Propeller // Theatre Royal
A double bill of tightly executed, slick and funny Shakespeare awaits you at the Theatre Royal this week
A double bill of tightly executed, slick and funny Shakespeare awaits you at the Theatre Royal this week as Propeller theatre company presents both Twelfth Night and The Taming of the Shrew.
Propeller, led by director Edward Hall, are an all-male company who seek to marry a lively physical style with a strong engagement to Shakespeare's text. The result is a production that should be both clear and entertaining for even a Shakespeare novice. There is an important emphasis on the cast as an ensemble, providing their own musical accompaniment.
Propeller evidently have a flair for comedy and make the most of this in The Taming of the Shrew, choosing to portray this troublesome play about female obedience as a male construct of wish fulfilment. They do so by including a framing device where a drunken Christopher Sly collapses at his own wedding, is kidnapped by the father of his jilted bride and then enters the world of the play as the main character Petruchio, a rough and ready rogue who seeks to tame peroxide blonde punk princess Kate (Dan Wheeler). The play itself is almost a 'Carry On' affair, populated by horny young couples, lascivious older gentlemen and drunken bawdiness all dressed in brightly coloured outfits and accompanied by a jaunty score provided by the cast. It is only at the end when Kate has been 'conquered' by Petruchio's ill treatment and the play dissolved that Christopher Sly is left alone again on stage, no longer a tamer of women but a sad pathetic drunk. It is an effective way of making such a troublesome play palatable to a modern audience.
Twelfth night is more sensitive and melancholy, rendering this comedy of twins and mistaken identity a thoughtful meditation on love and loss. Grey storm clouds are projected at the back of the stage, haunting phrases of choral love songs echo around as the masked ensemble linger in the shadows around the stricken lead characters. Orsino loves Olivia, who loves Cesario who is in fact the lost twin Viola posing as a man and who in turn loves Orsino. Round and round the confusions run which the grey misty palette of costume and set aptly illustrate.
Thank goodness then for the fantastically funny set pieces that punctuate the production. In the main provided by the drunken Sir Toby Belch (Vince Leigh) and Sir Andrew Aguecheek (John Dougall) we have musical drunken revelry in the kitchen, an improvised boxing match and a deft and hilarious garden scene in which they trick poor steward Malvolio into believing his mistress Olivia loves him. This scene in particular, with its choreographed ducking and weaving, sharp banter, amusing sound effects and the best use of 'living statues' I've seen for a long time is a masterclass in how quick and sharp Shakespearean text can be played in order to really entertain.
Even in such a strong ensemble, some actors do stand out. Vince Leigh is a magnetic presence both as Petruchio in The Taming of the Shrew and Sir Toby in Twelfth Night. By turns attractive and repellent he always commands attention, especially when dressed in nothing but a fringed leather jacket and a jock strap! Liam O'Brien is also fabulous. He is an actor of great comedic skill with a fantastic range, equally convincing as the dust dry fool Feste in Twelfth Night or over-acting with glee as Tranio in The Taming of the Shrew. They are superlative performances in an excellent ensemble and two highly enjoyable productions.
Louisa Theobald
