Right from the opening I knew this was going to be a great evening. Plain stage, minimal set, full costume, a cast of 21 and a fabulous story.
Reducing such a large book to a coherent, compelling piece of theatre would be a daunting task but Mike Poulton has got it pretty well perfect. The dialogue is modern and easy, despite there being a huge cast, and an even greater array of characters, I never felt lost or confused due to the clarity and precision of the acting. The pace is that of a tornado with scene breaks being taken in the actors stride, barely a beat moves us from one place to another, from one time to a later one and yet, someone, it never faulters and never loses us.
Henry VIII is a character we all know well, in fact most of the names croppimng up will be familiar to anyone with more than a passing grasp of this era; Wolsey, Thomas Moore, Cramner, Henry Percy and of course the Bolyen girls and Jane Seymour. What is unusual, is to see all this through the eyes of Cromwell - we see a different side to the characters when looked at from his perspective - of course it is all speculation but it is marvellous to be asked to think again about an era you think you know.
Out of these characters and events with which we are familar, has been crafted a gripping tale ... add a few effects, a couple of glorious theatrical set-pieces and the sort of pace many directors will never achieve intheir life and you have something really special. As an audience member; something to remember. As a practitioner; a high bar to emulate and respect to the actors for learning all those lines and moves and keeping everything acing along ...
Ben Miles's Cromwell is something of a master class, effortlessly carrying nearly 5.5 hours of stage time his is a beautiful performance. Nathaniel Parker as Henry is equally watchable and the court is full of believable portrayals - there really are no weak points in the cast, were there then the show would collapse as any drop in pace or conviction would destroy the drive this production has in bucketfulls.
At the interval I was desparate to get back, at the end I was acheing to see "Bring up the Bodies" ... this really is my type of theatre - fast, powerful, clever and totally engaging.
