VENUE LISTING
Courtyard Theatre |
| Address | Southern Lane Stratford-Upon-Avon Warwickshire CV37 6BH |
| Telephone | 0870 6091110 |
| Station |
| Description | 1000 seat theatre. A temporary theatre that will be home to the RSC s main ensemble during the transformation of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. Built as an extention to The Other Place. The building to be completed in time of the Complete Works Shakesespeare Festival. |
WHAT'S ON
Love's Labour's Lost(Play )Synopsis
Dates: Opens 08 October 2008. Oct08 8 19:00 Prices: Please check with venue Cast & Creative Team
Love's Labour's Lost, the second production from the David Tennant-led Royal Shakespeare Company ensemble behind Hamlet, opened last night at the Courtyard Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon (8 October 2008, previews from 2 October), where it runs in rep until 15 November 2008. One of Shakespeare’s earliest comedies, Love's Labour's Lost tells of what happens when the King of Navarre persuades three friends to join him in a vow of celibacy so that they can concentrate on their studies, only to be instantly tested by the arrival of the beautiful princess of France and her three gorgeous ladies in waiting on an informal visit. This production marks the RSC’s first staging of the play in over 12 years. Tennant, who plays the sharp-witted Berowne, is joined by Mariah Gale as the Princess of France, Nina Sosanya as Rosaline, Edward Bennett as the Duke of Navarre and Oliver Ford Davies as Holofernes. Other ensemble members include Sam Alexander, Joe Dixon, Tom Davey, Katherine Drysdale and Riann Steele. The production is directed by RSC chief associate Gregory Doran (who also helmed Hamlet) and designed by Francis O'Connor. “Lightning rarely strikes twice in the same place” seemed an apt choice of phrase for the production’s critical reception. But despite not receiving the unanimous raves that greeted Hamlet, there was certainly no shortage of praise, particularly for the performances. Tennant stole the limelight with a take on Berowne that “has the audience eating out of the palm of his hand”, while critics found him ably supported by the “hilarious ridiculousness” of Joe Dixon as Don Armado and Oliver Ford Davies’ “earnest pedant” Holofernes. Others were less keen on the production as a whole, which one critic described as a “broad brush-strokes” interpretation of one of the Bard’s most challenging works.
- by Theo Bosanquet Related Content
Date: 9 October 2008 At the end of the day, no-one really does Shakespeare better than, well, the Royal Shakespeare Company. Gregory Doran’s latest offering has all the hallmarks of adept, erudite direction and a slick, proficient cast. The plot centres around the court of King Navarre; who has, along with his fellow nobles, chosen to give up worldly pleasures for three years in order to dedicate themselves to study; particularly shunning the company of women. The arrival of the Princess of France and her entourage, however, somewhat puts pay to this oath – to much comic effect. The jokey boys verses girls antics and elements of farce have the potential to make Love's Labour's Lost a rather one-dimensional, facile affair when in the wrong hands. Fortunately, however, it’s safe in Doran’s, as he draws out all the colours of the text with understanding, regard and bucket-loads of humour. Comedy is really the lynchpin of this production; and it’s satisfying to see a cast and crew that get as much meat out of Shakespearean comedy as they do tragedy, as they play around with the text with immaculate comic delivery and wit. For my part, it was the first time that I have ever found fancy dress, fake eyebrows, or two old men speaking Latin to each other in any way amusing. This production isn’t just about the laughs, however. Moments of wisdom, poignancy and even sadness are weaved deftly in amongst the comedy, without seeming incongruous or superficial. You could have heard a pin drop during some of Berowne’s thought-provoking discourses on love, and the final, more downbeat scenes are sensitively done and quite genuninely poignant. Although each character is admirably distinct - it’s not really a play for high drama or tortured soliloquies - no members of the cast really get the chance to individually steal the limelight; although David Tennant’s quick, quirky Berowne had the audience eating out of the palm of his hand and Joe Dixon is allowed to revel in the hilarious ridiculousness of Don Adriano De Armado. The only criticism I would levy against this production is that it is perhaps a bit too full. There’s a heck of a lot packed into a fairly simple comedy and it could do with a little slimming down in both overall feel and actual timing. That said, Doran has obviously taken great care and attention to draw out all the juice from this potentially rather dry Shakespearean morsel and it would perhaps be a shame for that particular labour of love to be lost. - Fiona Handscomb Related Content
Reader Reviews: be the first!
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||


























