Admittedly I have
never read Wolf Hall and I was quite obviously one of the only audience members
not to (I was sitting next to a very big fan). After having the amazing five
star reviews I was slightly worried that it would not live up to the hype, but
this show really did capture my attention.
The book was written
by Hilary Mantel and came to critical acclaim, so the Royal Shakespeare Company
have now adapted this story of the court of Henry VIII into a 3 hour play.
Following the King’s desire for a son and other affairs, we are introduced to
Thomas Cromwell (the remarkable Ben Miles) who’s cunning and eloquent nature
become part of the King’s court.
The script was
witty and engaging, there was never a moment where something was not happening.
As actors, each individual seemed focused and connected to their role with many
comedic moments perfectly timed. The scene changes were incredibly slick
(something I admired throughout) and each scene seemed to glide effortlessly
into the next. Sometimes this was done through the use of musical interludes or
dance sequences, the opening immediately caught everyone’s attention with a
dance from the era it was set, while at other points it was just a change in
lighting.
Lighting was
another aspect I was incredibly impressed by. The naturalistic use of lighting
showed the changes in time of day but spotlights also displayed split screens
(two different things happening at the same time) and were used to create
different settings, most stimulatingly as a barge where the actors also rocked
to show the movement and water was used to show the rain. Grates around and
across the stage were used to create fire that again symbolised the time of day
but was also used in the comedic play.
The thing that
really stood out to me was the direction of the whole show. There was not a
moment I would change and I really felt that Jeremy Herrin captured the story
while using lighting, staging and sound to his advantage. The moments that I
feel showed the beautifully crafted direction were the symbolism of Cromwell’s
wife dying and the whole ending to the production, a witty ending playing on
the use of dramatic irony.
So Wolf Hall
lives up to all the amazing reviews. Shave off a few minutes off the second act
and it would be even better. Even so, everything about the production is so
perfectly shaped that I cannot wait for ‘Bring Up The Bodies’, the sequel, in
just over a week.
Running until 4th
October 2014
0 comments:
Post a Comment