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Twelfth Night

Duke of York's Theatre, West End
From: Saturday, 19th December 2009
To: Saturday, 27 February 2010

Our Review: Your Reviews:

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Synopsis

Or What You Will. Shakespeare comedy of mistaken identity, practical jokes and unrequited love. Rescued from a shipwreck the twins Viola and Sebastian arrive independently in Illyria, both thinking the other is drowned. Viola disguises herself as a boy and finds employment with the Duke who is in love with Olivia. Malvolio is the subject of a cruel joke played on him by Sir Toby Belch (yellow stockings cross-gartered) leading him to believe that Olivia loves him. But Olivia has fallen in love with the disguised Viola, while she is in love with the Duke (following it so far?!).

Our Review:

23 December 2009

Twelfth Night should be ideal Christmas fare, the tale of mistaken identity, thwarted love and mocking of Puritanism should make for fine seasonal entertainment. Last year, the Donmar gave us a fine production, led by Derek Jacobi’s outstanding Malvolio, so the RSC had a lot to live up to.

Gregory Doran sets the action in a Levantine fantasy world more akin to Arabian Nights than to Shakespeare’s beguiling play, offers plenty to savour but seems to have by-passed the comedy, This is a production that revels in the cruelty of the play, typified by Richard McCabe’s Toby Belch. This is a personification far removed from the usual, jovial braggart. There’s a sense of self-disgust allied with a desire to hurt, not for amusement's sake but for sheer malice.

There’s a strangely non-comic Malvolio from Richard Wilson too. He conveys the dour melancholy of the...

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Latest User Review

Paul Wallis - 20 February 2010:

Oh dear what a dissapointment. This is supposed to be a funny play yet I laughed not once. Why Richard Wilson has been courted for so long to play Malvolio I simply don't know. He brought nothing to the character. Nancy Carroll and Alexadra Gilbreath did their best but this was a generally porr production, which following on from the Donmar dissapoinment of last year has left me wondering if its the play that's the problem. Yet I saw a fine production many years ago at the RSC with Des Barritt as Malvolio so it can work. Afraid not this time though....

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