The Duchess [of Malfi] - Review

Trafalgar Theatre, London

****

Written and directed by Zinnie Harris

After John Webster

Jodie Whittaker

Zinnie Harris offers up an imaginative swipe at John Webster’s The Duchess of Malfi, taking the Jacobean tragedy and thrusting its 17th-century themes into a modern-day staging.

Making her return to the London stage, Jodie Whittaker is the recently-widowed Duchess who, against the wishes of her brothers, wishes to rebuild a life of emancipated sexual independence, much to their controlling shame. Harris follows Webster’s broad plotline, with her dialogue reflecting a modern parlance – and notwithstanding the play’s centuries-old roots, its message remains timely.

Harris places the story's misogyny of the story centre-stage. While her women may be the tragic victims of their controlling menfolk, they are all bestowed with a divine afterlife that offers a display of their strengths not often seen in this tale’s retelling. That being said, the violence meted out to them is cruel, graphic and deliberate, while most of Harris’ menfolk die through Tarantino-esque bungled shootings.

It’s not just misogyny that Harris puts in the spotlight. Paul Ready’s Cardinal makes an excellent display of the promiscuous hypocrisy of the Catholic church and if one then considers the  honour-killing that sits at the very heart of this story, one has to reflect on the prevalence of such murders that are sadly all too prevalent amongst some UK communities today.

Harris’ narrative is exciting and her violence graphic. Whittaker plays a sympathetic victim, far more sinned against than sinning ably supported, in particular, by Jude Owusu’s deeply flawed Bosola and Elizabeth Ayodele’s naively trusting Julia. Tom Piper’s staging is brutally simple, with Jamie Macdonald’s jarring videos adding to the evening’s horrors.

The Duchess is an intelligent revision of a classic that forces us to recognise the timelessness of evil.

Runs until 20th December

Photo credit: Marc Brenner

The Duchess of Malfi - Review

Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, London

****

Written by John Webster

Directed by Rachel Bagshaw

Francesca Mills

John Webster’s classic revenge tale is well told in the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse.

Francesca Mills plays the titular widowed Duchess whose death is sought by her patrician brothers following her live affair and subsequent secret marriage to aristocrat Antonio, with whom she has borne three children.

Mills puts in a fine performance with a credible passion and desire for Olivier Huband’s Antonio. The villains of the piece are Jamie Ballard and Oliver Johnstone as the brothers, together with Arthur Hughes’ Bosola, the story’s duplicitous lynchpin, engineering much of the murderous mayhem before himself succumbing to fatal pangs of guilt.

Director Rachel Bagshaw plays a little fast and loose with the text, but mercifully her re-writes are sparse and for those school parties attending there is enough meat in the production for them to context Webster’s prose. To her credit, Bagshaw places much emphasis on the misogyny of the play which sits even more appropriately in the #MeToo era.

The music is well played and provides a sound backdrop to the narrative, while the entertaining fight choreography from R C Annie Ltd offers the violent thrills and spills that this famous blood and bodice-ripping yarn demands.

At nigh-on 3 hours there are moments when the pace flags, but for a decent delivery of Restoration Tragedy, The Duchess Of Malfi hits the spot.

Runs until 14th April

Photo credit: Marc Brenner