Richard III Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon.

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Richard III 

Royal Shakespeare Theatre, Stratford-upon-Avon
– Joe Strudwick 13SR

The lights go down on an empty stage (which a poor young boy has been sweeping continually since I had last looked at my watch, some ten minutes before hand). There is a moment's silence and Richard, Duke of Gloucester, dressed in a manner that immediately reminded me of Charlie Chaplin with his top hat and suit, hobbles through the curtains into a perfectly circular spotlight-down stage. He launches into the famous "Now is the winter of our discontent" speech. Henry Goodman makes exactly the sort of contact with the audience, which made me feel we were suddenly in the Kit Kat Club.

He strips off the formal attire to reveal the outfit that he bears for the rest of the show, an outfit that draws attention to rather than conceals Richard's deformities.

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As Goodman ploughs through the healthily sized speech that is so famously known as “know is the winter of our discontent” the effects crew cleverly coincide with the words he speaks to add another comic level, that has clearly been laid down by the director. As he assertively says the words "that dogs do bark at me", the noise of a pack of crazed Doberman’s comes from off-stage.  Richard whips out a concealed blade from his walking stick, goes to the side of the stage, stabs at something just out of sight, then cleans blood from the blade. No more ...

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