Twelfth Night - The Globe

[ex poster from the previous message board, turned ‘lurker’ on this board, turned poster on this board in response to this show!]



So - this was Emma Rice's farewell. People will be looking for evidence of scorched earth but it really wasn't there (sorry Fiona Mountford – it wasn’t). Indeed, much of the use of ‘enhancing technology’ was somewhat 'shared light'. Hey Ho. Who'd have thought?



In honesty, for me, it was more of the same, suggesting that it would have all gotten a little old, pretty soon, should this administration have continued.



But on the plus-side. There were some strong performances from the Olivia, Orsino and Malvolio - all fun, characterful and, at times, enlightening. The Feste Schtick more-or-less worked too.



But on the down-side.



The text, as was the case with Dream and Romeo, is nearly entirely lost. I've not got any complaint with cutting and tinkering. Scanning Iambic Pentameter isn’t my thing. It's the layering of music and the amplification in general that gives you this flat wall of sound that undermines the words (and indeed the actors) themselves. More importantly, only 75% of the actors on stage seem to know what it is they're actually saying. This isn't a point about verse speaking, it's about understanding the story through what’s been written and what’s being said. One could say that it’s about putting on plays in ways that trust and respect the play that's been written. I don't want to be (or appear to be) unnecessarily harsh but this is how it can come over. This is how it comes over for me.



But who needs Shakespeare when you've got Sister Sledge and, indeed, the Tool Kit of Kneehigh-isms? Thick-rimmed glasses? Check. Folksy Band? Check. A 10 minute danceathon at the beginning and the end just in case the play itself doesn't excite you much? Check.



Yes, the place went crazy. But what will they remember in the morning? Slapstick, Drag and Dancing? All good fun I appreciate but temporary and disposable. The Globe has roared before - at everything from Eve Best's Beatrice through to Che Walker's Lightening Child. But they thought too.



But I’ve made my point.



I’m suspecting that the majority of my reaction might, in fact, be due to the one element that genuinely left a bad taste in the mouth. The Aguecheek was a gross stereotype of mincing, lisping (yes – lisping) and pink pants that should have Peter Tatchell climbing on stage with a banner to protest. Seriously though – why is this OK? In the ‘new’ Globe philosophy of inclusivity and diversity there are some minorities that are still fair game, it seems. Not good enough. Not good enough at all.

www.theartsdesk.com/theatre/twelfth-night-shakespeares-globe-review-emma-rice-goes-out-bang

I note that Rice has employed someone to write new dialogue for this production... yes, I know that John Barton did this a lot, but he knows his Shakespeare possibly better than anyone else alive. But here it seems to show a huge lack of confidence in the source material and the director's ability to deliver an entertaining production based on Shakespeeare's words alone.

There is a reason why Twelfth Night has remained one of the most popular plays all round the world for so long - and it is not because directors have put their stamp on it. Yes, there is a place for innovation, creativity and bonkers visions - but it has to come as a response to the text.

The Vegas Merchant took the text and used that as a basis for something utterly brilliant and immensely theatrical. The updated King John took huge liberties with the text - but was essentially true to the language of the play and was one of the best nights I have ever had in the theatre (and yes, I know there are many who hated it!)

My point is that the best Shakespeare I have seen has not been 'pure' or 'authentic' - but it has been true to the play.

Not sure if I am right about this but it seems that Emma Rice has directed professional productions of CYMBELINE (RSC), A MIDSUMMER NIGHT'S DREAM (Globe) and now TWELFTH NIGHT. These are three of Shakespeare's plays (comedies - although I know CYMBELINE is famously hard to classify) that probably best lend themselves to the Emma Rice/Kneehigh style of irreverence and fun.

I wonder what an Emma Rice production of one of the histories or the tragedies would have been like. But the fact she went for the "easier choices" early doors suggests she might not have been licking her licks at the prospect of veering from her well-trodden path.

Amused to see she has set this play in the 1970s -  that is so typical of middle-aged directors trying to appeal to youthful audiences by setting things during the period when they themselves were young. Of course it delights some similarly middle-aged theatre critics but it must look like a world as remote as Shakespeare's to young audience members. 

Enjoyed this last night at the Globe. The story seemed much easier to follow than usual in a Shakespeare. No one stole the show from anyone else but everyone gave full value. Aguecheek very funny, Malvolio funny and sad, Olivia very warm, Sebastian key to the play for once, Le Gateau Chocolat gorgeous. Sister Topaz deserves a play of her own. Shakespeare now has a second Scottish play.

We Are Family

I thought this was going to be my last ever foreseeable visit to the Globe Theatre, but it was so lovely last night that I've now booked for the Nitin Sawhney gig next month.