Following her innovative take on A Midsummer Night's Dream last year, director Lucy Bailey works her magic on another Shakespeare play at the Royal Exchange. But can lightning strike twice? The audience on the night I attended Bailey's Twelfth Night would certainly like to think so. And, from Katrina Lindsay's water-logged set to Steve Brown's eerie sound effects, it is clear that the 'wrapping' is spot on. It's a shame then that the production feels as if it's slightly over-egged in other departments. I blame the panoply of post-modern references. The Simpsons, The Godfather, Burt Baccharach and even Kool and The Gang are all thrown into the melting pot. This mixture of the bard and popular culture worked in Bailey's Dream, but this time round it feels rather more forced and 'knowing.' I kept experiencing that awful sinking feeling you get when a joke is repeated ad nauseum in a movie sequel - just in case you didn't get it!
Still, Shakespeare's comedy of mistaken identity, practical jokes and unrequited love remains intact, the beautiful language on the whole untouched. Believing her brother drowned, Viola disguises herself as a man and finds employment with the duke. He's in love with Olivia who's in love with the in cognito Viola.
Emma Cunniffe's is wonderful as the independently minded and quietly determined Viola, embracing with great emotion Shakespeare's verse and convincing in her display of both male and female traits. As Olivia, Madeleine Worrall is also very effective. She revels in the rich dialogue and really comes into her own with the physical elements of the production.
A special mention should also go to Teachers star Ellen Thomas. Her Maria is funny, mischievous and a delight to watch. Each member of the cast has much ground to cover as the set consists of stairs leading right up to the galleries. They all rise to the occasion with aplomb, involving the audience at every turn.
Overall, though, Bailey's brave production tries too hard to be different. Modernising classic texts is fine as long as it can be done fairly seamlessly and with some real purpose. But here, rather than adding anything new, the constant 'nods' and 'winks' to the present begin simply to irritate.
- Glenn Meads
