REVIEW: TITUS ANDRONICUS – ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY – STRATFORD

THERE’S a whole lot of murder and mayhem this summer in Stratford with the RSC’s Titus Andronicus.

It takes a steely nerve and strong stomach to tackle this latest in the Rome series with a Tarantino-style treatment from director Blanche McIntyre.

Witness a contemporary feel to this early Shakespeare play on obsession, tragedy, and revenge from the very first austerity-type rioting to the selfie obsession.

McIntyre asks us just what this play, on the ending of Rome’s 500-year empire, can tell us about today’s society and our own obsessions – with power greed and corruption. Not much to mirror ourselves there then!

David Troughton is powerful as Titus blindly following a misplaced loyalty to its grotesque conclusion. He arrives in Rome after triumphantly defeating the Goths at a time when the empire is in turmoil and terminal decline.

There follows a visceral account of societal collapse with a high, Midsomer-style body count.

The mixture between a modern take on Shakespeare and traditional demands sometimes doesn’t quite gel. But it can mirror the present and designer Robert Innes Hopkins set provides a powerful backdrop.

As an early work, this may not have the eloquence and impact of later scripts but McIntyre’s modern treatment – complete with news-cameras following the action – makes it own mark.

Nia Gwynne, as Tamora, gives an insightful performance as the Queen of the Goths with revenge foremost in her mind for her sacrificed son.

Martin Hutson is an excellent, eccentric Saturninus corrupted by power and the determination to become emperor.

But it is the relentless gory action that takes centre stage with a little comic relief to lighten the load sparking inappropriate titters while Tamora’s remaining sons have their throats slit!

And the Sweeney Todd-style ending, as the sons are served up at a grotesque dinner, verges on insanity.

So you have been warned but this is a powerful production worthy of contemplation beyond the blood-soaked stage constantly being mopped by M&S towels.

It’s drama at its cutting edge even though this is sometimes taken too literally! Serious theatregoers have until September 2 to encounter Titus Andonicus. Box Office: 01789 403493.

JOHN MURPHY