Reader Reviews
Rosmersholm (Almeida Theatre, West End)
Back to Show Details| Score | Comment | Date |
 | Dreadful. The acting, script and direction were all dire - the only thing to be said for it was the set! What on earth were the Almeida doing putting this on in the first place? Staggeringly over acted to the point of becoming a macabre pantomime. Surely black actors deserve to be given better material, which does not patronise or pigeon hole them, than this. And one other thing what was it with the clunky accents? It was an African 'ello 'ello. The incredibly slow response to applaud at the close of the first act tonight was a clear sign of what the audience thought of it. - rds | 21 May 10 |
| Below average Ibsen - both in terms of play and production. There isn't enough meat for 180 mins and on a hot summer Tuesday, it lost me 30 mins before it finished. The usually wonderful Malcolm Sinclair veres into the sort of mannered acting Ibsen specifically didn't want and Paul Hilton's characterisation just wasn't believable. - Gareth James | 02 Jul 08 |
| You know Ibsen will never be a barrel of laughs but Rosmersholm is grim even by his gloomy standards. The acting is excellent with one glaring exception, thankfully in the most minor role. Paul Hilton is less whiny and self-pitying than usual but Malcolm Sinclair takes the honours as the menacing and vengeful reactionary Dr. Kroll. I was never less than gripped by Anthony Page's production but left ultimately frustrated as I felt there were too many questions left unanswered particularly concerning the truth of Rebecca West's past relationships with Kroll and especially her supposed foster father. Good drama does not always need to tie up loose ends but in this case it would have made more sense of the tragic climax. - David Baxter | 18 Jun 08 |
| Its well-drawn characters and intensity, and its consideration of conflict between the reactionary, frightened old guard and the new though still uncertain social forces of late 19th century/early 20th century, are what I associate with the plays I've seen by Ibsen. Echoes of such modern-day differences were detectable. Not the most gripping of his plays that I've seen, but I liked its convincing characters, plot twists, and the general quiet classiness of its production. - El Peter | 11 Jun 08 |
| I have to agree with rds here. However, I don't suppose the problem is so much "absentee landlord" as taking Mr Ibsen's directions to seriously. In the program mention is made of a letter the actress Sofie Reimers wrote to Ibsen asking his advice on playing the part of Rebecca. Ibsen replied "No declamations! No theatricalities! No grand mannerisms! Express every mood in a manner that seems credible and natural..." And so he goes on. But, Mr Ibsen..ths is theatre! Mr Page has clearly followed this advice slavishly - advice which probably made sense to actors trained in the 19th century, but not in the 21st century. What we get as a result is bland, bland, bland. - CHP | 08 Jun 08 |
| Some very dodgy acting going on here and I kept pinching myself - this is the Almeida isn't it? No way does this deserve the 4 stars I've seen banded around in some of the papers. The second act did it for me so I gave up and left. And another thing, I sat in the third row and could barely hear some of them. Blame for that has to be laid fairly and squarely with the director. However, I got the feeling more than once that maybe this was the product of an absentee landlord? I could say more but you know I can't be arsed to get up and find the program to comment on some of the performances so sod it! Better luck next time then? - rds | 07 Jun 08 |
| Saw this on its 2nd night and the rhythms of the play hadn't quite been worked out by the actors. Helen McCrory doesn't convince and overall it's not a patch on the 'Hedda Gabler' the Almeida put on a few years ago. - addicted to theatre | 20 May 08 |
