16 May 2014
On Thursday we were
back at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon to see
Greg Doran's RSC production of 'Henry IV Part 2'. Seeing the play in
sequence after 'Richard II' (reviewed here in December 2013) and
'Henry IV Part 1' (reviewed here in April 2014), the historical
backdrop was much clearer. But I was struck by the fact that 'Part 2'
is a play without much plot and which is not remembered for its
poetry. What it does, perhaps better than any other Shakespeare play,
is to provide a deep and searching exploration of character. While
'Part 1' is Hal's play, in 'Part 2' Falstaff dominates, with a series
of opportunities, alone on stage, to address the audience directly.
Anthony Sher's Falstaff was wicked and mischievous, funny and
despicable, with an earnestly precise diction suggesting his
frustration at having to address a bunch of idiots. Sher is a
brilliant physical actor and Falstaff became a hobbling, unsteady
presence, constantly shifting from one leg to the other, as if trying
to balance himself on the rolling deck of a ship. Falstaff can
sometimes be a very unfunny clown, but the scenes where he was
reunited with Justice Shallow (the ever-wonderful Oliver Ford Davies)
were hilarious (with an unnervingly odd performance from Jim Hooper
as Silence adding to the effect). I must also mention the amazing
physical performance by Leigh Quinn as Wart (one of the members of
Falstaff's Scarecrow Army), bent into the most remarkable shape but
still managing to move around the stage. This RSC production used a
sparing stage set but created a series of realistic worlds through
incredibly imaginative lighting and sound design (by Tim Mitchell and
Martin Slavin, respectively). It was a very impressive production and
the climax, where the newly crowned Henry V publicly rejects Falstaff
was a stunning moment.
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