Twelfth Night – Reviews
April 30, 2009Read the reviews of Twelfth Night below or alternately leave your own review in the comments section at the bottom of the page!
THE STAGE – REVIEW by Kevin Berry
Shakespeare’s tale of shipwrecked twins and romantic confusion is given sublime treatment by a young cast and a young creative team. Seasoned Shakespeare watchers might consider this production amongst the very best Twelfth Nights they have seen. This reviewer certainly does.
There is a deliciously dreamy atmosphere and exquisitely played music. One side of the stage is a gymnasium, with wall bars and a vaulting horse, the other has part of a colonnade. Gentle shades of brown and cream are lit as if by a waking sun. Costumes are early Edwardian, with big boots where necessary. The stage is set for romance and mischief.
Danielle King as Viola and Jacqueline Wood as Maria, stand out in a cast brimming with talent. They each move so well, they all move so well. King is assured and resourceful, sharing the plot’s confusions with the audience. Her fellow actors are visibly responding to the strength and emotion in her performance. When she voices her feelings her voice thrills.
Wood’s conniving servant girl steers the mischievous scheming with a smirk in her heart. She dominates the excellently played Toby Belch and Andrew Aguecheek, Blair Plant and Paul Westwood. The resulting comic antics are fun and fresh, cleverly inventive and played with admirable skill. They are something more than broad farce.
Director Juliet Forster has this Twelfth Night beautifully poised. The exact degree of sadness, the exact degree of regret. She clearly knows this play inside out. She has a deserved triumph on her hands.
So many productions of Twelfth Night overdo the darkness of the play; it seems to be the fashion at the moment. So it was wonderful to see a production which doesn’t play down the humour, but brings it to the fore with thoroughly engaging lightfooted choreography and sparklingly funny bits of business. Some of the wit which tends to clunk these days was given freshness by the delivery and demeanour of this excellent ensemble of players, and the audience’s laughter was quite genuine and not just polite acknowledgement of an ancient joke. At the same time the production was genuinely moving when appropriate, even poor pompous Malvolio in his cell called for our sympathy. The cast, without exception, were superb.
The set and the costumes (bar Viola’s and Sebastian’s somewhat frumpish jerkins) were excellent; and the music perfectly suited the production, and was of the finest quality – not least Feste’s songs.
Thank you.
I saw Twelfth Night on Saturday at the matinee and thought it was gorgeous! The opening scene using the film was very moving and one of the best openings to this play that I’ve seen. The clarity of delivery by all the cast was terrific and gave exactly the right balance between comedy, frustrated ambitions, spiteful revenge & grief. I especially believed that the lovers really did love each other (or were genuinely thwarted in their loves) and thought Viola & Olivia were particularly honest in their roles. The production values were terrific and, all in all, it was a really ‘truthful’ & lovable production. Don’t miss it!
I was at the Saturday Matinee too and thoroughly enjoyed it. I thought all the parts were played brilliantly.
It was a real highlight of our weekend.
Just been to tonight’s performance. A very enjoyable evening out and whilst not knowing Twelfth Night, the performance by the cast was top class. I have to say a first rate cast and their timings are brilliant. The emotional journey that Shakespeare takes you on is magical and there is the usual romance coupled with a great deal of humour.
Whilst it is a long performance, don’t let that put you off. You will laugh out loud once you get to know the characters.
My only comment for potential improvement is that in some cases the clarity of the diction is a little lost, which can make it a little difficult to follow, particularly in the opening scenes, but please don’t let that put you off.
hay! what a great performance! flawless I say, shame it’s not here in the south of England so my friends could also enjoy a great show. I saw it only because I was in York city for the weekend, bored so thought I would see a play, good thing I did, the time just flew by.There were some outstanding performances such as the singer, the Countess, her maid and the butler.Score out 10 (9.75)and I see flaws in everything.
I was at Thursday’s matinee. It was my first ‘grown up’ play as I haven’t been to the theatre since watching panto as a child, so wasn’t sure what to expect – I loved it.
The cast were all superb throughout, Viola’s scream as she tried to go back into the sea after Sebastian made me cry.
I would like to thank all the cast for making my visit such a memorable experience – I will definitely come back for more!