Springtime ... for Shakespeare .. in Stratford ... and soon New York!
One of the joys of living in England is the ability to experience Shakespeare as it was meant to be performed -- in the round (and or thrust depending upon the theatre), by a troupe of talented actors, and preferably in Stratford.
Yesterday, after a long and maddening work week, I met up with evildrem in the birthplace of the Bard to see a production of Romeo and Juliet. This was the first time I'd seen it performed on stage and the production was in the recently opened Royal Shakespeare theatre. It's a beautiful venue.; if you're sitting in the stalls, there isn't a bad seat to be had (and the various upper levels look much more comfortable as well). We were in Row D, on one of the three sides, right by one of the four raised aisles which meant we had actors entering and leaving the stage scant inches away from us, hems and cloaks swirling close enough to touch; it can be a bit distracting!
As to why Romeo and Juliet? Firstly, you can never go wrong with a RSC production -- and we were curious about the new theatre. Also, in checking out the cast for this production, it turned out that virtually everyone from Le Morte d/Arthur was going to be appearing in this ensemble -- including a particularly lovely Irish gent by the name of Jonjo O'Neill who played Launcelot. Good enough reason to head off to Stratford!
And sure enough -- it was a gorgeous show. Jonjo played Mercutio (with vivid bleached blonde hair which took some getting used to!) and brought him to life with a magnificent performance. I keep forgetting how much levity Mercutio brings to the play; the words on a page just don't live up to the brilliance of watching an actor breathe the words. And in this particular production, the chemistry between Jonjo as Mercutio and Sam Troughton as Romeo was palpable; they kept one upping each other the entire time they were on the stage together -- it was a delight to watch. And if the name Sam Troughton rings a bell, he played Arthur in Le Morte.
As for other memorable performances, Mariah Gale who played Juliet was brilliant (she played Ophelia in Tennant's Hamlet and Elaine in Le Morte). She managed to combine the vulnerability of a young girl with the passion and obsession of a young teen aged woman, obsessed with love -- or the idea of love. And Norma Dumezweni as the Nurse was probably my favourite character; the Nurse is always a great role and this actress makes it her own. But, Forbes Masson as Friar Laurence is a force to be reckoned with as well; I best recall him most recently as Merlin from Le Morte. And there were so many others; the RSC ensemble is an *amazing* collection of actors.
And for those of you in the US, good news -- the production is headed your way! It's off to the Lincoln Center Festival in New York where between 10 July and 13 August five RSC plays will be staged in a replica of its new Stratford theatre. Sounds amazing!
As for the commute to get to Stratford, let's not talk about the fact it took 4 1/2 hours to get there and 6 hours to get back because of unannounced "engineering works on the Chiltern Railway lines" which meant our train went to Aylesbury Vale Parkway and then we had to take a bus to Stratford. What I would prefer to focus on is the fact that I encountered three fellow travellers at Marlybone Station who were just as annoyed as I was about the changes to the schedule -- and worried about getting to Stratford on time! After some serious complaining to the Platform Manager, the railway company arranged for a taxi for us from Aylesbury Vale Parkway Station to the theatre in Stratford. All good; and particularly good was the fact that one of said passengers by the name of Vincenzo was a dead ringer for the character of Luc Laurent, the fiance of Rachel on Brothers and Sisters. No complaints there! And Vincezno's partner was a lovely long curly haired English gent by the name of John -- ever so sweet and chatty. On the way back we met up again and commiserated over the fact that none of us would get home until well past ten. But fortunately, their commuting experience hadn't turned them off their first trip to Stratford; they've already booked tickets to return in the summer to see A Midsummer Night's Dream.
So all in all, good fun!
Yesterday, after a long and maddening work week, I met up with evildrem in the birthplace of the Bard to see a production of Romeo and Juliet. This was the first time I'd seen it performed on stage and the production was in the recently opened Royal Shakespeare theatre. It's a beautiful venue.; if you're sitting in the stalls, there isn't a bad seat to be had (and the various upper levels look much more comfortable as well). We were in Row D, on one of the three sides, right by one of the four raised aisles which meant we had actors entering and leaving the stage scant inches away from us, hems and cloaks swirling close enough to touch; it can be a bit distracting!
As to why Romeo and Juliet? Firstly, you can never go wrong with a RSC production -- and we were curious about the new theatre. Also, in checking out the cast for this production, it turned out that virtually everyone from Le Morte d/Arthur was going to be appearing in this ensemble -- including a particularly lovely Irish gent by the name of Jonjo O'Neill who played Launcelot. Good enough reason to head off to Stratford!
And sure enough -- it was a gorgeous show. Jonjo played Mercutio (with vivid bleached blonde hair which took some getting used to!) and brought him to life with a magnificent performance. I keep forgetting how much levity Mercutio brings to the play; the words on a page just don't live up to the brilliance of watching an actor breathe the words. And in this particular production, the chemistry between Jonjo as Mercutio and Sam Troughton as Romeo was palpable; they kept one upping each other the entire time they were on the stage together -- it was a delight to watch. And if the name Sam Troughton rings a bell, he played Arthur in Le Morte.
As for other memorable performances, Mariah Gale who played Juliet was brilliant (she played Ophelia in Tennant's Hamlet and Elaine in Le Morte). She managed to combine the vulnerability of a young girl with the passion and obsession of a young teen aged woman, obsessed with love -- or the idea of love. And Norma Dumezweni as the Nurse was probably my favourite character; the Nurse is always a great role and this actress makes it her own. But, Forbes Masson as Friar Laurence is a force to be reckoned with as well; I best recall him most recently as Merlin from Le Morte. And there were so many others; the RSC ensemble is an *amazing* collection of actors.
And for those of you in the US, good news -- the production is headed your way! It's off to the Lincoln Center Festival in New York where between 10 July and 13 August five RSC plays will be staged in a replica of its new Stratford theatre. Sounds amazing!
As for the commute to get to Stratford, let's not talk about the fact it took 4 1/2 hours to get there and 6 hours to get back because of unannounced "engineering works on the Chiltern Railway lines" which meant our train went to Aylesbury Vale Parkway and then we had to take a bus to Stratford. What I would prefer to focus on is the fact that I encountered three fellow travellers at Marlybone Station who were just as annoyed as I was about the changes to the schedule -- and worried about getting to Stratford on time! After some serious complaining to the Platform Manager, the railway company arranged for a taxi for us from Aylesbury Vale Parkway Station to the theatre in Stratford. All good; and particularly good was the fact that one of said passengers by the name of Vincenzo was a dead ringer for the character of Luc Laurent, the fiance of Rachel on Brothers and Sisters. No complaints there! And Vincezno's partner was a lovely long curly haired English gent by the name of John -- ever so sweet and chatty. On the way back we met up again and commiserated over the fact that none of us would get home until well past ten. But fortunately, their commuting experience hadn't turned them off their first trip to Stratford; they've already booked tickets to return in the summer to see A Midsummer Night's Dream.
So all in all, good fun!