Theatre 2014: Review Twenty-Four

Julius Caesar, Shakespeare's Globe, London. August 2014.

Another lovely day weather wise and this time spent in the almost outdoors theatre!

I was a little apprehensive at seeing this one as I've seen a production of Julius Caesar before and my review then was a little ambiguous and I think that this one will be too as I've decided that perhaps it doesn't matter what the staging is I'm just not keen on this play.

I was right in my assessment of preferring the Globe version, the involvement of the audience in the key scenes in the first half was brilliant, I felt really swept away in the Lupercalia celebrations and surprised when it all turned darker.

The scenes with Brutus and Mark Anthony were also wonderful, the famous "friends, Romans, countrymen" speeches really had impact and like at a public meeting I felt myself first believing one and then changing my mind and following the other - the power of speech.

The second half again, whilst still fast paced and well acted, just didn't carry me along in the same way and this is why I think the play itself isn't for me rather than any fault with any production.  A play of two halves, and from that I prefer the first!


This production continued with the bloody theme and I am beginning to wonder if the stage will be stained pink forever!

A play summed up Rebecca as "a bit stabby" which is possibly a slight understatement!

Theatre 2014: Review Sixteen

Titus Andronicus. Shakespeare's Globe, London. April 2014.

This was always a play I was nervous about seeing - it was a set text in my first term and even reading it made me feel a bit queasy.  It is beyond violent.

This version of Titus Andronicus was first staged in 2006 and has the reputation for being the play that caused the most faints at The Globe, I'm not sure if it is urban legend or not but the figure of 40 is banded around an awful lot.

Having read the play I was at least aware when the really gory bits were going to happen, and thanks to the directing choices they were usually signposted clearly so I had plenty of time to shut my eyes (and cover my ears!) which helped.  I also liked the way that humour was added to the play with the choices of style given to Tamora and Aaron which again helped  to relieve the violence.

Having studied more about the theatre of Shakespeare's time I did wince a little at the extensive use made of the Groundling area by the actors, and I do think that the scaffolding cages were over-used - just a little too much of the action became invisible from the Upper Gallery, luckily for us this was mostly empty the day we visited so we were able to move around, stand and lean so as not to miss anything.

As for the fainting, well yes it is gory but I think that the smoke and incense that is constantly being wafted around the Groundling area, along with the cloth covers not letting it escape may have a lot more to do with this - luckily being so high up most of this had dispersed before it reached us, but I know the smell of that would have made me feel unwell, possibly quicker than the gore!

I'm really glad that I plucked up the courage to see the play, but I don't think it is one I will want to see again - or that I'll buy the DVD of it should it be released.  I'm just too squeamish.

And no - even after a week we haven't considered having pie for dinner!

The stage covering

Mopping the blood from the stage in the interval