Richard II (RSC) @ The Royal Shakespeare Theatre
October 30, 2013
As a statement of intent, Gregory Doran’s launch to his tenure as RSC Artistic Director is perfectly judged. Richard II is the most ‘Doranish’ production one could imagine, from the gorgeously conceived lighting design to the sensitive treatment of male-male relationships, from the meticulous attention to detail in the tiniest roles to the playful but …
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Michael Grandage Company) @ The Noel Coward Theatre
October 28, 2013
Michael Grandage is an excellent director, particularly of actors. His Othello at the Donmar some years back provided what may prove to be a definitive Othello in Chiwitel Ejiofor, and his Lear starring Derek Jacobi in the same venue found rare intimacy in the play against a stark backdrop of boards. Yet as Grandage leaves …
Bussy D’Ambois (The Owle Schreame) @ St Giles-in-the-Fields Church
The Owle Schreame ‘Cannibal Valour’ residency at St Giles-in-the-Fields Church in London is one of the most exciting events in early modern performance this year. Beginning with a rare outing for George Chapman’s Bussy D’Ambois, the company are going on to give (presumably) world premieres of Thomas Nabbes’s The Unfortunate Mother and James Shirley’s Honoria and …
Collaborative Plays by Shakespeare & Others
October 13, 2013
Following today’s piece in The Observer, discussion will no doubt be starting about the claims being made by the new edition entitled Collaborative Plays by William Shakespeare and Others. The article, which highlights the claim of Shakespeare’s ‘fingerprints’ being ‘found’, conflates the actual research done with the normal media-friendly subheadings designed to catch an audience, …
The Winter’s Tale (Sheffield Theatres) @ The Crucible
October 8, 2013
I’ll confess to my heart sinking somewhat as the cast of Paul Miller’s new Winter’s Tale emerged onto a bare thrust stage in Edwardian suits and European royal military uniforms. Almost as much as Twelfth Night, The Winter’s Tale seems to me to have become stuck in an era that doesn’t seem to me to …
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