th century English king who was believed to have murdered his nephews in a bid to grab the throne. Richard III was the last English king to be killed in battle on English soil.

Incidentally, Armitage was named Richard as he was born on the anniversary of Richard III's death on Aug 22.

READ MORE OF ASIA ONE SHOW BIZ: http://news.asiaone.com/News/Latest%2BNews/Showbiz/Story/A1Story20121221-391021.html

Richard Armitage on The Hobbit, beard grooming and dwarf workouts (GQ)

By Oliver Franklin 14 December 12

"I just want to convince people I'm not 5"2 and hairy," smiles Richard Armitage, sitting back in a comfortable chair at London's Claridges hotel. "That'll be the biggest challenge." The 41-year-old actor's concern is understandable: as dwarf leader Thorin Oakenshield in Peter Jackson's long-awaited Hobbit trilogy, he's shrunken and wigged-up beyond all recognition. So, let GQ settle it: in real life, Armitage cuts an enviably handsome figure. He's easily 6"1, lightly stubbled and today clad in a sleek J. Lindeberg suit with a plaid shirt and tie. After almost two decades on British TV in the likes of Spooks, Robin Hood and Chris Ryan's Strike Back, The Hobbit marks a step up for Armitage - into the newly world of global franchises and screaming fans. Arriving nine years after the release of The Return Of The King, the film is a visually stunning return to Middle Earth, shot in ultra-clear 3D - but by the time Howard Shore's inimitable score sets in,  and Andy Serkis is shouting "precious", it feels like we never left. Ahead of the film's release this weekend, we sat down with Armitage over a glass of wine to talk beard grooming, Hobbit obsessives and why Brits work best in the shire.

GQ.com: We were at the Jack Reacher junket yesterday talking to David Oyelowo, who was also in Spooks. Do you think there was something about that show, or is this just a great moment for British actors? 

Richard Armitage: We were at the same year at drama school! I loved that show so much. I found it really challenging, it forced you to work at speed. I always said when they finished Spooks they should have made a movie of it. Actually my ultimate role is to play another spy…

READ MORE: http://www.gq-magazine.co.uk/entertainment/articles/2012-12/13/richard-armitage-the-hobbit-film-interview

Introducing Richard Armitage (FEMALE FIRST)

Richard Armitage is already a well known TV actor here in the UK but over the next twelve months or so we are set to see his star rise very rapidly thanks to The Hobbit trilogy.

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey has hit the big screen today and the role of Thorin Oakenshield is the biggest of Armitage's career to date - as well as being his first major taste of the blockbuster genre.

Throughout his career Armitage has mixed movies and TV work with theatre but it really is in TV where he has made his name.

He kicked off his TV career back in 1995 with roles in the likes of Boon and Cleopatra before going on to Cold Feet and Ultimate Force.

And while he worked steadily throughout the early noughties it was Robin Hood and Vicar of Dibley where he really grabbed everyone's attention.


He took on the role of Guy of Gisborne when the story of Robin Hood was made into a TV series for the BBC.

The show was prime time Saturday night viewing and it really established Armitage as someone to keep an eye on.

He went on to play Dawn French's love interest and eventual husband towards the end of popular comedy Vicar of Dibley before moving into secrets and espionage with Spooks.

Armitage took on the lead role of Lucas North in season 7 as Rupert Penry Jones left the show.

It was an interesting character for Armitage as North had spent eight years in a Russian prison and he was a man who was divided.

He stayed with the show for two years before moving onto Strike Back with Sky One.

READ MORE: http://www.femalefirst.co.uk/movies/Richard+Armitage-270908.html