SEJANUS: HIS FALL till 5 November.
SEJANUS: HIS FALL: Ben Jonson.
RSC, The Swan.
Runs: 3 hours, one interval, till 5 November.
Review: Rod Dungate, 26 July 2005.
Superb.
Gregory Doran's production is one of the rare special occasions you get sometimes in the theatre. In many ways his production demonstrates that SEJANUS isn't really a discovery play it's more a play that should never have been forgotten.
Jonson is sometimes a problem for theatre directors; they know he ought to be great but simply can't find the key that unlocks his genius. Too often it's because they don't look in the right place for it namely in the play itself (or plays themselves). Jonson isn't a writer jacking off at his own brilliance with words he did think he was brilliant, but then why not?! He wrote plays because he wanted to make society better.
Jonson wrote SEJANUS when he was around 30 and there is a young man's vigour about his writing, a young man's anger at the misuse and abuse of political power. He is angry at the way people suffer under this (a theme he would return to in his great comedies that were to follow.) Doran and his team in this superb production capture this vigour and it pulses through the production with a rhythm that has the power to thrill. Doran has edited Jonson's long text for the production; 'I have therefore attempted to . . . restore its theatrical heartbeat'. He's succeeded. And he's found the key and unlocked the door into the play.
William Houston is Sejanus whose rise to power and spectacular fall under Tiberius forms Jonson's narrative. He is a marvellous central pillar for the action solid, witty, ruthless, at times cynical, determined. And occasionally (and this makes it worse) right in his views as on religion and religious manifestations. Barry Stanton's Tiberius is chilling, allowing us to see the quiet ruthlessness which enables rulers to hang on to power as true now, as we look around the world, far and near, as it was for Jonson in his times.
Geoffrey Freshwater gives a highly effective performance as the ineffective Silius, one of the bridges between us and the play. Jonson sees us as helpless against the powers of the political power-wielders. Freshwater gives us one of the highspots in the first half, his trial scene; 'Romans, if any here be in this Senate,/ Would know to mock Tiberius' tyranny, / Look upon Silius, and so learn to die.' He then stabs himself. Nigel Cooke's anger-driven Arruntius, another bridge, is equally as riveting.
This is a very strong company indeed banished are reservations I've had about acting weaknesses in other of this season's RSC productions. Especially valuable contributions here come from Nigel Betts as a marvellously effete (but far from funny) physician Eudemus and Ishia Bennison's intriguing Agrippina.
Gregory Doran has orchestrated a totally unified production, dramatic, subtle and many layered. In this he is much helped by Robert Jones's simple and elegant settings, Wayne Dowdeswell's dramatic and strong lighting, and Paul Englishby's atmospheric score. It seems to me the entire team has conquered the heights Jonson has built for us.
Tiberius: Barry Stanton.
Drusus: Matt Ryan.
Livia: Miranda Colchester.
Eudemus: Nigel Betts.
Lygdus: Peter Bramhill.
Agrippina: Ishia Bennison.
Nero: Jonjo O'Neill.
Caligula: Jon Foster.
Lady: Vinette Robinson.
Silius: Geoffrey Freshwater.
Sabina's: James Hayes.
Arruntius: Nigel Cooke.
Cordus: Keith Osborn.
Sejanus: William Houston.
Macro: Peter de Jersey.
Laco: Barry Aird.
Varro/ Regulus: Ewen Cummins.
Afer: Kevin Harvey.
Latiaris: Ian Drysdale.
Satrius: Michael Jenn.
Natta: Tim Treloar.
Directed by: Gregory Doran.
Designed by: Robert Jones.
Lighting designed by: Wayne Dowdeswell.
Music composed by: Paul Englishby.
Sound designed by: Martin Slavin.
Movement by: Michael Ashcroft.
Assistant Director: Richard Twyman.
Voice and dialect work by: Jeannette Nelson.
2005-07-27 11:36:08