Antonio’s Ristorante, located on a bustling piazza, is the imaginatively modern opening setting for this The Two Gentlemen of Verona, performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company at Stratford-upon-Avon in their first revival in a staggering forty-five years. Helen Mirren (Julia) and Ian Richardson (Proteus) walked the boards back in 1970 and something tells me there may be a few stars of the future in this production.
A buzz was generated as soon as the audience took their seats, with Antonio’s waiters encouraging several theatregoers to step onto the stage in order to grab an ice cream from the gelato cart. Aside from the live musicians playing dinner jazz, there was a distant hum of scooters and traffic all helping to set the scene. The string of illuminated hearts suspended above the tables (bedecked with red and white check tablecloths of course) informed us that it was Valentine’s Day and we were about to witness a fair amount of wooing. In this staging, love is, quite literally in the air.
Valentine also happens to be the name of the hero, played by Michael Marcus, a young man who fairly scoffs at his best friend Proteus (Mark Arends) for always being lovesick. Yet, on journeying to Milan, Valentine falls madly in love with the Duke of Milan’s beautiful daughter, Silvia, brilliantly played by Sarah MacRae. The Duke does not approve of Valentine and has another, much wealthier, suitor lined up – the hopeless Turio (Nicholas Gerard-Martin) who performs an achingly funny serenade with some artificial roses. I was almost beginning to feel sorry for him.
Meanwhile, the romantic Proteus initially stays behind in Verona to woo fair Julia (Pearl Chanda) with love letters via her maid Lucetta (the marvellous Leigh Quinn), before exchanging rings and vows of constancy with her on having to follow in Valentine’s footsteps to Milan. On Proteus being introduced to Silvia, however, all vows are quickly forgotten and he is willing to sacrifice not only Julia but a lifetime of friendship with Valentine in order to steer Silvia away.
The Two Gentlemen of Verona is thought to have been William Shakespeare’s first play, written between 1589 and 1591, with a plot that many academics suspect was drawn from his own thwarting in love by his patron the Duke of Southampton. This bitter-sweet tale of young passion and inconstancy provides a fascinating insight into the playwright’s early career and promise, with lines such as, “She dreams of him that has forgot her love; You dote on her that cares not for your love; ‘Tis a pity love should be so contrary.”
Simon Godwin’s directorial début at the RSC is joyfully expressive and bursting with an appreciation of such exquisite dialogue, both witty and poignant. The scene changes are seamless and exhilarating thanks to Paul Wills’ accomplished designs, and, entertained and tickled along the way, we bounce from a fashionable nightclub in Milan to a forest where outlaws lurk.
A predominantly young cast, many of whom are making their RSC début in this production, give highly gratifying performances, including Martin Bassindale as Valentine’s servant Speed, alongside the elder members of the cast, namely the Duke of Milan (Jonny Glynn) and Proteus’ man Launce (Roger Morlidge), as a wonderfully observed fool. The audience were equally delighted in the starring performance given by Mossup as Launce’s beloved dog, Crab.
Whilst it may not be Shakespeare’s most accomplished work, with so much that is recognisable from his later plays, including the dreaded female cross-dressing bit when Julia pursues Proteus to Milan, we feel much better acquainted with techniques, characters and plots he later mastered with the advantages of maturity and experience.
This revival is funny, warm and surprisingly touching. It’s simply baffling that The Two Gentlemen of Verona has been subjected to such a long absence within the standard RSC repertoire and I don’t doubt that this trail-blazing staging will remedy the oversight. If you can’t get tickets this time around, the production will be broadcast live to cinemas across the UK on 3rd September.
The Two Gentlemen of Verona at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, until 4th September 2014. Running time approximately 2 hours 45 minutes including an interval. For more information visit the website.
