Chatterbox - still talking nonsense

I always enjoy this play, although it’s been a while since I last saw it.  But this is a fantastic revival.  Modern but keeping the spirit of the original, there’s verve from the very start in making sure the audience know they are part of the action.  The first half leans heavily into the rom-com-iness of it all, whilst the second half takes us off to a bleak war before back home again.   I have never seen Adrian Lester turn in a bad performance and this is no exception.  He dazzles as early Cyrano, playful and passionate, whilst still retaining cynical outsider vibes, and then makes the switch to sadder Cyrano completely seamlessly.  Susannah Fielding is excellent as Roxane too - no limp lettuce behaviour here, and with her own agency.   Costume and set are all gorgeous, keeping to tradition despite the more modern sensibility and language.  I really enjoyed the poetry too, and unlike The Misanthrope last week it never detracted from c...

I saw a review that started with ‘it’s impossible to review this play without spoilers’ so obviously I stopped reading.  That meant for the first half hour I had absolutely no idea what was going on.  Then we get a reveal, triggered by the word ‘Starbucks’ when it starts to make (just a little) more sense.  Liberal in its use of degrading racial slurs and stereotypes, and with sex as a constant focus, it succeeds at keeping us uncomfortable throughout.  Initially this is because of the overdone nature of what we are seeing being played out on a plantation, but after that initial reveal it gets, if anything, even more tough as we explore the undercurrents between the couples on stage.  Stunning performances from everyone, but Fisayo Akinade as Gary stood out for me in particular with such a nuanced performance.  The final shocking scene between Kit Harrington as Jim and Olivia Washington as Kaneisha came close, both incredibly uncomfortable and powerful, not...

I don’t know Henry IV pts 1 and 2 very well, so don't really know what they lopped off to squeeze the two plays into 3hrs 40 minutes including interval.  But whatever was lost, the remaining bits produced an engaging few hours.   Ian McKellen’s Falstaff, who was the original big draw for me, was as good as I hoped, playing a big bluff character with subtlety underneath the coarseness.  His Falstaff is older of course, but with richness and depth even in part one, and the relationship with the prince develops beautifully during the play.  My big takeaway though was that Toheeb Jimoh as Hal was really impressive and a talent to watch I think. He plays the prince as a high energy and wild fun seeker at the start.  He holds himself tight, with a sense of danger and anger just below the surface and this comes out not just against his father the King (Richard Coyle), but with Falstaff as his other father figure.  And I loved the way the relationships are pla...