King Lear

[immortalradical]

In a conversation with James Shapiro printed in the programme of his RSC production of King Lear, Sir Trevor Nunn (for it is he), says, "This is absolutely central to me, because I find no sense of divine justice [in the text]." For anyone who saw the production, just finished at the Courtyard theatre in Stratford and about to set off on a world

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Re: Our basest beggars are in the poorest things superfluous you know...

[immortalradical]

Yeah, this production really did turn into a bit of a test of endurance. Not necessarily because it's so long - at three and a half hours, certainly it is a victim of each and every actors' ponderous treatment of their lines, but I watch LotR extended editions for fun - but because it is so very reverent. And yet I have no idea what Nunn was trying to say with this production, I haven't got a clue what it is trying to make of the play. A vehicle for Sir Ian, mostly. [1]

And Sir Ian is very good in many ways - he tackles the physicality of the part in particular with not a little brilliance. There are moments of heartbreaking poignancy when his Lear looks totally lost, utterly confused. It's a slightly inconsistent performance in the sense that Lear seems capable of whatever McKellen wants to do in a given scene - from shaking hands and weak-kneed legs to jumping about on imaginary traps with flowers in his hair. But there's no doubting his commitment to the part. Unfortunately, he's trapped in a production which makes nothing of that part.

[1] It's difficult to avoid concluding, particularly given Nunn's absurd choice to delay the press night until Frances Barber was better (by all accounts her understudy was very good), that what this production is about is its star casting.