A short month not short of activity: Romeo and Juliet, Wolf Hall, Bring Up The Bodies and Versailles

February may be the shortest month but it has definitely not been short of activity!

It got underway with the production of Romeo and Juliet that I described as 'joyously irreverent' in my last post! After a slightly nervy first night where neither the cast nor the audience were entirely sure of what to expect, we relaxed into the show and it proved a great success! Having an audience laughing continually throughout a production of Romeo and Juliet isn't something one would normally aim for but this was exactly what we had hoped for and it was an absolutely pleasure to perform. My Friar Laurance, with questionable morals, even more questionable substance (ab)use and copious amounts of plastic bags, was without doubt one of the most enjoyable parts I've ever played. Everyone involved with the production was an absolute delight and I was very sorry to see the end of it.

Alongside being in Cardiff for a fantastic Welsh victory over the French - I challenge any sporting arena to beat the atmosphere in the Millennium Stadium on a Friday evening with the roof closed - and my continuing work in schools, I have also seen some truly brilliant theatre this month. It is all too rare that you feel privileged to have witnessed a piece of theatre but this month I have felt just that and on three separate occasions.

The first two were at the exquisitely performed RSC adaptations of Hilary Mantel's Wolf Hall and Bring Up The Bodies. When I first heard that these were being adapted for the stage I was highly sceptical - it screamed of a shameless money-making bums-on-seats ploy. But after reading the books I started to believe and with the masterful Jeremy Herrin at the reigns these are two productions that are an absolute joy to behold. The atmosphere and flavour of the novels are captured perfectly, whilst the performance of Ben Miles as Thomas Cromwell is not only captivating but a phenomenal demonstration of endurance (on stage almost throughout each play's 3 hour plus running time). Herrin's direction is simply faultless. The play flows with unstoppable energy, trusting the audiences' imagination to transport the actors from scene to scene. I loved every minute of it and could easily have sat through another three hours - unfortunately we'll have to wait until Mantel has finished writing the final part of the trilogy before that can happen!

The third play was Peter Gill's Versailles at the Donmar Warehouse. This is quite simply a play that everyone should see. Not just because of the remarkable performances from the whole cast or because of the exquisite writing and design but because Peter Gill has created a piece of theatre that ingeniously uses the politics of 1919 to shed light on our own contemporary world. This is a play that is not only riveting but also makes you think. There's a beautiful sense of dramatic irony throughout the play since the audience knows the eventual repercussions of the Treaty of Versailles (most notably Nazi Germany and the complete mess that is the Middle East) whilst the characters can only guess (some in a more educated fashion than others). The stunning performances from a host of young actors (Gwilym Lee, Josh O'Connor, Tom Hughes, Edward Killingback, Tamla Kari and Helen Bradbury) shows that the future of British theatre is in safe hands on the acting front.

As well as going to the theatre, I am now back to directing for the theatre. March will see me directing a short piece for a new writing evening in Bristol, running from the 11th-15th March at the Little Black Box Theatre. I held auditions last Sunday, am delighted with the cast and cannot wait to get rehearsing this weekend. There are also plans afoot for me to direct my first short film in early April.

February already? Swan Lake, Henry V and Romeo & Juliet

Is it February already? These last couple of months have simply flown by as I've raced from one thing to another and back again.

I brought in the new year with two theatrical treats: Matthew Bourne's Swan Lake and Michael Grandage's Henry V (starring a Jude Law on top form). Matthew Bourne is rapidly becoming one of my greatest inspirations as a director. Swan Lake marked the fifth occasion that I had witnessed one of his modern ballets (Cinderella, The Nutcracker, A Play Without Words and Sleeping Beauty being the previous four) and it certainly did not disappoint. Bourne is so much more than a choreographer, he is a director with a phenomenal gift for creating character and telling story.

Henry V was also a fitting way to bring in the new year. It is easy to be slightly cynical about Grandage's tendency to cast big-names in big-name roles but in this instance Jude Law made for perfect casting in this great Shakespearian title role. Law's performance not only bristled with charisma and energy but was one of the most assured and intelligent that I have seen. I would have to say it was something of a safe production by Grandage and I do always feel that the way in which the Chorus presents the action in Henry V does mean that it (more so than any other Shakespeare play) lends itself to a Globe-style performance, with the audience visible to the actors and minimal set. But this was a more than solid production of one of my favourite plays.

Since then I've barely had a moment to catch my breath. Between bits of practitioner work with the drama department at Reading School and sports coaching in primary schools (both useful and flexible sources of income), I have been rehearsing for a joyously irreverent production of Romeo and Juliet. Featuring only five characters (yes, characters not just actors!), I play a Danny-from-Withnail&I-esque Friar Laurence, who borrows lines from Benvolio, Mercutio and the Nurse. This is Romeo and Juliet as you've never seen it before! It is running for just three nights this week Wed-Fri (5th-7th) at the Greenwood Theatre, London Bridge at 8pm. Do come along - and with a running time of approx. 90 minutes there's plenty of time for a drink afterwards!

Alongside this I have been continuing to work on the development of a new play (more to follow in the coming months) and to assist Andrew Visnevski on a French adaptation of Gogol's The Diary of a Madman (or Le Journal d'un Fou!) destined for the Avignon Festival this July. I am also now a full member of the Young Vic Directors Network - my profile can be found here: http://directors.youngvic.org/index.php?pid=25&page=M&

Finally, I've included a couple of shots from a brilliantly fun and unexpected morning at the London College of Fashion, where I acted in a couple of performance workshops (directed by the lovely Peta Lily) for costume design students. This is me as the Captain from the opera Wozzeck. And, yes, that stool is attached to my person!

The Winslow Boy, Review - 29.03.2013

The Winslow Boy by Terrance Rattigan

Director: Lindsay Posner

Designer: Peter McKintosh

Lighting Designer: Tim Mitchell

Sound Designer: Fergus O’Hare

Composer: Michael Bruce

Lead Actors: Henry Goodman - Arthur Winslow, Naomi Frederick - Catherine Winslow and Peter Sullivan - Sir Robert Morton.

Rating: ****

After Trevor Nunn’s ‘Flare Path’ in 2011, Angus Jackson’s ‘The Browning Version’ last year and now Lindsay Posner’s ‘The Winslow Boy’, I’m beginning to wonder whether it’s possible to do Rattigan badly. Even the student production of ‘Flare Path’ that I saw last week made for a surprisingly good evening of theatre. My advice to any other student and aspiring directors is: do some Rattigan! He may not provide you with an opportunity to be ultra “relevant” or experimental but he will give you a multi-layered text rich in character and substance. Rattigan’s genius is that he is able to tackle the big issues without losing sight of the intimate and the personal, something very few writers ever manage. In ‘The Winslow Boy’ the big issues are justice, human rights and standing up for what you believe in but this is all played out within an intimate portrayal of family life and of a father’s love for his son. All with Rattigan’s characteristic lightness of touch that makes it powerful, tender and funny all at the same time.

Just as writing a play with so many layers is difficult, directing one must be equally difficult. The challenge is to decide which layers to bring to the surface whilst making sure that the ones you do are still transparent enough so that the audience can see right through to the bottom. (I agree, this metaphor has gone too far!) Posner has judged this perfectly though. I always think that if a play has been well directed, you don’t notice that it’s been directed at all. This was definitely the case here. The action on stage felt natural and utterly appropriate.

Posner is also exceptionally good at bringing out balances of authority on stage. Arthur Winslow, the father of the house, has his leather chair in which he always sits. When Sir Robert Morton, the famous hotshot lawyer, arrives in the drawing room Arthur is not present. Sir Robert moves across the space as if it were his own drawing room, placing his cane and hat beside Arthur’s chair. As an audience member you’re immediately screaming “But that’s Mr Winslow’s chair!” in your head. Arthur enters and Sir Robert asks Arthur to take a seat. Arthur hesitates, looking at his chair behind Sir Robert, but accepts his relation to the armchair on the other side of the room. It is a very subtle and very believable moment but one which immediately establishes the nature of Sir Robert’s character, not to mention a great deal of tension besides.

The performance of Henry Goodman as Arthur Winslow deserves a particular mention for its subtlety and tenderness, combined with a heartfelt and passionate belief in the injustice that has been done to his son. He also possesses an astonishing ability to apparently age before your eyes, finishing the play looking frail and tired. Peter Sullivan’s performance as Sir Robert was also exceptional. As soon as he enters, the energy lifts and he manages to portray the tenderness that lay beneath a cold exterior. I even wondered whether he was in fact harbouring secret affections for Catherine Winslow (Arthur’s daughter and fellow fighter for justice). He also possesses impeccable comic timing, his blunt remarks regularly being greeted with laughter from the audience. A final mention should go to Nick Hendrix as Dickie Winslow, the older brother, who’s presence also heralded a noticeable lift in energy on stage.

Peter McKintosh’s design is also perfectly judged, feeling completely appropriate for each character and the period as a whole, whilst Tim Mitchell’s lighting was equally fitting. I wasn’t 100% taken with Michael Bruce’s music but it did not detract from the overall enjoyment of the production.

Posner has been going from strength to strength over the last few years: ‘An Ideal Husband’ at the Vaudeville Theatre with Samantha Bond in 2010; ‘Uncle Vanya’ with the all-star cast of Ken Stott, Anna Friel, Laura Carmichael and Sam West at the end of last year; and, of course, his other great Old Vic success, ‘Noises Off’. This doesn’t quite reach the heights of ‘Noises Off’ (although that is a somewhat unfair comparison) but it is a beautifully executed play which I would highly recommend, especially if (like me) you’re under 25 and can get yourself a £12 ticket.