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The Revenger’s Tragedy at the National Theatre, 28th May 2008
By Thomas Middleton
Directed by Melly Still
Nothing puts a spring in my step as I exit a theatre like seeing a play that finishes with everyone getting what’s coming to them. If that also means most of the cast ends up sprinkled with fake blood my pony tail will get that cheery bounce to it as well. I don’t necessarily revel in the macabre, but I am as enthralled by stories of lust, murder and revenge as the next person, and considering that The Revengers Tragedy was written in 1606, people must have been drawn to these darlings-of-the-tabloid themes through the ages. Considered high art now, this play may have been the late night TV program of its day with its naughty dark shadows and violence, virgins, sex, rape, death and shrill drama.
In order of events, the play follows cycles of lust (for women or power) followed by death then revenge. Repeat, sometimes changing the order of the final two phrases. Two sparks set events and characters smouldering: the violent rape of a virtuous lady by one of the Duke’s stepsons and the murder of Vindice’s (Rory Kinnear) fiancée by the Duke (Ken Bones), payment for her refusal to submit to his lust. Delaying sentencing his stepson on the rape charge cements the Duke’s place at the top of the revenge hit list on one hand and incurs the wrath of his new wife on the other who seduces the Duke’s eldest son, a bastard (whose revenge is to cuckold the cuckold.). Vindice, the main avenger, has a brother, Hippolito, (Jamie Parker) who has a place in the Duke’s court and can get a disguised Vindice a job procuring virgins for the Duke’s only legitimate blood son and heir, Lussurioso (Elliot Cowan). The catch is that the virgin Lussurioso has taken a fancy to is Vindice’s sister and though she is adamant she isn’t for sale, disguised Vindice is able to tempt his own mother into assisting in procuring her daughter’s flower. Vindice is then tasked to procure a virgin for the Duke, which he reads as an invitation to assassinate him – using a puppet wearing the poison coated skull of his betrothed (!) whose kiss is murder. Multiple groups have their eye on terminating the new Duke, his stepbrothers (who have already accidentally ordered the execution of their youngest brother, the rapist), the Duke’s bastard and Vindice and co.. A masked ball seems to all the best time for it and in the ensuing energetically danced sword and knife fight a lot of characters meet their end.
The plays opening scene is a Dante worthy explosion of hedonistic noise and movement, a pulsating party throbbing with a big fat rappers bass line to which the almost castrati voice of a counter tenor (Jake Arditti) adds waves of colour. The lazy Susan stage, set with three different rooms all fitting together like pieces of pie, spins, and almost primal dancers lead us through the lush ‘bordello’ room, the ‘monk’s cell’ and the ‘statesman’s court’. Usually mash ups of thumping music and bard era dialogue with backdrops featuring pudgy Michelangelo cherubs and costumes including white Italian pimp suits and medallions look like a lame attempt to ‘attract the kiddies’ but I have never seen a more successful blending of traditional and modern. There were a few grey heads shaking in the audience but the loud opera remixes and modern body language and staging made it clear why audiences at the time the play was written would have enjoyed it: it’s a passionate, violent story where the characters are compelled to act, the scenes are short and to the point, there is plenty of action and lots of people talk about sex and even more people die.
The impetus keeps pounding and the story dashes between scenes of plotting and scenes of action without too much idle chatting about it. And everyone appears to be plotting: brother against brother, son against father, wife against husband, mother against daughter. The prevalence of nastiness, even against flesh and blood does make the story complex to follow, (our 2008 morals are more offended by the possibility of that much power and the possibility of that much corruption.) though there are few characters truly aligned so maybe it is logical just to imagine it’s everyone versus everyone. Vindice’s disguises could also have made things more difficult to follow but again the dastardly themes run so strongly through the play that even if you don’t follow the dialogue precisely, the staging and clear tones make it abundantly clear what the characters have planned.
It was the details which made this performance so engaging. All the way through the tempo of the dialogue and the action drove the story on at the right pace, the climactic sword fight was forceful and exciting, somewhat of a dance but designed to be so and the deaths head puppet was beautifully and carefully manoeuvred by Vindice (as I imagine you would treat your ex-lover‘s skull?). The National is a big space to fill but the pie slice staging fitted well. Backdrops painted on partly sheer screens were used to dramatic effect and clever backlighting tricks made minimal sets more powerful. Scantily clad dancers and the music also helped to eat up empty space and keep the audience hooked on the action.
Lucky they had such a big (and very strong) cast to kill off.
