Royal Shakespeare Theatre Stratford-Upon-Avon – until 5th August 2023
Reviewed by Amarjeet Singh
5****
As one of Shakespeare’s comedies, As You Like It is best known as a tale of youth, feist, and first love. Yet this production is stirring things up, challenging stereotypes around ageing and it’s conforms by comprising of a company of actors who are mostly over the age of 70.
At first, it was all a little puzzling. We sat in our seats waiting for the production to start, the set looked unfinished, sparse but for some chairs set out in a semi-circle, awaiting a group of sorts. A classroom setting with many sheets of paper stuck up on the back wall and a double door fire exit, not in line with a Shakespearean production. The cast then began to walk on stage as the rest of the audience were taking their seats. Strolling on casually, with water bottles, socks and sandals, with the younger members holding folders containing scripts. They all greeted the audience inaudibly and greeted each other. Once all had settled into their seats, cast and audience, we had an informal prologue where we were told that most of the cast were in a 1978 production of the play which was to be recreated and we were invited to join them on this journey down memory lane.
It soon unfolded that the first part of the performance was a stripped-down version. The classroom was a rehearsal room, the young players were there to support the original players as some members of the original cast were unable to be there for various reasons. The character of Adam had passed on, but he was being respectfully represented by a coat. There were no noticeable costumes or music or sound effects, the young players read from the folders and were supported by the established actors. There was a deliberate rehearsal room feel to the production, as the actors, when not performing, sat around in casual clothing waiting for their scenes. However, as the play continued and developed, subtly and masterfully the folders disappeared, the resting ensemble left the playing area making it look more like a stage, costumes appeared and music and singing awoke and elevated the tale.
Everyone finds themselves in the Forest of Ardenne at some point in As You Like It. Duke Frederick usurps the dukedom from his brother Duke Senior and banishes him. Duke Senior and his followers, including the jaded Jacques, live in exile in Arden. Rosalind, Duke Senior’s daughter, who is still at court, falls in love with Orlando, who has been mistreated by his older brother Oliver. To escape Oliver’s murderous rage, Orlando flees to the Forest of Arden with his faithful old servant Adam. Rosalind is banished soon after for merely being the daughter of the banished Duke. Her cousin Celia insists on leaving with her and they both flee to Arden accompanied by the jester Touchstone. Disguised as a young man named Ganymede, Rosalind encounters Orlando, lovesick for his Rosalind, and promises to cure him of his lovesickness by pretending to be that very Rosalind. Oliver appears in the forest intending to kill Orlando, but, when Orlando saves his brother from a lioness and a snake, Oliver experiences deep remorse. Meeting with Celia, Oliver falls in love. Revelation of the girls’ true identities results in a group wedding. Duke Frederick repents, and the exiles are at an end, so all’s well that ends well.
There is a wealth of talent and experience packed into this production. Each Actor commands the stripped-down stage superbly. Malcolm Sinclair is wonderful as a lovesick Orlando, wrestling and pinning, hero, and poet, he churns verse to Rosalind, encompassing the very essence of moping youth. Maureen Beattie’s Celia is flirty, flighty and her fealty to Rosalind is endearing. Robin Soans balances his double role as banished Duke and brother Duke, masterfully. Christopher Saul has stepped in to play Jaques and plays him well with a stark contrast to the rest of the jovial upbeat players. David Fielder’s lovely in his many roles, most notably as lovesick Silvius with his not so successful wooing of dismissive Phoebe, played brilliantly by Celia Bannerman. Ewart James Walters is great as a Yokel/William and has fabulous comic timing with James Hayes who plays Touchstone. The scene when Touchstone threatens to kill William in 150 ways is comic perfection and had the audience roaring with laughter. Much of Hayes performance and costumes had the audience in stiches. He often broke the fourth wall and his nuances, and quips were utter joy. So much can be said for Geraldine James’ performance. I could literally wax lyrical for an age. She was a delight. The very essence of all that is Rosalind, feisty, fiery, feminine then not so much, she delivered in every way and was enchanting to behold.
Alongside all of this, four younger actors took on many of the smaller roles supporting the older cast as they attempted to recreate the past. Hannah Bristow, Tyreke Leslie, Mogali Masuku and Rose Wardlaw, were all amazing and helped shaped the overall performance. It was deeply endearing to witness moments when the older actors were supporting the younger ones, passing on experience and memories.
Set designer Ana Inés Jabares-Pita kept things simple but effective, a rehearsal room which also included a large piece of rigging, lowering a band from the ceiling to end act one with a bang. The lighting fixtures were lowered too at one point, to become windows, seats, and swings for characters. It was only in the play’s final moments when some element of traditional costume was introduced and the back wall lifted to reveal a lush forest of Arden, hidden but there all along, ghosts of the 1978 performance, that the then and now became merged.
Director Omar Elerian choices are provocative and bold and certainly won’t suit all tastes. This production, with a trimming of text, is thought-provoking and heart-warming. We are transported in time on many levels, to the age of Shakespeare and to back when these actors first performed a perhaps more authentic version of the play. Our focus here is on the timelessness of Shakespeare’s storytelling, the actors and their multitude of skills and years of experience and the intergenerational connection of these wonders not being lost and forever being valued. It makes the audience question preconceived ideas of age, does a person become redundant once they hit a milestone? What then of all they have accumulated. Is love and play solely for the youth. It brought to light that we are never too old nor too young to find a joy in anything and nothing is restricted if we employ imagination. The famous ‘Seven Ages of Man’ speech takes on an additional gravitas in this production and when the Forest of Arden is revealed at the end through smoke and mist we hear the recording of actual voices from the 1978 production. The players stopped so we could hear their former selves speak, echoes from a performance past, like magic, merging into the now. It was a truly beautiful moment, made only more beautiful by Geraldine James delivering a moving and heartfelt Epilogue.
This retelling is a revelation. Its not just older actors playing younger roles, flipping the script for controversy. Its so much more than that. The layers of play, love, age and imagination and so much more are there to be seen and engaged with if you choose to, and I earnestly hope you do.
