Richard III - contemptible villain or innocent victim of a Tudor smear campaign? The truth no doubt lies somewhere in between. That said, Shakespeare's Richard is an out and out villain, a murderer and usurper and for that reason one of my favourite characters - all the nice girls love an usurper.
Martin Freeman's villain is the smiling psychopath, charming and manipulative and he easily wins over the audience and we're all on his side very early on. Freeman gives a credible performance and I did find a lot to enjoy watching him. He is well supported by many other strong performances but ultimately it is all let down by the setting. The stage set is an office of sorts with desks, chairs, assorted office paraphernalia and really none of it adds to the production, if anything it distracts, there is very little free floor space and this seems to hinder the actors who are constantly negotiating their way around the desks and chairs. This results in a couple of clumsy moments and I was desperate for the actors to have more space. "More space, more space, my kingdom for more space!"
This will not go down in history as one of the greatest interpretations ever, but it's pacey, has a couple of smart surprises and the sound and light effects worked well together underpinning and pointing up crucial moments. It's just a great shame that for the want of less furniture this may have worked much better. So - is it worth the ticket price? If you are a fan of Freeman then absolutely yes - he won't let you down. If you are a fan of Richard III then this production doesn't bring anything new to the party and does not reveal any new insights into the play, but maybe that wasn't the point.
As an addendum, there have been reports in the press of Martin Freeman's fans "ruining performances", seemingly they are clapping at the wrong times (e.g. on Freeman's entrance or at the end of the first scene) and therefore "breaching theatre etiquette". I would just like to say that this was absolutely not my experience. A quiet, attentive and intelligent audience expressed their genuine appreciation and enjoyment of the production at the end of the show in the standard way.
Alison Kirkwood