Othello (Sheffield Theatres) @ The Crucible
September 25, 2011
Writing about web page http://www.sheffieldtheatres.co.uk/index.cfm?fuseaction=whatson.production&ProductionID=1152 I’m not usually an advocate of celebrity casting. I didn’t see any of the star-name Shakespeares of the summer: Kevin Spacey in Richard III, Ralph Fiennes in The Tempest, or David Tennant and Catherine Tate in Much Ado about Nothing. However, I’m too big a fan of The Wire to …
The Tempest (Antic Disposition) @ Middle Temple Hall
September 3, 2011
Writing about web page http://www.anticdisposition.co.uk/productions/tempest/thetempest.htm I submitted my PhD on Wednesday after a very intense period of having my head down, during which I’ve not been looking ahead and organising theatre visits or review tickets. It was a delight, therefore, to have the chance to attend Antic Disposition’s current production of The Tempest during a …
A Woman Killed with Kindness (National) @ The Lyttleton Theatre
August 23, 2011
The safety curtain went up on my first-ever Heywood production on Saturday, and for the first time in many years I was dumbstruck by the beauty of a set. Lizzie Clachan and Vicki Mortimer had created two Edwardian houses, connecting imperfectly in the centre, realised in lavish detail. In the Frankfords’ house, a large balcony …
The Summoning of Everyman (Shakespeare Institute Players) @ Holy Trinity Church
August 20, 2011
Everyman is a genuinely powerful text. Whether you’re religious or not, this anonymous medieval morality play gets to the absolute nub of the big questions. What can we take with us? What is the point of life? And at the end of it all, are we ultimately alone? The Shakespeare Institute Players made a virtue …
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (RSC) @ The Royal Shakespeare Theatre
Writing about web page http://www.rsc.org.uk/whats-on/dream/ It is traditional to frame the main action of A Midsummer Night’s Dream within a particularly threatening Athens, allowing the comedy to stand in contrast to the formality and danger of the court. Nancy Meckler’s new production for the RSC was no exception. Theseus (Jo Stone-Fewings) was a London mob …
The Globe Mysteries @ Shakespeare’s Globe
August 16, 2011
Writing about web page http://www.shakespearesglobe.com/theatre/on-stage/the-globe-mysteries The Bardathon is going medieval on its readers this week. On Friday I’ll be seeing Everyman performed over Shakespeare’s grave in Holy Trinity Church, and this afternoon, on a whim, I took a break from referencing in the British Library to catch the Globe’s new production of Tony Harrison’s Mysteries …
The Two Noble Kinsmen (Just Enough) @ The Dell, Stratford–upon–Avon
August 7, 2011
Writing about web page http://justenoughtheatre.wordpress.com/the-two-noble-kinsmen/ Another landmark! A little over five years ago, I saw an excellent rehearsed reading of The Two Noble Kinsmen at the Swan. Since then, I’ve been waiting for a chance to see a full production. It’s the last of the plays in the universally-accepted thirty-eight that I’d not seen a …
Titus Andronicus (Action To The Word) @ C+1, Edinburgh
August 5, 2011
Writing about web page http://www.actiontotheword.com/shows.php After having seen some 250-odd performances of plays and adaptations of plays by Shakespeare and his contemporaries, I hit something of a landmark last night – my first English-language production of Titus Andronicus, the last play in the established canon which I’d only seen in translation. Coincidentally, this was also …
Cardenio [The Second Maiden’s Tragedy] (Aporia Theatre) @ The Dell, Stratford–upon–Avon
July 31, 2011
Writing about web page http://aporiatheatre.com/Aporia%20Theatre%20Website_files/PreviousProductions.htm I must get the complaints out of the way first. Publicity materials for Aporia Theatre’s dates at the Dell in Stratford-upon-Avon announced that the company would be performing "Cardenio by Shakespeare – Fletcher – Middleton: The Alternative Text." I repeat the title used by the company; but, as I knew …
Doctor Faustus @ Shakespeare’s Globe
July 18, 2011
Writing about web page http://www.shakespearesglobe.com/theatre/on-stage/doctor-faustus The Globe’s summer season this year is surprisingly light on Shakespeare. The only two main house Shakespeares are All’s Well and Much Ado about Nothing, as well as touring versions of Hamlet and As You Like It, but a surprising proportion of the season has been new writing and, celebrating …
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