King John (again)

by William Shakespeare

seen at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre on 25 June 2015

I decided to see this production again in a stage space after the visually frustrating experience at the Temple Church. Ironically I chose a fabulous seat in the centre of the lower gallery - which happened to create sightline problems of its own in this case, as I was facing one of the main axes of approach where actors often stood in a direct line obscuring anyone in the centre of the stage. However, this was a minor problem compared with the massive pillars of the church.

Jo Stone-Fewings once again gave a marvellous performance as King John. With a clearer view of the staging, it was possible to see that his mood was often matched by where he wsa on the stage - retreating to sit on the throne in pettiness or alarm, at the crossing for major ceremonial moments, or there with the king of France in the struggle of Angers, and so forth. Alex Waldmann played the crowd even more successfully with the groundlings all around him, and Laurence Belcher projected Arthur's distress in a forceful and unsentimental way which suited the space well.

I feel my comments on the production in the earlier post (see April 2015) remain valid. The choreographed patterning came into its own now that it could be properly seen, emphasising the tableaux in which the various characters were placed. Their colour-coded costumes - red for the English, blue for the French, and green for Prince Arthur and Constance - made for great clarity of exposition. One could usually judge from the relative numbers of actors in particular colours, which side was likely to win the battle in hand. The costumes also helped the actors who were doubling some parts, though Laurence Belcher's re-appearance in red as Prince Henry in the final scene evidently caused some confusion behind me after his very definite death as Prince Arthur a few scenes before.

The audience in an almost full house, including a crowded groundlings area reduced by the use of various rostra, was extremely attentive. Considering that the play is not at ll well known, and that it both presumes a fair amount of unfamiliar historical knowledge and plays fast and loose with it, and that the audience often includes tourists more interested in the theatrical experience of the Globe than in the play being presented, I take this to be a sure mark that the production is a success. I was certainly glad to see it again.