As You Like It, RST
Monday, 25th March 2019
It's expensive to go to the theatre. So when you see those offers for cheap tickets, you jump at them. But then, it's Monday and you need to iron a pile of school uniform and you can't think why you thought it was a good idea to go out in the cold to watch a Shakespearean comedy, of all things. I recently read an interview with Roddy Doyle who said that the last Shakespearean comedy that he saw was As You Like It, about thirty years ago, which confirmed what he had always suspected, that he hates Shakespeare's comedies. And he's never been since.
I sort of concur. My favourite Shakespeare play is probably Richard III or a good Macbeth. Some blood, anyway. But hey ho, it was to be a sit down and a glass of wine so shouldn't grumble. And if you'll see my last review, I think you'd agree that it is far better to visit the theatre with low expectations because in this case, As You Like It was a sunny slice of joy.
Humour is what the RSC does best at the moment and perhaps it's more accessible for all the tourists. At the forefront of the comic ensemble is Emily Johnstone. She played Amiens in the first half and Le Beau in the second half. As Amiens she did a wonderful turn as 'PA to a Duke', constantly falling off her high heels and fawning over the wrestlers with what must be a natural talent for comic timing. The wrestling match itself was brilliantly done, the use of stage space constantly changing and rotating. And then as Amiens, Johnstone showed herself to also be the owner of a beautifully melodic voice. In my opinion, she was the star of the show. But they were on the whole a young cast and had many talents between them. Lucy Phelps, as Rosalind, was also quite brilliant; especially when she plays Rosalind, playing Ganymede, pretending to be Rosalind (only in Shakespeare!!) and she was hiding in the audience whilst calling to Orlando. It all seemed wonderfully fresh and impromptu as she conspired with the audience.
When the characters go off into the forrest there was some theatrical magic as the actors seemed to come out of character and many stage hands appeared to transform the setting. This clever hiatus signalled to the audience that characters were now playing different roles and echoed Jacques' famous speech that "All the world's a stage". From this point, it would be worth pointing out that As You Like It promises/threatens some audience participation. Maybe don't sit in the stalls if this kind of thing frightens you. No fear for us up in our cheap seats in the Gods. But there were plenty who did want to join in which generated much hilarity and applause. Audience participation is always a good way of including the audience in the performance so that that particular piece of theatre can truly be said to be unique; no two audiences being the same.
At the end, the Goddess Hymen appears to bless and restore order through matrimony. Hymen was an enormous puppet, designed perhaps to look a bit like Mother Nature but instead reminding me of a White Walker in Game of Thrones. All the same, it was visually epic and rounded things off with a climax as well as the traditional resolution.
I felt that it was a Monday night well-spent and I almost thought, particularly with reference to the first half, that I could go and see it again. And that is quite an accolade for one of Shakespeare's comedies!
