“Methinks I
could deal kingdoms to my friends, And ne’er be weary ...”
As I glanced around the auditorium
during the commencement of the final act, there was an overwhelming sense of
dramatic irony in the witnessing of an uprising against the Establishment, here
in the Olivier Theatre of all places, in which three quarters of the audience
were broadly representative of this social circle. Perhaps only the National
could make a statement so vivid and powerfully embodying of stark convenience.
Nicholas Hytner’s RSC production of
Shakespeare’s rarely staged epic was a tour
de force in topical theatre. Performed as part of the World Shakespeare
Festival, itself a part of the London 2012 Cultural Festival, this was surely an
artistic highlight of this eventful Summer for the capital. Set in present-day
London, not only did Hytner succeed in remaining as faithful as possible in the
interpretation of the Bard’s text, but also delivered in ensuring that a play
over four hundred years old was supremely relevant to the modern world in the
wake of the current economic crisis.
Simon Russell Beale was the ultimate
Timon, evoking a timeless and universally emotional quality which reached out
tow e in the audience on so many levels. From the opening scene as a
charismatic entrepreneur, evoking a softness of charm and warmth as he greets and
dines his willing acquaintances, members of the elite City gatherings, to the
final moments as a penniless ‘chav’, filling the air with physicality and still
retaining the humorous mannerisms. The realisation of blatant sycophancy on the
part of his former ‘friends’ in hindsight is played out with devastating desperation.
The sheer concentrated depth of Beale’s performance as Timon was a theatrical
delight, whose speaking of the verse alternated with sudden, fiery rapidity and
tempered elongation, reflecting the impassioned frustration and anguish of the
character.
The rest of the cast delivered brilliant
performances in their respective characterisations. Hilton McRae was
particularly effective as the maverick Apemantus, whose accurate foresight of
judgement was played out with great skill, owing much to his considerable stage
presence. Nonetheless, this was Beale’s moment of greatness, shining from his
initial low-key entrance right up to the thundering applause of the standing
ovation which supplemented his final bow.
Visually the production was stunning;
the sets being especially excellent, Timon’s chambers and those of his elite
circle were beautifully simplistic, evoking a grandness of scope, wealth and
formality whilst making a statement on the vulgarities of post-modern interior
design. The clinical whiteness of the elaborate void contrasted bitterly with
the dark, bleak, gritty world of the underclass in which Timon finds himself
residing.
And thus we were presented with a
universal declaration on the nature of man and wealth, as applicable to today’s
world as it was to ancient Athens, and to the Elizabethan England in which it
was written.
At just two hours and twenty minutes
this seemed refreshingly brief and focused for a Royal Shakespeare Company
production, traditionally associated with staging the better-known and
lengthier works, and
Timon of
Athens was
a masterpiece of British theatre; engaging, intelligent and real; just what the
National do best.
Liam Elvish
August 2012
August 2012
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