Reviewed by James
Karas
As the lights go on the stage at Shakespeare’s Globe to indicate the
beginning of the performance of Romeo and Juliet, a group of rowdy
musicians appear. They play various instruments, sing, dance and are quite
delightful. One of them announces that this is a touring company production!
Yikes. The musicians take off some of their costumes and the play begins. The
musicians, you quickly realize, are the entire cast.
A touring production at Shakespeare’s Globe? A touring production is what you get in the
“provinces”, as they so rudely say, and not in the capital. You expect a pared
down production, actors playing many roles and the exercise of great economy in
costumes and props. Not to mention that the actors are probably not of the
first rank, quite often.
Surprisingly most of
these attributes applied to this production of Romeo and Juliet. Eight actors play eighteen roles. Only Cassie Layton
as Juliet and Samuel Valentine as Romeo do not take multiple roles. All of them
appear quite young and most seem to have limited experience. Perhaps to
indicate youth, almost all of them sport prominent tattoos.
Talented young actors can do wonders for a production but Director
Dominic Dromgoole’s take on the play almost guarantees a failing grade and an
annoying night at the theatre.
Dromgoole chooses speed over fidelity to the text. He cuts scenes in the
middle or anywhere he feels like it and characters from the next scene appear
before the one in progress is finished. There are minor changes in costume and
if people who do not know the play well are confused about what is going on,
well, that’s their problem.
Cassie Layton is a waif of a girl and looks like she is about fourteen
years old as Shakespeare suggests. She fits the part of the infatuated young
girl. Valentine as Romeo looks more mature but his idea of depth of feeling is
limited. In the final scene he delivers some of the most deeply moving lines
with almost no emotional impact. He looks at his beautiful but dead Juliet and
says or is supposed to say “Ah, Juliet, why art thou yet so fair?” Did he say
the line and it was so muffled that I did not hear it or did he skip it
completely?
He continues: “Shall I believe/ That unsubstantial death
is amorous,/And that the lean abhorrèd monster keeps/Thee here in dark to be
his paramour? In other words, even Death is in love with Juliet.
It is a heart-breaking
scene and Romeo should be looking at his love with searing intensity. Valentine
is not and the scene is robbed of most of its emotional power.
The Nurse (Sarah
Higgins) with her thick Scottish accent is appropriately garrulous and quite
amusing. She also handles the roles Lady Montague and Balthazar.
The rest of the
cast is at least competent but with the revolving door changes of roles and the
gerrymandering of the play you lose all perspective and just wait for the
evening to be over.
_________
Romeo and Juliet by
William Shakespeare played at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, 21 New Globe Walk,
London, England and is now touring the provinces. Details of their tour can be
found here: http://www.shakespearesglobe.com/theatre/whats-on/globe-theatre/romeo-and-juliet-2015
No comments:
Post a Comment