THE GENTLEMAN FROM OLMEDO till 22 May
THE GENTLEMAN FROM OLMEDO by Lope de Vega in a new version by David Johnston
Watermill West Berkshire Playhouse
Tkts: 01635 46044
Running time: 2 hours 10 minutes, till 22 May
Review: Stewart McGill, 27 April 2004
A beautifully human tragic-comedy in a lovely productionWith the RSC's devoted season in Stratford upon Avon at The Swan to The Golden Age of Spanish Drama and this beautifully crafted Lope De Vega work at the Watermill I feel a little spoiled this year for Spanish classics! Long overdue this focus on a particularly thriving period of playing shows what others were enjoying abroad while Shakespeare was making his name on Bankside.
Enough of the theory Jill Fraser the Watermill's Artistic Director has invited rising director Jonathan Munby to create an ensemble at the Watermill to create Lope De Vega's The Gentleman From Olmedo to be followed by Goldoni's The Venetian Twins with the same actors and creative team.
Olmedo tells of love and loss in beautifully human tragic-comedy. The origins of the story lie in a popular ballad of the time revealing a mysterious event that had taken place on the road between Olmedo and Medina, two rival towns in the heartland of north-west Castile, sometime in the 14th Century. The central lovers Alonso and Inéz act out their dreamlike love against a background of disguise and treachery. It is fascinating to see a classical work as a discovery piece not knowing the plot, not knowing the ending.
Munby and designer Mike Britton transform the beautiful Watermill space into Corral the playing area of Spanish drama. On a thrust stage smaller than many a domestic room the ensemble conjure through movement, music and playing the atmosphere of carnival, bullfight and dreamscape. In the context of ensemble I don't like to single out individuals yet in this particular show Nick Barber's Alonso, Marianne Oldham's Inéz and Maggie Shelvin's wonderfully outrageous Fabia are to the fore.
David Johnston has vast experience of this age of theatre having been part of Laurence Boswell's Gate season of Golden Age Spanish Drama and also the RSC's current excursions. His version is a delight both wild and witty in language compelling and immediate. The play could be a folk tale of today.
Jonathan Munby's creative collaborators Oliver Fenwick, lighting Dominic Haslam composer and Katherine Taylor choreography provide integral support for this exciting ensemble and I have high expectations for the Goldoni.
With John Doyle's ever dynamic music-theatre and Ed Hall's Propeller creating exciting work at Watermill it is a joy to welcome Jill Fraser's initiative in enabling Jonathan Munby to forge another unique strand of work. Good news also that Watermill have received Arts Council funding to tour work later this year.
All this plus ducks on the lawn provide a delightful evening and a rare insight into the world of Lope De Vega. Who knows after this year these Spanish rarities may gain a regular repertoire presence.
2004-04-28 16:11:38