{"id":5115,"date":"2026-07-29T11:37:30","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T11:37:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5115"},"modified":"2026-07-29T11:37:30","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T11:37:30","slug":"game-of-thrones-play-the-mad-king-first-preview-gets-standing-ovation-after-cancellations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5115","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Game of Thrones\u2019 Play \u2018The Mad King\u2019 First Preview Gets Standing Ovation After Cancellations"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n\t\u201cGame of Thrones\u201d play \u201cThe Mad King\u201d finally launched previews Tuesday night after cancelling its first week of performances.<\/p>\n

Read more \u2018The King\u2019s Warden\u2019 Leads Korea to Best First Half Box Office Since Pandemic<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tThe first ever run-through of the HBO\/Royal Shakespeare Company co-production, which takes place before the events in HBO\u2019s \u201cGame of Thrones\u201d series, earned a standing ovation from the enraptured audience.<\/p>\n

\n\tAddressing the crowd ahead of the show starting, director Dominic Cooke explained that the performance was a world premiere and warned that, because it was a preview, it might be necessary to stop the show in the event of a technical hiccup, in which case the stage manager might come on.<\/p>\n

\n\tAccording to local newspaper The Stratford-Upon-Avon Herald, Cooke also said the team hadn\u2019t yet run the entire show through on stage in rehearsals after running out of time and so \u201che would be seeing it for the first time at the same time as they were.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tHowever, the performance ran without a hitch and there were no unscheduled show stops during the four-hour performance.<\/p>\n

\n\tA rep for the RSC said the team had already received \u201cincredible\u201d feedback online and via email, which included praise for the acting, sound, lighting and puppetry.<\/p>\n

\n\t\u201cIt was amazing,\u201d one fan reportedly said. \u201cI loved the set especially the throne. So realistic I felt like I was actually there! The animals particularly the dragon and the horses were so lifelike and the fighting scenes were performed brilliantly. Altogether I feel that I was lucky to be one of the first to see such a masterpiece!\u201d<\/p>\n

Read more Banijay Entertainment H1 Revenues Dip in First Earnings Update Since Completion of All3Media Deal<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tAnother wrote: \u201cThe performances were brilliant across the board, despite it being their first night of the production. The puppetry was easily the most impressive i have ever seen on stage.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tThe play, which bears the full title of \u201cGeorge R. R. Martin\u2019s Game Of Thrones: The Mad King,\u201d was due to start previews on July 20 at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-Upon-Avon but, as Variety<\/em> exclusively reported last week, producers cancelled the first four shows citing \u201cthe additional time necessary to progress and refine the work in real time.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n\tAt the time, a rep for the RSC told Variety<\/em> the Saturday, July 25 preview would go ahead as planned but it was cancelled hours before the performance was due to start.<\/p>\n

\n\tStratford-Upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, is a two-hour trip from London and a number of ticket-holders expressed their disappointment online, alleging to have arrived from as far afield as Canada.<\/p>\n

\n\tIn response the RSC has added a handful of extra performances but few tickets are available for the remainder of the show\u2019s two-month run.<\/p>\n

Read more Kavinsky, French Producer and DJ Behind \u2018Drive\u2019 Opening Song \u2018Nightcall,\u2019 Dies at 50<\/a><\/p>\n

\n\tThe play is officially set to open Aug. 8.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

‘Game of Thrones: The Mad King’ finally opened its first preview after multiple cancellations.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":5114,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[885],"tags":[983,984],"class_list":["post-5115","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-theater","tag-game-of-thrones","tag-royal-shakespeare-company"],"yoast_head":"\n\u2018Game of Thrones\u2019 Play \u2018The Mad King\u2019 First Preview Gets Standing Ovation After Cancellations - Relocation Observer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/relocationobserver.com\/?p=5115\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"\u2018Game of Thrones\u2019 Play \u2018The Mad King\u2019 First Preview Gets Standing Ovation After Cancellations - 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