Review: HENRY V, Southwark Cathedral

With an established tradition for producing plays set in memorable venues, Antic Disposition returns with its production of Henry V, performed in eight cathedrals around the country.

Shakespeare's patriotic play, set around the victory at Agincourt and the deaths of thousands of French soldiers, is transferred to the setting of an allied field hospital during the Great War, where French and English soldiers recover together. The patients decide to put on Henry V to help the monotony of the healing process, using that old Shakespearean device of a play within a play, but also a war within a war.

Additional material from A E Houseman's A Shropshire Lad brings new insights and a new dimension to the play, as the soldiers are yanked between the war in the play and their own reality of the war outside.

Southwark Cathedral seems a most fitting venue to start this tour, with its commemorative statue of the Bard himself, who was a resident of the borough. Designer and co-director John Risebero keeps everything appropriately stripped back - the set is a few flags and stacked boxes, concentrating attention on the actors.

The choice of setting the play in the context of the First World War is inspired. Ben Horden and John Risebero's direction makes the adaption incredibly natural. Scenes such as Mistress Quickly's farewell becomes every wife and mother waving her men off to war and Henry's rousing speech before the battle sounds more poignant than ever, especially the line "we few, we happy few, we band of brothers", as he is hoisted aloft by his comrades.

Particularly moving is the scene when Bardolph, played beautifully by Adam Philps, is to be executed for disobeying orders and stealing from the French. On his knees, with a pistol pointing at his head, the similarities with the war outside become too much for him to bear and he breaks down. In a few brief moments, Philps encapsulates Shakespeare's message that both the terror and consequences of war are directed at the common man.

Rhys Bevan brings a real likeable humanity to the role of Henry; there is an innocence along with his brilliance as a king and military leader. The courtship scene between him and Katherine, a confident and nuanced Floriane Andersen, is lighthearted but also sincere.

Sound is the biggest issue with the production; the projection of the actors is always going to be tested in such surroundings, and some lack the strength or resonance in their voices to always be heard clearly. The accompanying music to the poetry is sometimes too loud, which is a shame as the music is a lovely addition.

This is also a play based on Henry V, rather than being Henry V the play. Purists will notice that there have been some large cuts, such as the executions before the British fleet leave and Henry's brutal order to kill French prisoners. Any ambiguity in whether Shakespeare intended the play as a pro or anti-war is removed. The message is clear; war in any era is a tragedy for all involved. The result is a much softer Henry; he loves his country and his men, but is not so brutally ambitious as the original play suggests. These adjustments make the cruelty of the soldiers' own war even more stark.

Just as the English and French are about to charge each other in battle at Agincourt, the ominous boom of artillery echoes around the vaulted ceiling and jolts the cast back to their own reality - just as Henry and Katherine are joined in matrimony, the command to return to the Front comes. As Katherine is left holding her wedding bouquet of poppies, the poignancy is almost overwhelming.

This is a moving and beautifully touching adaptation that conveys the futility and tragedy of war in a wonderful setting. Catch it if you can.

Photo credit: Scott Rylander

Henry V is touring until 22 February

To post a comment, you must register and login.