The play in its 'techno' feel truly livens up the atmosphere with gunshot's galore, ear-popping explosions and bright flashes of white light. Even if you couldn't understand the English/French dialect you could at least enjoy the 'fizz, bang and pop'.
The night before Agincourt is more important in this play than the battle. The most memorable moment here is when Henry throws off his cloak, announcing himself "Harry Leroy," and still manages to fool the soldier Williams.
Nevertheless Cowan (debut as a leading character) as Henry is quite admirable as he timidly starts his speeches and nearly ends up in shouts of rage which can be heard over the cries of war. At the start of the play he appears initially as a nervous young boy in an uncomfortable suit, however, during the battle scene, he matures into a man raring to go.
Munby adds to the play an odd modern twist. Some of them work, like the sounds of modern weaponry and the soldier's battle attire but others just seem a little bit ill-advised. There are some very impressive elements to this production, but the meaning of the words is often lost in the flat delivery of the speech and there is very little emotion in the whole play except from the battle-hungry angry.
The whole production is held together narratively by Gerard Murphy, as both the chorus and Exeter, who does an excellent job and looks like an old sergeant major. There are many more creditable performances in this sixteen-strong cast such as Tom Vaughn as the spontaneous and rash Dauphin. Also Claire Cox, when she is admirably fussy in the French language episodes and takes up the as the intelligent and decisive princess.
HENRY V
