King’s Theatre Edinburgh – Until 17rd November.
Reviewed by James Knight
4****
I was lucky enough to see the original West End production of ‘Shakespeare in Love’ back in 2014, and so was very much looking forward to this revival. Based on the screenplay by Marc Norman and Tom Stoppard, and adapted for the stage by Lee Hall, the production loses none of the quick wit and easy-on-the-ear references peppered throughout the film (and some new ones – ‘Out damned Spot’, yelled at an offstage dog is a particular highlight).
Will Shakespeare (Pierro Niel-Mee) is struggling with his new play, ‘Romeo and Ethel the Pirate’s Daughter’. It’s expected to be a sure-fire hit, if he could write it. Even with the help of fellow playwright Kit Marlowe (Edmund Kingsley, who plays him with an easy and likeable confidence), he’s fighting a losing battle. Enter a muse for Will in the form of Viola de Lessops (Imogen Daines), daughter of a New Money merchant, who wants nothing more to be an actor in one of Will’s plays. Which would be fine, if women weren’t banned from the stage. Cue cross-dressing, confused identities, forbidden love… well, everything you might expect from a play from the original Shakespeare canon.
The cast is clearly enjoying themselves, whether engaging in a madcap swordfight/piggy-in-the-middle mashup. singing period-appropriate choruses or performing the finale jig. Everyone has a moment to shine and the support between all them is clear to see, and is always careful to include the audience in on the jokes. Some of the jokes could have been less signposted however, and some of the subtleties of the actual Shakespearean text might be lost in performance, but really, if the audience is enjoying themselves this much, what’s so wrong that? The play’s the thing, after all.