The Tempest

Here is the world’s most famous playwright, William Shakespeare, at the height of his powers and at the end of a remarkable career, in a tempest of slavery and freedom, barbarism and civilisation, chastity and lust, revenge and forgiveness.

And to ensure it all goes to modern plan, director Kip Williams has inserted some textual changes, especially as far as Caliban is concerned. Guy Simon plays the rickety character as dispossessed, rather than overtly ugly and evil. This Caliban loves his tiny country and ends up owning it, thanks to Richard Roxburgh’s Prospero.

Roxburgh spends most of his time climbing up and down the enormous rock that represents the island on which he has spent the past 20 years in company with his daughter Miranda (Claude Scott-Mitchell) and elderly sprite Arial (Peter Carroll), who constantly gives off smoke through his tights. But the end is nigh, for in a few days Prospero is going to give up all his magic business, break his keen staff that lights up at the end, and retire to Milan.

So from his rock he summons up the tempest that deposits the ship that carries his brother/sister, the King of Naples (Mandy McElhinney), and his/her son Ferdinand (Shiv Palekar) on the magical shore. Gender differences are discarded in this rendition. Some later welcome comic action is taken by the flexible Aaron Tsindos as Stephano, and Susie Youssef as Trinculo.

Along with the whooshing sound effects, the dialogue is often difficult to determine. Patches of dialogue passed me by. The great thing about Scott-Mitchell and Palekar is that they look regal and sound excellent.

As does Richard Roxburgh. Kitted out in a hooded jacket, he is unlike the usual headmasterly Prospero, instead he relishes his position making the world go in his favour.

The setting by Jacob Nash is amazing. The huge rock centre stage spins round and the long arms of a giant tree come briefly into view. Later the rock is circled by bits of tree that burn freely.

Frank Hatherley

Photographer: Daniel Boud