It's Showtime!!! - Theatre Review - RSC As You Like It.

Hi!!!
 

Sorry for not blogging in so long everyone - I'm very lazy busy.

Weeks and weeks and weeks ago now (the 1st of June to be precise), I went to see the RSC (Royal Shakespeare Company) production of the Shakespeare Comedy, "As You Like It" with a few others at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford Upon Avon.

And before we begin, I hope it doesn't bother you that I've started centralising the text - I think it looks pretty...

So...

What is it about?

The lead characters, Rosalind and Orlando, are banished from court (separately) and have to flee to the Forest of Arden to protect themselves and their lives (individually). Unexpectedly, they find freedom and as their paths meet and intertwine (rather complicatedly), their love grows. With companions of a completely hilarious nature and new friends found in the depths of the forest, everyone begins to enjoy life. But, will everything work out as we think it will?

What do I think?

Firstly, I love this play anyway - its a hilarious comedy and it amazes me that Tudor humour still works today. This version is interesting, funny, unique and after about 20 minutes you get used to hearing Tudor language as opposed to todays language.  I think one of the reasons for this is that is the absolutely brilliant acting throughout. The entire cast were amazing but I (as always) have stand out actors, who turned out to be the main characters (unusual for me). For me, Pippa Nixon, who played the lead - Rosalind - was fabulous. She carried the part perfectly and I really struggled to fault her - she's great. It can be a daunting part to play but she did a great job. I also really liked Nicolas Tennant who plays Touchstone - the fool. He was incredibly funny - an absolutely brilliant Touchstone. He delivered his performance with ease and brought a naturally funny quality. He was fab. I also really enjoyed the performances of Alex Waldmann (Orlando - mentioned above), David Fielder (who plays Orlando's servant, Adam, a lovely character you'll struggle not to like), Rosie Hilal (who plays Audrey, a goat heard. She did the job brilliantly and I just really liked her and her skills), and Joanna Horton (who gave a great performance as Celia, Rosalind's sister). I have tried my hardest to narrow it down here but I absolutely adored every single cast members performance - an excellent range of actors and actresses who you'll find hard to fault. The play was carried out with a modern take, everyone had 21st Century (rather cool, actually) costume that I would wear in general - beanies, jumpers and Nirvana tees! Everything outside court - in the Forest of Arden - has a really cool festival vibe, like Glasto on a stage. Loads of the cast sit and play guitar throughout and the cast sing and prance about like pixies. I genuinely want to live in a forest with those people. They not only seemed to enjoy themselves but helped us enjoy ourselves too. I was totally swept up in it all.

 

However... I wouldn't ever just give you my opinion - I'll always give you a few because, then, with a few different viewpoints, you can make a judgement about whether or not you'd like to go. One of the people I went with had the same views as me - seriously, almost identical to what I've written above. She loved it, thought it was really well acted, had a really unique spin on a Shakespeare classic and that it had a fun festival vibe. The other person we went with felt the same however thought some of the actors lacked. However, we all agreed that it is well, well, well worth going to see and that we all adored the fun, modern spin and the general atmosphere. 

 

So, just in case you still aren't sure, then definitely just go and see it.  You won't regret it - I promise.

 

Although, one thing to remember - please, please, please remember to make an effort in terms of what you wear. I think that out of respect to the actors and the rest of the people involved, at every theatre show you see you should dress smart casually - if your struggling, a nice top, some leggings or jeans and some heels or pretty flats are you're best bet (if you're a girl). I made a bit more of an effort for this show and wore a maxi dress, some sandals, a little pashmina wrap and swept my hair to the side. For my makeup, I wore a silver glitter eye with a soft peachy blush and bronze toned lips.

 

I really do recommend this show to everyone.

 

The RSC Production of As You Like It by William Shakespeare is running at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford Upon Avon until September 28th 2013 and then runs at the Theatre Royal in Newcastle Upon Tyne from October 29th 2013 to November 2nd, so do be sure to catch it.

 

It's great to be blogging again, guys. Hope you are having a good week and that everything is going well for you all. Do leave me a comment and let me know if you'd consider going to this show or whether you like this review or agree with it. Even if you'd just like a chit-chat, then please do leave a comment.



Have a lovely day today, you fabulous people.

 

GingerSnaps xxx