THE HOLLOW CROWN: Barton, RSC, Stratford, till 20 July

THE HOLLOW CROWN: devised by John Barton
RSC: 0870 609 1110
Runs: 2h 25m, till 20 July
Review: Rod Dungate, 16 July 2002

Beautiful revival of Barton's quick dance through the history of the British monarchy, a gem of a performance.Janet Suzman, Derek Jacobi, Ian Richardson and Donald Sinden – it seems special and, indeed it is special. John Barton's entertaining and informative dance through the history of the English (British) monarchy is beautifully revived by him in this gentle, elegant and witty production: after a world tour it has come home to Stratford for a week.

It covers all the monarchs (quite a few just by name) from William I to Victoria: history is revealed by historians, contemporaries, other writers and in their own words: quite a few surprises emerge on the way. The evening as a whole sheds interesting light too. The compilation indicates how closely each monarch is linked to their age – not immediately clear when they are viewed individually. The whole also shows us the monarchs were a pretty rum lot and you wonder how the institution has survived. We lopped their heads off (when they weren't doing it to each other), lived without them then with them again, invited foreign ones to take over when we ran out or our own and kept them going when they went doolally.

In the hands of these great performers there are quite a few laughs to be had from this lot – particularly from Sinden who has a wicked way with a side-long glance.

The tone of the evening is evoked by the simple, clean lines of the setting: the company's acting matches. They stand or sit before us in unfussy modern clothes, then, half reading and half working from memory, they quietly physically and vocally adopt characters – subtly changing as they move from one to another. The consummate ease with which they do this added to the quality of their handling of verse and prose turn the evening into a joyous master class of classical performance.

Each actor works to his or her strengths and a few highlights are well worth mentioning. An early gem is Jacobi's recital of the Ballad of William II and Queen Eleanor: in this he adopts at crucial moments the character of Eleanor, a performance that grows bigger and more hilarious as he builds the story. His portrayal of Horace Walpole relating the funeral of George II is full-bodied from the start and ensures the audience laughs throughout.

Richardson's Charles II addressing Parliament on his intended marriage and writing to his chancellor strikes exactly the right note of an English Gentleman (how much has really changed? we ask ourselves). Suzman, as the young Queen Vic recording her coronation in her diary, reveals exactly the right note of sentiment so that we don't take it all too seriously.

The production is a gem: I wouldn't have missed it for the world, and I'll treasure its memory.

Company
Derek Jacobi
Ian Richardson
Donald Sinden
Janet Suzman

Musician: Stephen Gray

Director: John Barton
Design: Louise Belson
Lighting: Robert Bryan
Music compiled and arranged: Martin Best

2002-07-18 15:50:26