What an experience. Shakespeare's two history cycles performed back to back over the course of four days with a single troupe of 34 actors. Rehearsed over two and half years it is an undertaking virtually no other company could manage. The Royal Shakespeare Company have achieved something special. The eight plays, including the rarely performed (quite unfairly) Henry VI, are near continous. The links far stronger than I suspect many realise. Indeed Henry VI part 3 could be renamed Richard III part 1.
Michael Boyd has linked every play with a common set (although not common period) of rusty iron, a tower rises imposingly at the back of the large thrust stage. Yet he manages to keep the largely bare space interesting for roughly 24 hours of text (that's 24 hours without intervals). Motifs flow throughout the cycle. A stunning percussive score gives an almost cinematic quality to some scenes. Boyd sacrifices individual productions for the strength of the whole. To give just one example, to see just Richard III, I suspect Margaret appears a victim, but having just seen the suffering she inflicted upon others in Henry VI, a much more interesting morally ambiguous situation arises. That said, if your interest can't be maintained on the complex political machinations that the cycle centres on (it is hard for four days) Boyd keeps things exciting. Men emerge from above and below the stage, a good bit of spectacle is never far away. The audience aren't spared any blood letting either. Litres of the stuff are sprayed about the stage over the course of the cycle. Matthew Warchus once claimed that his Lord of the Rings was a melding of Cirque de Soleii and Shakespeare. Well I'm afraid Boyd has produced the perfect fusion of style and substance. Great thought seems to lie behind every decision. The French court fly above the audience on Trapezes in Henry V, the English make their assault at Agincourt from beneath the stage, emerging from the many trap doors with ladders. It's both exhilarating and at times surprisingly moving. The Histories are considered by many to be somewhat turgid, but this company are so comfortable with the plays they find comedy whenever needed. There's an easy wit that emerges exactly when required.
Michael Boyd has linked every play with a common set (although not common period) of rusty iron, a tower rises imposingly at the back of the large thrust stage. Yet he manages to keep the largely bare space interesting for roughly 24 hours of text (that's 24 hours without intervals). Motifs flow throughout the cycle. A stunning percussive score gives an almost cinematic quality to some scenes. Boyd sacrifices individual productions for the strength of the whole. To give just one example, to see just Richard III, I suspect Margaret appears a victim, but having just seen the suffering she inflicted upon others in Henry VI, a much more interesting morally ambiguous situation arises. That said, if your interest can't be maintained on the complex political machinations that the cycle centres on (it is hard for four days) Boyd keeps things exciting. Men emerge from above and below the stage, a good bit of spectacle is never far away. The audience aren't spared any blood letting either. Litres of the stuff are sprayed about the stage over the course of the cycle. Matthew Warchus once claimed that his Lord of the Rings was a melding of Cirque de Soleii and Shakespeare. Well I'm afraid Boyd has produced the perfect fusion of style and substance. Great thought seems to lie behind every decision. The French court fly above the audience on Trapezes in Henry V, the English make their assault at Agincourt from beneath the stage, emerging from the many trap doors with ladders. It's both exhilarating and at times surprisingly moving. The Histories are considered by many to be somewhat turgid, but this company are so comfortable with the plays they find comedy whenever needed. There's an easy wit that emerges exactly when required.
One of dozens of amazing imagesIt would seem unfair to mention names in what is a complete company piece but a few stars do emerge. Everyone mucks in with tiny roles as well as large (although if you're a female member of the company you get damn all other than wives and prostitutes) but Jonathan Slinger shines no matter what is thrown at him. To be fair he is gifted both Richard II and Richard III. Yet when given the smaller Fluellen, he makes even this smaller part great. He shows such vast range from the uber camp Richard II to the vile, rasping Richard III, I can scarcely believe the same actor played both. A name to remember, Slinger will be a star. Geoffrey Streatfield manages to carry off the difficult (and rarely tried) transformation from Prince Hal to Henry V. He can't be the massive, eloquent leader. That doesn't make sense when seen in the context of the full cycle. Streatfield does everything asked of him and more, his Suffolk is top notch as well. The company is largely faultless. Over the four days there were no mistakes. Like a well oiled machine they continuously create new and more impressive things.
Jonathan Slinger, Not a man I want to meet in a dark alley...This is really an experience of a lifetime. So perfectly formed are Shakespeare's Histories when performed back to back that I will now struggle to see them independently of each other. The endless links that Boyd makes between the productions are impossible to list, so intricately is it arranged. This was the final stand for the company in Stratford but they are doing the entire cycle in London for a very short, already largely sold out, season at the Roundhouse. If you can see them, you will not regret it, and nor with you ever forget it.
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