Benedict Cumberbatch Read Online Free Page A

in
After the Dance
, Cumberbatch would make an even bigger impact in a Rattigan play.
    Another production which had a strong connection with his future career took place in 1994, in a Harrow staging of Tom Stoppard’s
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
. The play brought Stoppard to prominence in the 1960s, and in 2010, when the playwright made a rare return to television with his adaptation of
Parade’s End
, he specifically wanted Cumberbatch for the lead role of Christopher Tietjens. (It seems appropriate to mention here that in November 2013, Cumberbatch would appear in a special extract of
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead
as part of an evening of celebrations marking the fiftieth anniversary of London’s National Theatre.)
    Sometimes, original material would be developed for Harrow School productions. Often, these took the form of revues, consisting of short comedy sketches and songs. Occasionally, something more ambitious would be tried. In November 1992, a brand new musical was premiered over four nights.
Ain’t Life Good!
was loosely based around theplot of the classic Frank Capra movie,
It’s A Wonderful Life
. Cumberbatch, playing a heavenly Blessed Soul, was just one of over 100 people involved in the production, which reportedly played to packed houses.
    Such was the reaction to
Ain’t Life Good!
that the following summer, it was put forward to compete in the South Bank Youth Music Festival competition. In the final round, held at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London on 1 November 1993, it was judged to be Best Original Work. It marked the first time that Cumberbatch had been part of a prize-giving performance outside of his school gates.
    Cumberbatch’s singing abilities have rarely been called upon since his schooldays, but from the reviews of the time, it sounds as if he already possessed burgeoning vocal skills. At a Swing Band Concert just before Christmas in 1994, his guest spot on ‘Minnie the ‘Moocher’ was such a hit with the audience that he was compelled to reprise it as an encore. Weeks earlier, he also did well in David Calhoun’s
City of Angels
, which marked the opening of Harrow School’s new Ryan Theatre in November 1994. ‘Cumberbatch perfected the character of Stone,’ wrote
The Harrovian
in its 8 December issue. ‘His whisky beaten, cigarette stained voice aptly captured the personality of the philandering private eye.’ It also noted his ability to make his singing voice be heard over the band, and even showed some promise as a dancer, a skill he had seemingly rarely used thus far. (Cumberbatch would later see a West End production with his parents, and at the time of writing, is likely to be involved in a big screen version, under the title
The Lost City of Z
.)
    Whether in a starring or a supporting role, it’s evident that Cumberbatch was a superlative ensemble player. He did not act in a vacuum, he was not playing the big star, and he was co-operative with his fellow actors. But then, he was not drawn to acting because it was an opportunity to ‘show off’. Having both his parents in the business gave him a reality check about making acting a career choice. ‘Because I saw the working practices behind what they did, it didn’t carry a lot of mystique. I knew about the peripatetic nature, the uncertain income, what it can do to your social life … all of that.’
    Benedict’s acting ambitions were not entirely supported by his parents to begin with, even though both were stalwarts of British stage and screen. ‘They were like, look at us, how out of control our lifestyle is, how money’s a huge ebb and flow.’ Indeed, part of the whole game plan of sending their son to Harrow in the first place was to wean him off the notion of wanting to be an actor. Ventham and Carlton were hopeful that a balanced education would push him towards an alternative, more secure career than the one they had both pursued. It seemed their ‘plan’ had not worked.
    Cumberbatch