BECKET. To 11 December.
London
BECKET
by Jean Anouilh Translated by Frederic Raphael and Stephen Raphael
Theatre Royal Haymarket To 11 December 2004
Mon-Sat 7.45pm Mat Mat Wed & Sat 3pm
Runs 2hr 40min One interval
TICKETS: 0870 901 3356
Review: Timothy Ramsden 3 November
Most goes for little, while the central duo seem hampered by being in the wrong play.The murder of Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas a Becket, supposedly ordered by King Henry II has been dramatised both before Anouilh (Eliot's Murder in the Cathedral) and after ((Paul Webb's Four Knights in Knaresbrough). This French version emphasises the close relationship between king and archbishop here pushed towards the sexual and the sense of betrayal mixed with power politics when Henry's friend, appointed as a bulwark against the Catholic Church, becomes its loyal servant.
A minimalist manner strips away medieval glamour, while the two Raphaels' translation gives the lingo a demotic coarseness. These things free the production from lumbering trappings and cosy modern notions of the Medieval. But, even for someone who finds Anouilh spells ennui, the modernisation works against the piece.
Jasper Britton's Henry is a fizzingly unpredictable account of a young man on the edge of the psychotic. His mind ahead of others when it comes to the devious or destructive, he's perversely childish when it comes to his own emotional needs. Finely acted, this shifts the drama towards 1970s or 80s political drama. In this context the physical, genital-clutching nudity which frames the action is the most coherent of the modernisms.
Against this Dougray Scott provides a more traditional view of grave authority. From the start, if Henry could see it, this is not a man after his own lack of heart. Becket understands the Saxon peasants who are merely conveniences for the king, allowed to escape his draconian laws (which Becket knows though the monarch does not) when it suits his hunting majesty. And who suffer when Henry realises his friend has not abducted the family's daughter as ordered.
So it's hardly surprising Henry doesn't predict the sudden change in Thomas when he's made Archbishop. All he can do is struggle to understand the man of principle. But it is surprising even Henry hasn't noticed something earlier, given Scott's detached manner and perpetual gravitas.
Surrounding action goes for little, a stylised death (flowing red material) again echoing post-Brecht political theatre. It's the central pair that matter here, and this production puts them in the wrong play.
Thomas Becket: Dougray Scott
King Henry II: Jasper Britton
Archbishop of Canterbury/Father Superior: John Quentin
Gilbert Folliot Bishop of London/Third Baron: Sean Baker
Bishop of York/Fourth Baron/King Louis: Michael Fitzgerald
Bishop of Oxford/First Baron/Cardinal: Arthur Kohn
Saxon Girl: Catrina Lear
Gwendolen: Bethan Bevan
Second Baron: Richard Stacey
Litle Monk: Gareth Llewellyn
Brother William/Arundel: Daniel Pirrie
Queen Mother: Ann Firbank
Eleanor of Aquitaine: Polly Kemp
Prince Henry: Michael Cox
Provost Marshall/Pope: Paul Stewart
Director: John Caird
Designer: Stephen Brimson Lewis
Lighting: Peter Mumford
Sound: John Leonard
Music: John Cameron
2004-11-14 12:45:57