REMARKABLE, AGGRESSIVE, THOUGHTFUL |
 |
) Photo: Matt Grace Written by William Shakespeare Translated by Te Haumihiata Mason Director: Rachel House Ngākau Toa at Globe Theatre, London From 23 Apr 2012 to 24 Apr 2012 [2hrs 30mins, incl. interval] Reviewed by Andrew Dickson, 25 Apr 2012 originally published in The Guardian |
No one could accuse Shakespeare's Globe of lacking nerve. Not only does their contribution to the World Shakespeare festival include almost every work in the canon, each in a different language (from Juba Arabic to British Sign Language), but they've elected to open proceedings with a play few would honestly choose as their favourite.
Troilus and Cressida – a knotty, bittersweet love story set across the battlelines of the Trojan War, like a rerun of Romeo and Juliet without the consolation of death – is a hard sell at the best of times, never mind when it's in a language from the other side of the world.
In the event, though, the Auckland-based Ngakau Toa company, performing in classical Maori, offer a potent, swaggering production that looks entirely at home on this stage. [More]
_______________________________
For more production details, click on the title above. Go to Home page to see other Reviews, recent Comments and Forum postings (under Chat Back), and News.
See also reviews by:
Dominic Cavendish (The Telegraph);
Laurie Atkinson (The Dominion Post);
John Smythe
Paul Diamond
Paul Simei-Barton (New Zealand Herald);