Titus Andronicus

Judith E. Wilson Drama Studio, 15th – 18th February, 7.45pm, £5

Directed by Robin Morton and Holly Stevenson

[rating: 3/5]

Described by the directors themselves as one of Shakespeare’s ‘most unloved’ plays, putting on an inspiring production of Titus Andronicus is no easy task. Stevenson and Morton, however, have embraced the difficult tension between the tragic and the violently comic, choosing to acknowledge the extremes and to translate them into a gory, passionate play which was, at times, genuinely funny.

A clumsy beginning had the close up, minimalist set faltering and a mob that was oddly Jerry Springer-esque. But then an exceptional early emotional appeal from Tamara (Rose Paine) introduced an intimacy and intensity which allowed the tragic element of the play to get going. Robbie Aird’s grief and frustration as Marcus was raw and powerful and Poulton’s Lavinia, though initially rigid, was greatly moving, whilst Fergus Blair played Saturninus with a comic simpleness. This, in interaction with Paine’s borderline psychotic, erotically charged interpretation of Tamara, created an realistic relationship which brought a real edge to the play. Although his progression could have been more psychologically rich, Tiffin’s strong and deceptive Titus and his decline did contain real tragic tones; difficult to do in a play where so much death and dismemberment risks looking like a scene from 300.

And sometimes it was actually really funny. There was jam. And squirting blood. And, of course, the original ‘your mum’ line. There was genuine laughter. While it got a bit too gory in the second half for my tastes, the clever interplay of the exaggerated styles embedded within Shakespeare’s play managed to be at times both comic and chillingly menacing.

The directors’ decision to remove the racial element from Aaron’s character was, as explained in the director’s note, an attempt to move away from the single faceted stereotype to demonstrate his autonomous status within the progressing family conflicts. This initially worked well, with Kirton maintaining an authoritative and controlling distance, complemented by his continuing, isolated stage presence, which stressed, and perhaps even created, complexities often overlooked in pigeonholing the ‘Moor’. Thought-provoking and probing for those who know the play well. However, the backgrounding of the contemporary racial issues proved a challenge in the second half, which depended so heavily on this controversy. Nevertheless, it was a bold choice which expanded the reach of Aaron’s alienation and cunning, and was well executed by Kirton.

But it is a long play. And it felt long. Especially in scenes where the driving actors were absent. And at these moments, delivery tended towards being flat and stilted. Which is not fun for stretches at a time in Shakespeare. Not the kind of thing to go to for a quick, uplifting break from the library. But an interesting and lively take on a notoriously tricky script, and for that, I applaud(ed) them.