Julius Caesar

Synopsis

Victorious and valiant, yet proud and tyrannical, Julius Caesar is murdered by his closest allies. But the assassination divides Rome and bitter war begins.

Our Review:

2 December 2004

This Julius Caesar has to be the second worst-dressed Shakespearean production I’ve ever seen. Director David Farr, who found acclaim at Stratford for his Japanese Coriolanus two years ago, starring the excellent Greg Hicks, has swapped ancient Rome for a nondescript modernity, a move which has resulted not in a new urgency, relevance or conceptual clarity, but an enervating drabness.

An early scene featuring the assembled conspirators clad in casual leather jackets and slacks resembles chucking-out time at a Stoke-on-Trent nightclub. The noble Portia sports beachwear while Mark Antony is clad in jogging gear. Ye Gods. No wonder Julius Caesar, natty in a dark two-piece suit, is kingpin.

The programme, with an interesting essay by left-wing political commentator Martin Jacques and pictorial references to Berlusconi and Putin, promises a deeper exploration of the themes of the play and their modern parallels than is here deliv...

Read more of the review

Latest User Review

62.252.192.13) - 8 December 2004:

This modern, Eastern Europe-influenced production poses interesting questions about governance but is let down by poor, unclear verse speaking, much shouting and monotonal performances - particularly Brutus who gives no sense of angst of the situation, nor his underlying goodness. Possibly the only chance you'll get to see a dance number in Julius Caesar though........

Read more and add your own review