Directed by Peter Evans
Bell Shakespeare
The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre to 14 September
Reviewed by Len Power 13 September 2024
At the beginning of “In A Nutshell: The Poetry Of Violence”, Bell Shakespeare’s Artistic Director, Peter Evans, describes the violence in Shakespeare’s plays as “acts of bastardry and lots of death”. He admits that the violence is terrible, of course, but, rubbing his hands together with glee, he tells us it’s great, too, setting the scene for a fascinating, enlightening and entertaining trawl through the violence in many of Shakespeare’s plays.
On a stage set with raised rostra and a backdrop on which the titles of the plays are projected, Evans narrates and six performers show how violence is portrayed across various plays. The tone of the evening is relaxed and casual. Evans speaks to us as if we are part of a rehearsal and the house lights stay on for most of the show, bringing us closer to those on stage. Music and lighting add subtle touches, enhancing certain scenes.
Most of the performers have been seen in past Bell Shakespeare productions, including Jessica Tovey, Lucy Bell, Darius Williams and James Lugton. Madeline Li is a recent NIDA graduate making her debut with the company and Nigel Poulton is also Bell Shakespeare’s fight director. Poulton’s description of fighting implements and the method and code of conduct of their use was particularly enlightening and enjoyably presented.
Evans and the actors move quickly from one scene to the next. There is Brutus offering justification for the murder in Julius Caesar, the guilt of Claudius in Hamlet, Juliet’s delightful “yet I would kill thee with much cherishing” in the balcony scene in Romeo & Juliet and examples from many other plays.
Evans discusses how Shakespeare questions our relationship with violence. He enlightens us about the words Shakespeare uses to describe the emotions of violence, whether provoked by rashness, love, hate, politics or even if it’s just a gratuitous act.
For many of the well-known plays, Evans enhanced our appreciation of them with clarifications that were not apparent before. With the lesser-known plays, it was a fascinating journey through the many colourful characters and scenes, making us eager to further our experience with Shakespeare’s works.
Regardless of the level of our knowledge, Evans and the performers showed that there is still so much more to find and enjoy in Shakespeare’s plays. It was also a delight to listen to expert presentations of the words and poetry in the plays.
Len Power's reviews are also broadcast on Artsound FM 92.7 in the ‘Arts Cafe’ and ‘Arts About’ programs and published in his blog 'Just Power Writing' at https://justpowerwriting.blogspot.com/.
