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smallhobbitI'd been wanting to see Ben Whishaw on stage again for about 18 months, so when it was announced he was part of the Greeks season at the Almeida Theatre in London I sent a message to my friends to see who else was interested and a group of us decided to go. This week the trains behaved - I arrived with plenty of time to spare and we met at the Pizza Express (which, very conveniently was half way between the tube station and the theatre).
Bakkhai was written by Euripides and this was a new version by Anne Carson, brought up to date, but not jarringly so. The Almeida is a small theatre in Islington, which I'd not been to before. I liked the theatre, and I would happily go again, although probably not to another Greek tragedy. The costumes were modern, with an overlay of ancient Greek, which managed to convey the idea of 'this could happen in modern times' whilst still being set in ancient Greece.
The company was composed of three male actors, Ben Whishaw, Bertie Carvel and Kevin Harvey, who played all the main roles, with the chorus being provided by ten female actors. As chorus they said all their words together and sang a good proportion of their part. Their ability to do so was impressive, but for me it grew tiring after a while, although my friends were much more positive - personal preference.
Ben Whishaw was excellent, from the outset his presence was compelling and convincing as the god Bacchus. At one point I was confused when he played a different character - since I thought he was just another manifestation of the god, but thinking about it later I understood what was happening. Bertie Carvel did particularly well in playing two very different characters and convincing the audience both times of who he was.
The whole performance was very well done, I enjoyed it and remembered why I don't like Greek tragedies. But that doesn't mean I wasn't glad I'd seen it.
Bakkhai was written by Euripides and this was a new version by Anne Carson, brought up to date, but not jarringly so. The Almeida is a small theatre in Islington, which I'd not been to before. I liked the theatre, and I would happily go again, although probably not to another Greek tragedy. The costumes were modern, with an overlay of ancient Greek, which managed to convey the idea of 'this could happen in modern times' whilst still being set in ancient Greece.
The company was composed of three male actors, Ben Whishaw, Bertie Carvel and Kevin Harvey, who played all the main roles, with the chorus being provided by ten female actors. As chorus they said all their words together and sang a good proportion of their part. Their ability to do so was impressive, but for me it grew tiring after a while, although my friends were much more positive - personal preference.
Ben Whishaw was excellent, from the outset his presence was compelling and convincing as the god Bacchus. At one point I was confused when he played a different character - since I thought he was just another manifestation of the god, but thinking about it later I understood what was happening. Bertie Carvel did particularly well in playing two very different characters and convincing the audience both times of who he was.
The whole performance was very well done, I enjoyed it and remembered why I don't like Greek tragedies. But that doesn't mean I wasn't glad I'd seen it.
