The world’s first full-scale working replica of Shakespeare’s Globe theatre has popped up in the middle of Sydney. What a thrill! It’s theatre like no other, complete with open roof, grandstand seating and standing room for Groundlings.
The season for Pop-up Globe is comprised of four of Shakespeare’s plays, and after a cancelled opening night performance due to electrical storms, I finally got to see The Merchant of Venice.
The space is intimate but spacious, and a buzz of excitement is in the air. The Groundlings are particularly reverberant — will they or won’t they get picked on by the actors on stage? Will they or won’t they get covered in blood or some other matter, spat upon, called up to dance or jeered at? The possibilities!
Bassanio requires more money to woo his beloved, Portia, a wealthy heiress. But with his friend Antonio’s fortune tied up elsewhere, they are forced to turn to notoriously villainous moneylender Shylock. Shylock agrees to their loan on one condition: that should the debt not be fully repaid on time, his repayment will be a pound of Antonio’s flesh. Thus, a play of friendship, enmity, love, hate, disguise and truth comes to pass.
Director David Lawrence seems determined to remind us that while Merchant is full of dark themes and controversial characters, the play is also rife with moments of lightheartedness. The whole company embrace this notion, revelling in the comedy (both physical and verbal) by making the most of it where they can. Dances are used to great effect, and no physical joke, however small, is forgotten.
In an interesting decision, this production is performed traditional-style by the all-male Buckingham’s Company. There’s an element of men playing women playing men that boggles the mind, which, for less dextrous actors, would have been a challenge too great.
But while formidable characters do their worst, this is undoubtedly Portia’s show. She (Patrick Griffin) has us in the palm of her hand from beginning to end. Griffin’s command of the stage and interaction with the audience is spectacular. It is a thoroughly refreshing and contemporary take on an iconic character. Portia’s right-hand (wo)man Nerissa, played by Will Alexander, is the perfect accompaniment. The two have a fabulously camp rapport, gaining probably the most laughs of the night.
Another master of comedy is Chris Turner, showing that no character is too small to be noticed. Peter Daubé’s grotesque Shylock verges on pantomimic, which unfortunately undermines his bid for sympathy towards the end.
The rest of the performances were mixed, with only a few capable of reaching the uppermost seats with their voices. If you’re sitting up to the left near the band, prepare to miss a fair amount of dialogue. If you’re a Groundling, you shouldn’t have a problem.
Merchant is a play steeped in controversy, and this production, while traditional in style, has a purpose that’s still relevant to a modern audience: holding up a mirror to our prejudices against those we do not know, the outsiders and outcasts whom we are told to hate and distrust. It was common practice for Venetians to treat Jews with contempt and distrust. Surely then it is not inconceivable that Shylock would seize his opportunity for revenge when it presented itself so tastily to him? We need to look at our actions against these people, and examine whether those actions have made them the way they are.
This show will absolutely make you laugh, but it will also make you think.
Alana Kaye – TheatreNow
The Merchant Of Venice [Pop-Up Globe]
William Shakespeare
7 Sep – 1 Nov 2018
Various Dates and Times.
Refer Calendar
Venue: Pop-Up Globe, Moore Park
Theatre Company: Pop-up Globe Buckingham’s Company
Duration: N/A
Friendship, forbidden love, cunning disguises and ancient enmity culminate in a thrilling trial scene in The Merchant of Venice. Witness Pop-up Globe’s all-male Buckingham’s Company take on Shakespeare’s most controversial comedy.
Already deep in debt to his best friend, Bassanio requires just one more loan to finance his scheme to woo and win the wealthy heiress Portia. But with Antonio’s capital all tied up in foreign trade, the two friends turn to the villainous moneylender Shylock, who agrees to fund their venture on one condition: if the debt is not repaid on time, the forfeit will be a pound of Antonio’s flesh. Blindly confident of success, Antonio accepts the fatal wager, unaware that when the due date comes he will be gambling for his life…
Based on the performance tradition of 1614, the Buckingham’s Company are Pop-up Globe’s resident all-male company of actors and musicians, drawn from around the world. Working with international theatre experts and creatives, they will transport you four hundred years into the past for the extraordinary experience of seeing Shakespeare’s plays performed in the space for which they were written.
