TITUS ANDRONICUS: TILL 24 June.
TITUS ANDRONICUS: William Shakespeare
The Ninagawa Company as part of the Complete Works Festival.
RSC Main House.
Runs: 3h 30m, one interval, till Sat 24 June.
Review: Rod Dungate 20 June 2006.
Spectacular; a revelation; I was left speechless.
Ninagawa’s company perform in a heightened physical and vocal way; the stunning settings (minimal, all white) and large (mostly white) costumes bolt together in the style in a satisfying whole. And this whole lifts the play to a kind of operatic level, an exciting level of formalised reality; the story is acted out on a plane where the extraordinary violence is no longer extraordinary – itself being a ritualised reality.
The production pulls us in opposing directions at once; this world is full of horror yet it is exquisite and elegant; the characters appear majestic, yet they behave worse than animals, yet they also find inside themselves nobility in their suffering. The production emphasises its story-telling to distance us, yet we are drawn into its world. And, most surprising of all, in a culture and language so different from our own, the story and its themes are clearer than I have seen them before.
Is it the cultural context of their theatre that brings about this magical production – you cannot help but think of Noh and Kabuki. This you can only wonder about – what you see is actors totally in control of their minds, their voices and their bodies. There is a commitment about their performances that grips you and won’t let you go.
And so many good performances where do you start? Kotaro Yoshida’s Titus is a remarkable study of indignity in victory and dignity in adversity. I love his quieter moments, too; his tenderness with the abused Lavinia; and the moment he utters: ‘When will this fearful slumber have an ending?’ Haruhiko Jo creates a wonderfully empathetic Marcus Andronicus; set apart from the warriors by a stalwart and steely gentleness. Much to be admired is Shun Oguri’s Aaron; strongly masculine, ever so slightly androgynous, his highly-charged sexuality is tangible.
Hitomi Manaka’s Lavinia is a real young woman – not a sort of personified innocence. Her performance after her torture is heart-rending – watch her try to write with a stick in the sand. Not-to-be-missed is Rei Asami’s Tamora; beneath her beauty you suspect no heart beats at all.
Yukio Ninagawa has directed a thrilling version; it never relaxes its pace nor tension. But it’s no helter-skelter production; every nuance and movement, you feel, has been carefully calculated in its effect and meaning. The production is three and a half hours long; I could easily have sat there longer.
Titus Andronicus: Kotaro Yoshida.
Tamora: Rei Asami.
Aaron: Shun Oguri.
Lavinia: Hitomi Manaka.
Marcus Andronicus: Haruhiko Jo.
Saturninus: Shingo Tsurumi.
Aemilius/ Senator: Kyuzo Kawabe.
Nurse: Natsue Ichikawa.
Lucius: Takashi Hirota.
Demetrius: Hiroki Okawa.
Bassianus: Eiji Yokota.
Alarbus/ Senator/ Goth Soldier: Ryuzabuio Otomo.
Tribune/ Senator: Kenji Kodama.
Sempronius/ Senator/ Roman Soldier/ Goth Soldier: Elichi Seike.
Senator/ Goth Soldier: Tadashi Okada.
Mutius/ Senator/ Goth Soldier: Masato Shinkawa.
Clown/ Senator/ Roman Soldier: Great Gidayu.
Quintus/ Goth Soldier: Masazumi Nitanda.
Senator/ Roman Soldier/ Attendant/ Goth Soldier: Tatewaki Sasaki.
Chiron: Yutaka Suzuki.
Senator/ Roman Sodier/ Attendant/ Goth Soldier: Harui Takayama.
Tribune/ Senator: Katsuhiro Kitagawa.
Publius/ Senator/ Roman Soldier/ Goth Soldier: Makoto Tamura.
Valentine/ Messenger/ Roman Soldier/ Goth Soldier: Daisuke Sugiura.
Caius/ Captain/ Senator/ Goth Soldier: Shiro Ishimoda.
Martius/ Goth Soldier: Ko Hasegawa.
Roman Soldier/ Attendant/ Goth Soldier: Yoshihisa Ishida.
Senator/ Roman Soldier/ Attendant/ Goth Soldier: Tsutomu Takahashi.
Young Lucius: Kentaro Nishimoto.
Senator/ Roman Soldier/ Attendant; Goth Soldier: Ushi Hasegawa.
Directed by: Yukio Ninagawa.
Translated by: Kazuko Matsuoka.
Set Designed by: Tsukasa Nakagoshi.
Lighting Designed by: Tamotsu Harada.
Costumes Designed by: Lily Komine.
Sound Designed by: Masahiro Inoue.
Hair and Make-up Designed by: Chimaki Takeda.
Fight Choreographer: Masahiro Kunil.
Music Composed by: Yasuhiro Kasamatsu.
Assistant Directors: Sonsho Inoue and Sachiko Ishimaru.
2006-06-21 16:13:45