Close to four hours of Shakespeare will likely be a challenging premise for many theatregoers who wouldn’t consider themselves hardcore fans of the bard’s work – even more so when we’re talking about two of his plays (both parts of Henry IV) being rolled into one by director of The Doctor and Mary Stewart, Robert Icke. The casting of Ian McKellen as a bafflingly sleazy Sir John Falstaff is the main appeal – and he is, unsurprisingly, hilarious – but despite Icke quite literally pulling back the curtain on the British monarchs, he doesn’t quite manage to do so on Falstaff’s making of a monarch.
Because even though Shakespeare, quite sensibly, named the two plays after the royals concerned, Player Kings seems, for the most part, framed around the otherwise secondary character. Sure, there is the wider backdrop of succession – Hal (Toheeb Jimoh of the Almeida’s Romeo and Juliet) is a thief who enjoys the company of Falstaff, but finds himself called to protect his father’s (played by Ink’s Richard Coyle) turbulent reign from deposition – yet Falstaff is a more intriguing constant, comically contorting every plot point in a way which sees him looked upon favourably, or handed another drink. The most hysterical example of this comes as he rationalises his running away during a heist as being a “coward on instinct”.
Such is the knotty nature of Shakespeare’s history plays, as opposed to the well-known comedies and tragedies, that it becomes hard to follow the developments of many of the other characters, though. I scrawled down in my notes that King IV really doesn’t like a chap named Mortimer, and while that’s a gross oversimplification, it does suggest this play struggles to communicate the deeper nuances and conflicts between characters – even when it has a whopping 200 minutes to play with – and it could do with shaving off a few superfluous scenes (the introduction of Shallow, a lifelong friend of Falstaff’s, feels redundant, with Worcester’s endless singing being the most memorable element of this subplot, due to how repetitive it becomes).
Even though Player Kings is a complex behemoth which requires sustained audience attention and focus, it isn’t an exhausting watch. A few scenes with ineffective dialogue offer an opportunity to zone out momentarily, but there are many sharp moments of action which renew the energy of the production. Falstaff’s failed robbery is conveyed with several snapshots and blackouts, fight sequences during the Battle of Shrewsbury are brutal (Hildegard Bechtler’s brick wall set is blown apart at this point, too), and our introduction to Hal’s criminality involves an angle grinder and snorting drugs off the back of a man on a leash.
Even when the three narratives (Henry IV’s failing health, Falstaff’s antics and Hal’s rise to power) are very distinct and disconnected for the most part, Icke at least tries to have them bleed into each other with characters pulling curtains across the stage for the next scene, and lingering around for a little longer when it gets underway. There’s a handful of clever details too which are fun to spot – like the pillow, worn on Falstaff’s head as a mock crown when impersonating the King, later being used by the actual King to try and smother Hal; and the striking image near the end of Hal basking in a golden light, while the rebuked Falstaff, in almost total darkness, makes the long journey offstage.
As for the performances, Clare Perkins (Emilia) excels as the long-suffering Mistress Quickly. Meanwhile Jimoh’s strong portrayal as Hal gradually becomes less animated, gesticulations made during his many soliloquies turning more muted over time. It’s just unfortunate that in closing, the contrast in Hal’s demeanour is presented to us in a way which feels sudden, abrupt, and without much prefacing the change in demeanour and his attitude towards Falstaff. We’re in it for the long run with Player Kings, and our interest is piqued, but the necessary emphasis on a particular character or narrative is lost along the way.
★★★
Player Kings is now playing at the Noël Coward Theatre until 22 June.
It will then continue its UK tour to Bristol (3-6 July), Birmingham (10-13 July), Norwich (17-20 July) and Newcastle, where it will have its final performance on 27 July.
The show will be captioned on 1 June (London) and 12 July (Birmingham), with an audio described performance taking place on 15 June (London).
Production Images: Manuel Harlan.
Disclaimer: I was invited to watch ‘Gunter’ for free in exchange for a review of the performance as a member of the press. I did not receive payment for this article and all opinions stated above are honest and my own.
Liam O'Dell 