I could have reached out and touched Rita's feet as she tread the boards in front of me. I could have done that several times during the show with practically every performer as they spoke, sang, and danced their way through a play I know better than I know papers and plays I have written myself. Though I have stood at that very same spot in the yard for Twelfth Night (2002), Measure for Measure (2004), The Merry Wives of Windsor (2008), and A Midsummer Night's Dream (2008), I forgot exactly how captivating it can be to have a talented performer onstage look straight at you and just speak to you, rather than talk past you.
What followed after the health and safety announcements was one of the most immersive theatrical experiences that I have been a part of since I saw Fuerza Bruta in New York City three or four years ago. If I'd actually had a moment to stop and think about it, I might have been upset that this production had taken so many liberties with the text (adding in songs, changing and excising some of the text), the design (this was the Globe afterall, so why were they so reliant on obvious spectacle?), the casting (Helena was Helanus), and the violent and sexual nature of the play altogether. There were moments where the stage combat was either so well-rehearsed that I could not spot where the slapping sound or 'knap' was coming from or it was stage combat that was so passionate that the slapping sound was in fact real as actors grabbed each other and collided with one another onstage. Also, everyone got undressed. This is not to suggest that I mind such things, just more of a matter-of-fact observation. As my wife has said, "I don't think I've ever been to a play with quite so many 'crotch-shots' as this one had." I think she was observing that from our vantage point, we could see everything and from almost the same distance as a doctor might examine a patient.
Barring any objection I might have had with the no-original-practice design, the almost-gratuitous spectacle, the textual abbreviations, or any celebration of Kott-ian themes (I actually loved the choice to make Helena a man), I must say that the individual performances last night (4 September 2016) were the sum and total of one of the finest Shakespearean companies I have ever been privy to witness. Quite simply, there was no one on that stage who was not unique in character, keen in voice (singing or speaking), or adept, agile, and possessing of pure physical prowess. Please forgive the alliteration there, but I couldn't help myself, I was smiling the entire time. I clapped like a fool even though my back and neck ached from standing still for so long. It was a joy to watch, and to single out any one actor as better than another in this case would be a true disservice to this cast that has made me believe ensemble work is still alive and well in London. I know that this review is coming late in the game (as there are only three sold-out performances left), but if I thought my body could handle standing still for another three hours, I'd do it again if only to be a part of that magic one more time.
I shall be back later with the regularly scheduled, edit-filled, blog post... but I thought this show was deserving of a write-up, if only so that I can remember it fondly later on.
EDIT: There is some exciting news from the Globe as you can all watch this production in a live broadcast. Read about it here.
Year 4, Day 360 - Words Written: (How long is a blog post?)
