Thinking about Maggie Smith and her generation of actors got me thinking, specifically, that, although we can always enjoy her screen performances, it is a shame not to have seen her on stage. So, as someone who would like to go to the theatre more, who do you think are the next generation (so, say people aged between 50 and 65) of stage and screen national treasures? I am wondering very specifically about actors who mix both stage and screen, as Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Derek Jacobi, etc did/do.
I sometimes wonder if David Tennant might one day fill that niche of national treasure as he obviously has done a lot of screen work and I have seen him on stage (and can confirm his performance was excellent and very charismatic). I have also, many years ago, seen Derek Jacobi a few times and again was blown away. But who else do you think I should look out for? Who else will one day have their stage performances mentioned as something special you were privileged to have seen?