Tag Archives: Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

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“Antony and Cleopatra” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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Eve Best has made a triumphant return to Shakespeare’s Globe. Following her fine directorial debut in 2013, she now takes the lead in Antony and Cleopatra. This accessible production, directed by Jonathan Munby, tells Shakespeare’s tale of love and war with the utmost clarity.

A pirate queen, full of fight, with a wicked sense of humour, Best’s Cleopatra displays the character’s fabled “infinite variety” and knows how to play the crowd in all moods. She is joined by Clive Wood, who makes the perfect “old ruffian” Antony, giving a studied performance that’s crafted to fill you with unease – he’s both too much the politician and too passionate to trust, degenerating into little more than a bully.

The air of luxury Munby establishes makes for a slow start, and the production has moments that might be speedier. Much time, for example, is given to Phil Daniels’ Enobarbus, though it has to be admitted he gives a remarkably subtle performance. The battle scenes are handled efficiently, though, and transitions between scenes, with characters overlapping each other, create some intriguing resonances.

There’s some great use of music and the humour in the text is sustained throughout. Several smaller roles are given their due, creating a world that feels populous and convincing. Jolyon Coy stands out as the “boy Caesar” and Sirine Saba works hard as Cleopatra’s attendant. The finale is testament to how captivating Best’s performance becomes, particularly in her poignant appeals to the women in the audience.

All this for a production dogged by troubles. Christopher Saul is a last-minute substitute who bravely performed with the text last night. Wood has been ill, missing several preview shows, while Best sports a bandaged ankle. But I couldn’t see their performances marred in the slightest. Let’s be thankful for the old adage that the show must go on. This is an evening full of affirmation for the theatre generally and this cast in particular, with a show that, like its star, is “a wonderful piece of work”.

Until 24 August 2014

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by Manuel Harlan

Written 30 May 2014 for The London Magazine

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“Titus Andronicus” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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An exciting new season at Shakespeare’s Globe is now under way and the first show to recommend is a revival of Lucy Bailey’s 2006 production of Titus Andronicus. Shakespeare’s most brutal play, notorious for its gruesomeness, shows mankind’s bloodlust within a society driven by violence and revenge. Bailey’s direction is appropriately bold and uncompromising; creating engrossing theatre that is – often literally – close to the bone and not for the faint hearted.

Bailey uses the Globe better than anyone I’ve seen. Working with designer William Dudley, the back of the stage is sheathed in black material, creating a kind of architectural void that reminded me of Anish Kapoor, while a temporary roof of panels makes the space claustrophobic and helps contain an awful lot of smoke. While the tent-like construction doesn’t stop the rain, don’t pity the ‘groundlings’ who stand in the pit too much – this is a great show for them, confirming the £5 tickets as the best bargain in London.

The whole audience finds itself in an arena, appropriate for the political machinations in the play and reminiscent of gladiatorial conflict, with the groundlings pushed and pulled as platforms for speeches are wheeled around. You’re conscious of the crowd and see how Bailey has used the audience as a part of the play – it becomes voters, spectators, even a forest.

The cast members know they are in a hit and their energy is fantastic. William Houston is a grand Titus, reminding me of a young Oliver Reed. He is truly frightening and manic as his world falls apart. Gravitas is provided by veteran Ian Gelder, who plays Titus’s senatorial brother, and Matthew Needham gives a stand-out performance as the emperor Saturninus. Manipulating him are the Goths: Tamora and her sons, “the pair of cursed hell hounds and their dame”, performed superbly by Indira Varma, Samuel Edward-Cook and Brian Martin.

More praise. As well as creating an all-action atmosphere, Bailey handles the play’s macabre humour with a brave hand. A scene where Tamara and her sons pretend to be goddesses to fool Titus (finally) makes sense and presenting Titus in a chef’s hat in the infamous banqueting scene is so breathtakingly tasteless it’s a stroke of genius. And Obi Abili, who plays Tamora’s menacing lover, gets a surprising number of laughs.
Don’t underestimate how gory this production is. Bailey has created an experience that is pretty overwhelming. Back to those groundlings again: I spotted several faces turn pale at scenes of rape and murder (I saw them because I was looking away myself). Three people passed out and cardboard bowls were stationed at the entrances for the ushers to hand out. So all credit to Bailey for such a powerful production, but a final mention to the staff, many volunteers, who dealt with the (literal) fallout amongst the groundlings so well.

Until 13 July 2014

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by Simon Kane

Written 2 May 2014 for The London Magazine

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“The Knight of the Burning Pestle” at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse

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The second production at Shakespeare’s Globe’s Wanamaker Playhouse is Francis Beaumont’s The Knight of the Burning Pestle. Written in or around 1607, if you haven’t heard of the play, its startling post-modernity will blow you away. For those already in the know this is a clear, clever choice for the new theatre that shows it off to its very best. And just in case you aren’t interested in literary history, it’s also a cracking night out that will have you in fits of laughter.

Taking their seats in the pit two citizens, played by Phil Daniels and Pauline McLynn, take objection to the entertainment on offer. “Something troublesome” in their ignorance of the performing arts, they’re the first source of fun. One couple you don’t mind making a noise in the theatre, offering around grapes and sweets, a restrained performance from Daniels allows McLynn’s to shine as the adorable, if occasionally blood thirsty, matron who invites us all to her house for a drink afterwards.

Commandeering the stage the stage, they want something that praises their profession and enlist their apprentice Rafe (endearingly portrayed by Matthew Needham) to take on a chivalrous role. And since they are grocers he becomes the titular Knight of the Burning Pestle. Beaumont’s satire on chivalric romances could easily be niche, but director Adele Thomas uses great comic performances from Dennis Herdman and Dean Nolan, co-opted as his squire and dwarf, to get the giggles; Pythonesque touches and acrobatic slapstick – anything and everything to make you laugh.

At the same time, the players valiantly continue the original play, about a London merchant. Another contemporary satire, its critique of greed in the city is sure to hit home today. A story line about an apprentice in love with his avaricious master’s daughter, is hammed up marvellously by the talented John Dougall and the superb Sarah MacRae. Their duet in song is a real highlight of the night. All the interruptions create an improvised feel full of fun, and frequent musical intervals add to the jolly atmosphere.

Believe it or not, with all this going on, there’s another important theme within The Knight of the Burning Pestle. Again commented on by the citizens, again brought out marvellously by Thomas: the character of Merrythought, performed commendably by Paul Rider, is a mysterious figure of mis-rule, anarchy even, dedicated only to mirth. Thomas identifies this as the play’s keynote and makes it a deep, sonorous one. Remarkable musical numbers are just one element of using the new playhouse at its best; Thomas is like a child with a new toy – an entirely appropriate way of dealing with this text. A fascinating play fantastically directed.

Until 30 March 2014

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by Alastair Muir

Written 28 February 2014 for The London Magazine

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“The Duchess of Malfi” at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse

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2014 is off to a great start for lovers of the stage, as the late Sam Wanamaker’s visionary plan for an indoor theatre, next to Shakespeare’s Globe, is now open. Deservedly taking Wanamaker’s name, this reimagining of a Jacobean indoor theatre is an exciting opportunity to see plays of the period in an authentic context.

So what’s it like? In a word: fascinating. The tiny space is instantly appealing. Candlelit, it is full of charm and even smells wonderful. The acoustics are shockingly good; this will surely be its major contribution to our understanding of Renaissance theatre. That it’s lit so differently to the theatres we are used to, and you can hear a pin drop, makes for a very different interaction between the audience and the play – one that, for me anyway, felt heightened and cerebral. It is also, it has to be admitted, rather uncomfortable. Bench seating is never luxurious and the theatre is crowded, potentially hot, with some awful sightlines. Go, but avoid the restricted view seats.

The first production is John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi. The gore filled revenge story unexpectedly benefits from being staged in this space. It all seems much quieter than we are used to. Much more about listening to the horrors inflicted on a widowed Duchess who dares to marry again than seeing blood splattered everywhere. First directorial honours go to the Globe’s boss Dominic Dromgoole, who does a superb job embracing the new theatre. The famous scene where the Duchess is visited in the dark, which here really is pitch black, is thrilling.

Inevitably there’s the sense of a company still finding its feet. Gemma Arterton’s performance as the Duchess is understated and seems spot on as a result. But her wicked brothers, played by David Dawson and James Garnon, who oppose her marriage and then torture her when they discover it, seem overplayed as the play progresses.

Webster’s exuberant language often raises a smile nowadays but playing it for laughs (a common way of dealing with his wild metaphors) seems a missed opportunity here. Duke Ferdinand’s insanity certainly isn’t supposed to be funny nor, I am sure, are the mad people sent to live with the Duchess as part of her punishment. Just possibly, this is the place to play the text straight.

But these reservations only serve to support what is so exciting about this new old theatre. The chances it offers to explore well-known plays, and hopefully soon to rediscover lost works, make the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse brim with potential. London has a new star venue.

Until 16 February 2014

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Written 17 January 2014 for The London Magazine

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“Blue Stockings” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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Education is, quite rightly, always a hot topic. While our own universities face many problems, even basic schooling is still denied to many around the world. With this in mind, Jessica Swale’s new play, Blue Stockings, which opened at the Globe Theatre last night, serves as a first-class tribute to those who fought for women to be able to graduate from Cambridge University.

On the brink of the 20th century, four young women and their tutors at Girton College are our heroines. Their determined pursuit of knowledge might have made them a little pious, but this is a jolly bunch, especially Tala Gouveia’s fur-clad, cosmopolitan Carolyn. What with that “modern miracle of engineering”, the bicycle, and that classic “French folk dance”, the Can-Can, there is plenty of fun to be had among all the inevitable (and occasionally portentous) discourses about the virtues of art versus science.

If £9,000 a year in fees puts some off university nowadays, the cost to these pioneers was different. Swale unfolds the price they paid gradually, and by the end we’re pretty hooked. The struggles of the college staff, played superbly by Gabrielle Lloyd and Sarah MacRae, and the sacrifice of ‘respectability’, is presented commendably. A disarmingly sweet love story for the lead role of Tess (wonderful Ellie Piercy) shows that a woman with an education was an isolated oddity, deemed a danger both to herself and to society. As the vote to allow women to graduate approaches, the tone darkens and events become disgracefully violent.

Appropriately enough, you’ll probably learn a lot from this play. These proto-feminists fight a tactical battle of ”patience and stealth”, forced to shun the suffrage cause in case it taints their demands. It’s only a shame that themes of class aren’t also developed, especially given a strong performance from Molly Logan as a poor scholar obliged to return home to look after her family. The play seems comfortable trapped in its period, using outrageous prejudices for comic effect; chaperoned silliness is performed well by Hilary Tones, but is overplayed.

Credit is given to the male tutors who taught at Girton (to the detriment of their own careers) but the many men in the piece otherwise come off poorly. And rightly so. Their two-dimensionality may be cartoonish but it serves a purpose — to enforce a connection with a contemporary audience. After all, Blue Stockings is also about the fight of an individual against the majority. The play graduates as a passionate plea for personal freedom, and its shocking conclusion shows just how long it has taken us to get where we are today.

Until 11 October 2013

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by Manuel Harlan

Written 30 August 2013 for The London Magazine

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“Macbeth” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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Olivier-Award-winning actress Eve Best makes her directorial debut at Shakespeare’s Globe this summer with an accessible and exhilarating production of Macbeth. It’s an assured first time effort that sends a chill down the spine even on a hot summer’s day.

Perhaps not surprisingly, given Best’s background, her version of the supernatural thriller puts the performers to the fore. Joseph Millson does a great job in the title role, his Macbeth’s fiery temper increasing the drama and sense of instability. Clearly at home in the Globe – like many of the cast, Millson’s direct addresses to the crowd create a sense of startling immediacy.

Best’s attention to her troupe only has one indulgence – an unnecessarily prolonged scene with the Porter. This aside, with such an excellent cast, giving every role its due is clever. Duncan’s court, at first sight, an array of powdered fops, develop their roles wonderfully and the short scene with Lady Macduff (Finty Williams) is superb.

Full of prophecy and portents rather than politics, Best downplays militaristic bravado, and the female roles in the play benefit from this. The witches, for example, are a beguiling bunch, ironically harmonious, using movement and music to cast a spell. Their fright-factor is all the greater for its understated spookiness.

Samantha Spiro is the star of the show. Her Lady Macbeth is dynamic, her transformation into a Queen astounding, and her performance one of great depth. Macbeth clearly blames her for the path he sets foot on and an alarming scene of domestic abuse is a brave and electrifying take on their famous conjugal complicity.

Until 13 October 2013

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by Ellie Kurttz

Written 7 July 2013 for The London Magazine

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“The Tempest” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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Even if there’s still a chill in the air, for theatre-lovers the summer starts with a trip to Shakespeare’s Globe. The Theatre’s ‘Season of Plenty’ begins with The Tempest, a difficult play that director Jeremy Herrin, confident in the venue’s unusual power and his excellent cast, tackles with a light touch. It has been the fashion to subject the story of Prospero and his elaborate revenge on those who exiled him to a great deal of analysis. Herrin’s focus is on the theme of reconciliation and the magic in the play comes to the fore.

There is little threat on this island – the machinations that landed Prospero there aren’t given much attention. Instead, there’s a lot of laughs, led by the drunkards Stephano and Trunculo (played by exuberant double act Sam Cox and Trevor Fox) – and even Caliban gets to join in the singing. Indeed, the island seems too homely, almost drab – its attraction is the detailed depiction of the relationship between Prospero and his daughter Miranda. Jessie Buckley is a revelation in the role, captivating and able enough to bring on her suitor Ferdinand (Joshua James) to some charming scenes of romance.

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Colin Morgan as Ariel

The pace of the production is skilfully developed, with Colin Morgan’s Ariel pivotal, injecting a spellbinding touch (in scenes of startlingly confident theatricality) and bringing home the play’s concerns with freedom. Morgan is athletic and otherworldly, mellow rather than mischievous and played with an intelligent depth that builds up the fascinating relationship with his master Prospero: it is here that the understated quality of Herrin’s production finds its power.

Only an actor as fine as Roger Allam, who takes on the central role, could make such a domesticated Prospero work. A model of clarity, Allam was born to play the Globe – he’s worth the price of the ticket and then some. His nuanced performance as a former Duke can be commanding and his dour touches delight, but it is as a father, the man behind the magic, that he becomes magnificent. He enjoys his power to enchant with such glee that abandoning it has added pathos, but renounce it he does – in order to become more human and experience the freedom that entails.

Until 18 August 2013

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photos by Marc Brenner

Written 3 May 2013 for The London Magazine

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“Richard III” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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Mark Rylance, former artistic director of Shakespeare’s Globe, makes his return to the theatre in the title role of Richard III. The play is always a star vehicle, and Rylance’s Richard is a stuttering, often jovial figure who gets plenty of laughs. Playing with the theatricality of his character, a smart move that suits Rylance, his conspiratorial tone delights. It takes time to appreciate Richard’s darkness, but when he chooses, Rylance shows a startling, unashamedly psychotic King, making sure his depiction will be one to go down in theatre history.

Alongside Rylance the whole production, under the direction of Tim Carroll, shows skilful pacing. The speed of the action is breakneck but the riveting ensemble seize the attention masterfully. Special notice must go to Roger Lloyd Pack as the King-maker Buckingham, matching Richard in his cynical malevolence up to the point of murdering the princes in the Tower: when Lloyd Pack exits to consider the usurping King’s request, it is a moment of great tension, superbly performed.

This is an all-male production. Without revisiting the debate on this approach, and stressing that those taking on female roles give superb performances (especially Johnny Flynn, who plays Richard’s unwilling wife Anne), the move is indicative of a traditional approach to the play. There’s no dwelling on the history here or the superstition rife in early modern society – Shakespeare took both for granted after all. The emphasis is on drama and entertainment.

Thoroughly at home on his old stomping ground, Rylance leads the cast in exploiting the dominant feature of the Globe – its ability to encourage audience participation. Whether it’s knowing glances that create complicity or shared outrage at Richard’s demonic actions, Carroll’s production is always engaging. With direct appeals for cheers as he is encouraged to take the throne, Richard gets the applause Shakespeare’s play has denied him as a figure in history – in the case of this production, the cheers are well deserved.

Until 13 October 2012 and then transferring to the Apollo Theatre from 6 November 2012

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by Simon Annand

Written 26 July 2012 for The London Magazine

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“The Taming of the Shrew” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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The Taming of the Shrew is surely Shakespeare’s most objectionable play: its politics can’t help offending a modern audience and its conclusion leaves a bitter taste – never a good move for a comedy. But director Toby Frow’s new production at Shakespeare’s Globe comes as close as possible to redeeming the piece. With a simple approach, Frow makes sure we don’t take the misogyny too seriously, expanding the comedy and saving the show in masterful style.

Frow, aided in dealing with the text by Samuel Adamson, adds plenty of slapstick and interjections that enliven frankly duller moments and acknowledge that few of us are up to speed with Shakespeare’s verbal dexterity. The result is two fold. The ensemble truly excels with even the smaller roles shining: Pearce Quigley’s deadpan Grumio is just one example, and the often sickly sweet lovers Bianca and Lucentio get to have a go, with superb performances from Sarah MacRae and Joseph Timms. Secondly, Frow establishes a fantastic, farcical rhythm (often quite literally – his use of music in the production is inspired) that escalates wonderfully. There’s a touch of One Man, Two Guvnors sometimes and more than dash of Carry On. And why not, if it works?

When it comes to the most unpleasant aspects of “taming”, Frow exploits the play’s dream theme and also sets up a relationship between Katherina and Petruchio that treads a fine line between feigned lunacy and the possibility of equality – this is a subtle, complex relationship underneath the broad comedy and works through the intelligence of its lead performers. Simon Paisley Day plays Petruchio in fine bombastic style, believable as the “devil” people describe him as and reducing the audience to fits of laughter. But his intended is more than a match, with Samantha Spiro putting in a tremendous physical performance as a head-butting, door-bashing Kate that steals every scene. Even if you can’t understand why anyone would want to tame Spiro’s shrew, you can still laugh along at the attempt.

Until 12 October 2012

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by Manuel Harlan

Written 5 July 2012 for The London Magazine

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“Henry V” at Shakespeare’s Globe

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The Globe has a special relationship with Henry V: the play opened the new theatre and any bardophile is sure to thrill at the lines referring to “this wooden O” when they hear them in situ. With the bunting still out on the streets, Shakespeare’s most patriotic king is in tune with this summer. Henry’s rallying “once more unto the breach” is addressed so directly to the audience that it receives spontaneous applause. And it is richly deserved: Dominic Dromgoole’s new production is a triumph.

Droomgoole is too intelligent a director to reduce Henry V to jingoism. Fully at home in The Globe, he brings out the nuances in the play with all its bittersweet humour. There’s a tremendous performance from Brendan O’Hea as the leek-loving Welshman Fluellen, providing a cynical twist on patriotism. Leading the low life is the superb Sam Cox as Pistol, getting the laughs while reminding us that those who suffer most in war are often the poor.

The production is aided immeasurably by a wonderful performance from Brid Brennan in the role of the chorus. She sets the scenes, urging us to “work our thoughts” with beautiful clarity, perfectly reflecting Droomgoole’s simple, no-nonsense approach. This Henry V is full of confidence, it has faith in the play, and the production’s achievement is to show off Shakespeare at his very best.

The jewel in the crown of Droomgoole’s Henry V is Jamie Parker in the title role. Martial certainly, blood curdling when he has to be, but also full of charm, Parker’s frequently understated performance shows total control (he’s even better than Branagh), and you want to back him and even fight for him. This is a truly glorious reign, certain to make any theatre lover happy.

Until 26 August 2012

www.shakespearesglobe.com

Photo by John Haynes

Written 14 June 2012 for The London Magazine