'The Tempest' by William Shakespeare
27 April 2012
On 25 June 1992 I made the mistake of going to see the Peter
Greenaway film ‘Prospero’s Books’. With hindsight this was a mistake for two
reasons: firstly, having never seen ‘The Tempest’ I found ‘Prospero’s Books’
incredibly difficult to follow and didn’t enjoy the experience at all; and
secondly, it put me off seeing ‘The Tempest’. Last Saturday, nearly 20 years
later, I braced myself finally to face a production of the play for the first
time. Inevitably, I was very pleasantly surprised. We were at the Royal
Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon to see the Royal Shakespeare Company
production of ‘The Tempest’ as part of the RSC’s shipwreck trilogy, ‘What country
friends is this?’. It was particularly fascinating, so soon after seeing ‘Twelfth
Night’ (reviewed here in March 2012), to see the identical cast and director
(David Farr) tackling this later work. Even the set (by Jon Bausor) was
recognisably the same, albeit playing a slightly different part – the wooden ‘wave’
of floorboards having evolved into a more decayed version of its earlier self
and now housing the giant perspex cube that formed Prospero’s cell. I really
enjoyed discovering the play, which was funnier and with more of a plot than I
had expected from my experience of Peter Greenaway’s adaptation. It was a great
production, with Jonathan Slinger a wonderful Prospero and Sandy Grierson also
standing out as an extremely eerie and unsettling Ariel. These two characters looked
remarkably alike and there was a great moment when we were watching Prospero’s
back as he was sitting as his desk only for him simultaneously to appear on the
other side of the stage – the seated figure briefly turning around to show us Ariel’s
face. Having the brother of the King of Naples, Sebastian, played as a woman
(by Kirsty Bushell) added a layer of intrigue to Sebastian’s alliance with
Prospero’s brother Antonio (played by Jonathan McGuinness). The conspirators here
clearly appeared to be lovers – especially as we remembered the actors as
Orsino and Olivia in ‘Twelfth Night’. The water tank at the front of the stage –
used to such great effect in ‘Twelfth Night’ had been emptied – emphasising the
dry, dusty exile of this desert island – so there were no further dramatic
entrances from the water. But Ariel’s plunge from the skies, wearing angel
wings, was a similarly stunning moment.
Labels: Drama, Theatre
'Freedom' by Jonathan Franzen
20 April 2012
As I have said here before, I think Jonathan Franzen’s 2001 book,
‘The Corrections’, is one of the best new novels I’ve read in recent years. It
took Franzen nine years to complete his next novel, ‘Freedom’, which I have
just finished reading. A worthy successor to a modern classic, ‘Freedom’ is a
mammoth work that once again addresses the state of the nation (and the world)
through the minutiae of family life. As in ‘The Corrections’, the reader is
shown events, in turn, through the eyes of each of the main characters. But
whereas the earlier book pulled off the trick of making you sympathise simultaneously
with people who held completely opposing points of view, in ‘Freedom’ I found
all the principal characters fairly unlikeable. This didn’t stop me appreciating
and enjoying the book – though it has to be said it’s quite a depressing tale
of the breakdown of relationships. It is wonderfully written: the very first
chapter in particular is a masterpiece which swiftly sets the scene and
introduces the Berglund family through the curious observation of their neighbours
– who then don’t feature again in the story (apart from a brief cameo towards
the end). This approach bookends the novel which concludes with the
introduction of a new nosey neighbour to update us on where Walter Berglund has
ended up. Having just read ‘Treasure Island’ which has a fantastic plot driving
it forward, ‘Freedom’ did, at times, seem to lack any clear plot and takes a
very long time to develop its characters and relationships. Then, all of a
sudden, Jonathan Franzen throws in major shocking plot developments, often
happening off stage or between chapters. His focus is clearly on the people,
the ties that bind them and the behaviour that drives them apart. Amongst the
pain and sadness there is humour – particularly when certain people get their
deserved comeuppance – but I felt the lack of the great comic set-pieces of ‘The
Corrections’. There is an obsession amongst some male American authors (and
critics) about ‘the great American novel’ and ‘Freedom’ certainly seems to be
aiming for this territory. It’s an impressive book but my suspicion is that it is
Franzen’s earlier work that will truly stand the test of time.
Labels: Books
'Treasure Island' by Robert Louis Stevenson
13 April 2012
In preparation for reading Andrew Motion’s ‘Silver: Return
to Treasure Island’ I have been reading Robert Louis Stevenson’s original novel
(as an unabridged audio book read by Michael Page). It’s always interesting to
go back to the original version of a story you think you know well. The first
thing that struck me was how short ‘Treasure Island’ is: the plot, particularly
in the first half of the book whips along at a frantic pace with all those
iconic moments (the black spot, the apple barrel, the discovery of Ben Gunn)
appearing to pass in the blink of an eye. It’s a gripping adventure which is
all the more exciting as we see it through the naïve eyes of the young Jim
Hawkins (though narrated in hindsight by in his adult voice). And Stevenson
very cleverly creates a mythic quality to his story by constantly suggesting
that the main events were those that happened before this novel begins (Captain
Flint acquiring and hiding the treasure and slaughtering his crew). George
Lucas did something similar in the first ‘Star Wars’ film, making you feel you
were coming in halfway through the story, but then made the mistake of trying
to tell us the backstory through the prequels. Stevenson also constructs a
magnificent set of colourful characters, building the excitement by continuously
trumping the level of evil: when Jim first encounters Billy Bones at the
Admiral Benbow he finds the old pirate terrifying, but the arrival of Black Dog
makes Billy Bones seem tame by comparison, and then the tap tap tapping of a
blind man’s cane heralds the arrival of an even scarier figure. All this is
before the appearance of the main villain, Long John Silver, and in a league
table of evil, the ghost of Flint seems to loom above them all. Silver is a
wonderful invention – the loveable rogue who is constantly swapping sides. For
Jim and his audience it is impossible to know whether to admire or revile his
guile and duplicity. Like Fagin, Silver is a despicable figure but one whom you
are pleased to see escape the gallows. Despite the thrilling plot and wonderful
characters, ‘Treasure Island’ is not a great work of literature. The
writing is difficult at times and the second half of the book seems to drag a
little. Like Mary Shelly’s ‘Frankenstein’ (reviewed here in May 2007),
Stevenson seems to have hit upon a great story but one that has really found
its best expression in some of its many later versions, adaptations and
continuations. I look forward to seeing what Andrew Motion has done with these
legendary events and characters.
Labels: Books
'1Q84' by Haruki Murakami
5 April 2012
Any author who references George Orwell in the title of
their novel risks inviting unfavourable comparisons. But Haruki Murakami clearly
knows exactly what he is doing in ‘1Q84’, his mammoth new 3-volume
novel. This is the work of an author at the top of his game: not content with
drawing analogies with ‘1984’ he goes on to cite Dickens, Chekov and others as
well as providing expert analysis of the music of Janáček, Duke Ellington etc. Despite
this complexity of cultural context there’s a deceptive simplicity to Murakami’s
writing: it’s sometimes difficult to tell whether this is high literature or
crowd-pleasing popular culture. There’s certainly a lot of sex in his books but
all described, like everything else he writes about, in slow, careful, precise
terms. There might be a degree of the emperor’s new clothes about all this but
it feels to me that Murakami is in total control and that it is the reader
rather than the author who risks being left naked. I’ve just finished reading ‘1Q84’
as an unabridged audio book translated by Philip Gabriel and Jay Rubin and read
by Alison Hiroto, Marc Vietor and Mark Boyett. Each chapter is told, in the
third person, from the point of view of one of the main characters so having
alternating narrators really helped to emphasise this contrast. ‘1Q84’ is a
very slow, painstakingly clear narrative but always felt gripping and
compelling. Murakami’s trademark magical realism is used very sparingly and is all
the more effective for appearing out of a very real and precisely drawn world.
I enjoyed the book and it held my attention throughout but ultimately I felt a
little disappointed by it. Despite its length the novel didn't seem to have the
complexity, substance and humour of some of Murakami's best earlier works. I
think my favourite is still ‘'Kafka on the Shore’ (reviewed here in October
2006).
Labels: Books
'The Winter's Tale' by William Shakespeare
5 April 2012
The thing most people know about ‘The Winter’s Tale’ is that
it’s the Shakespeare play that contains the infamous stage direction “Exit,
pursued by a bear”. Last week we were at the splendid new Marlowe Theatre in
Canterbury to see the Propeller production of the play, directed by Edward Hall.
From the opening scene, when the infant prince enters in his pyjamas clutching
a teddy bear, and the moment a little later when we see him draped in a
bearskin rug, you can tell this is going to be a playful production, toying
with our expectations. I really enjoyed Propeller’s ‘Henry V’ (reviewed here in
December 2011) and ‘The Winter’s Tale’, which the company is touring with ‘Henry
V’ and features the same cast, was even better. It’s very much a play of two halves
and the contrast between the grim seriousness of the scenes in Sicilia in the
first act and the comic slapstick of the rural scenes in Bohemia after the
interval was emphasised in this production by the set, lighting and costumes.
This contrast between the scenes at court and the pastoral setting reminded me
of ‘As You Like It’. Propeller really take these two worlds to extremes: we
feel the angst and pain driven by the jealousy of Leontes in the first half of
the play but suddenly, in Bohemia, the sun is out and the mood is transformed
by singing sheep (‘The Bleatles’), beatboxing shepherds and a wonderful pickpocketing
scene (by Tony Bell as Autolycus). All the cast are strong but there was a
particularly fine comic performance by Karl Davies as the Young Shepherd. It
was a fantastic production.
Labels: Drama, Theatre
Kent
5 April 2012
We certainly chose the right week for our holiday in Kent:
the weather was glorious and we had a lovely time. We stayed in the village of
Ringwould near Deal and did lots of walking: the coastal paths were great but
we particularly enjoyed our inland walks around the pretty villages of Barham
and Bishopsbourne and the Elham Valley. The castles at Deal, Walmer and Dover were
impressive and interesting and we enjoyed visiting Canterbury, Broadstairs and Sandwich.
I was delighted to discover that the village next to Sandwich is called Ham! And
the new Turner Contemporary gallery in Margate is stunning and well worth a
visit.
Labels: Exhibitions, Holidays
