Another excellent review from Frances Dharmalingham:
Last week a group of our members found a
perfect shelter from the unseasonable weather by watching the film of the RSC’s
recent production of The Two Gentlemen of
Verona.
Before the performance members of the cast
and crew repeated the words: Friendship, Love, Obsession, Jealousy, effectively
preparing our minds for the themes to come.
The four main characters were strongly
individual and contrasted; the lovelorn and changeable Proteus against the
energetic and single-minded Valentine; the ultra-fashionable and beautiful
Sylvia against the simple, almost dowdy (although very charming) Julia. The two
girls differed only in appearance, of course; they were equally steadfast in
their loyal devotion. These contrasts were cleverly supported by the
differences in setting between provincial Verona, with the town brass band and
the al fresco trattoria, and cosmopolitan Milan with its disco music and
flashing lights.
The drama of the four lovers moved apace,
and any feminist critic would have been proud of the strength and independence
displayed by the women, as Julia (in male disguise) followed Proteus, and
Sylvia bravely escaped her father’s house with Valentine. The confrontation in
the forest was powerful and violent. With Proteus’ words ‘I’ll force thee yield
to my desire’ and his evident intention, Sylvia threw him to the ground, and
clearly would have strangled him had not Valentine intervened. Valentine held
Proteus’ head down in a water barrel several times. It was remarkably
convincing action, with the tension abating only when Julia revealed her
identity.
With all this strong drama, the comic
aspects of the play were delightfully interspersed. Traditionally the comedy
rests primarily with Speed and Launce, the servants, and neither disappointed. Speed
was the classic player-with-words, relishing the possibilities of sound and
multiple meanings, quick-thinking and quick-moving. Launce was the more
lugubrious, and his cross-play with the dog, Crab, was a delight. The dog must
have come fresh from winning a competition as Britain’s least prepossessing
pet, but it behaved beautifully and performed exactly as required.
Much of the comedy came from the
interpretation of Lucetta’s role. I had not previously given much thought to
this character, but here she bloomed as a vigorous and quite bawdy young woman
reminiscent in voice and accent of Absolutely
Fabulous’s Bubbles. The outlaws added their own gentle humour. Far from
being fierce bandits, they were really pussy-cats, only too happy to find a new
and confident leader.
The entire production was swift and
engrossing, leaving me with that very happy sigh of satisfaction at the end
which indicates a most enjoyable experience.
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Shakespeare's comment on friendship, love, constancy and
fickleness, this romantic comedy takes us from the controlled world of
Verona and Milan to the wildness of the forest where, it seems, anything
can happen.
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