Thomas More

Synopsis

Written between 1592 and 1595, Shakespeare's 'banned' play, in collaboration with Munday and Chettle, tells of the race riots and dissent in London at the time and Thomas More's attempts to quell the uprising. His pleading for racial harmony begins his rise to political prominence but ultimately leads to his downfall.

Our Review:

6 January 2006

Robert Delamere’s production of this Tudor potboiler by Anthony Munday, Shakespeare and others, returns to its rightful home: for this is a play about London as much as it is about More’s conscience and his conflict with the king. The London mob plays a prominent part in the action and More is presented as a sort of London hero rather than a martyr.

As might be expected from a play that had to tread a fine line with a censor, there’s no mention of Catholicism, no mention of Henry’s split from the Church or his wish for divorce - in fact, there's very little religion at all. It’s an interesting comparison to Robert Bolt's A Man for All Seasons (which coincidentally opened the same week in the West End), which dwells at length with the man as a voice of conscience – but then, Thomas More's authors were well aware of the consequences of promoting Catholicism, let alone criticising the Queen (of the time)’s father.

The result is...

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Latest User Review

86.130.214.48) - 6 January 2006:

Though not a great play, this is a fascinating find that is well worth staging. It's surprising how much of its themes are still relevant. This RSC ensemble are as good as its Jacobean and Spanish Golden Age predecessors and I look forward to seeing more of the Gunpowder season. ...

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