| A gripping production |
PHÈDRE by Jean Racine in a version by Ted Hughes |
| National Theatre , National Theatre Live at Scala Cinema Prestatyn , June 28, 2009 |
The National Theatre came to Prestatyn on June 25th. Not physically but as part of their international satellite link-up of a live performance of Racine’s Phèdre starring Helen Mirren.Not long ago that would have seemed an utterly unlikely prospect; we didn’t even have a cinema. The Scala was closed down and demolished in 2000 but public pressure, particularly from the Friends of the Scala, led to a Lottery funded rebuild and the opening early this year of the new Scala. Two screens, Wales’ first all-digital cinema, state of the art picture and sound, it’s a dream come true for the area’s film lovers. Hopefully in the future it will host live theatre and dance but in the meantime we got Phèdre. It was always going to be a fascinating occasion for me. How much like live theatre could it be? Would there be any awareness of seeing something that was actually happening as we watched? Would it be trouble free? To take the last first, there were some early technical problems; the satellite picture did keep breaking up, which was unfortunate. Just at the point where the audience was beginning to become restless it was fixed and the production continued uninterrupted. And that’s when everyone could experience just how successful the National Theatre’s experiment had been. It was not the same as being in the theatre but nor was it like watching a film or a television version. The five cameras took you right into the middle of the stage action so that you saw and felt every nuance of emotion, and raw emotion there was in plenty. There is nothing extraneous in Nicholas Hytner’s gripping production. Helen Mirren’s Phèdre, the queen who falls in love with her stepson, is extraordinary, letting us see all the character’s shifts of thought. Dominic Cooper is superb as the stepson Hippolytus, whose honesty and strength of character is no match for her wiles. Stanley Townsend’s Theseus is a rock-solid, heroic man who unfortunately believes his wife rather than his son. Margaret Tyzack’s wily nurse is sublimely untrustworthy and John Shrapnel delivers the account of Hippolytus’ death with a power and ferocity that caused screen and distance to vanish, there was nothing between you and its rawness. For me in fact the star of the evening was Ted Hughes’ script. The text came over with drive, clarity and robust poetry, and every word could be clearly heard. Its cragginess, together with Bob Crowley’s island set and Paule Constable’s bold lighting, made this very much a Greek tragedy rather more than pure Racine, and all the more powerful for it. So yes, the National Theatre came to Prestatyn and allowed me to feel that I can safely review their Phèdre, knowing that I have been allowed to feel the force of its power. And yes, I was always conscious that I was experiencing a live event. In spite of the technical glitches this was a triumph both for the NT and for the Scala and I look forward to many more in the future. |
Reviewed by: Victor Hallett |
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