This show is at heart a revival. Not of Shakespeare, because he doesn’t need it, but of a theatrical genre not much seen since the 1960s. Revue used to be a popular staple of the theatre and found favour as a more upmarket, slightly more sophisticated variety show, performed by a small company working with a thematic selection of witty and clever material. It was meant to make you feel better about your life. Above all it had to be funny.
The Shakespeare Revue, itself revived for a national tour directed by Malcolm McKee and based on the 1994 Royal Shakespeare Company production devised by McKee and Christopher Luscombe, seeks to reprise the art of Revue by poking affectionate fun at the Shakespeare of popular culture while treading a fine line between not being too highbrow – or dumbed down.
The material itself is impressive, combining sketches and songs from among others the much missed Victoria Wood as well as Alan Bennett, Ned Sherrin, Monty Python, Noel Coward, Cole Porter, Stephen Sondheim – oh, and a certain Bill Shakespeare.
The opening extract from Bernard Levin’s Quoting Shakespeare sets the scene beautifully, reminding the audience of the way that Shakespeare’s words and images pervade our language and the way we see the world.
The company is compact, on the young side and work very well together on a bare stage with four chairs and McKee himself on the piano. Lizzie Bea has a lovely comic touch, particularly when being naughty, and sings with heartfelt emotion about “carrying a torch for the boy who carries a spear”.
Jordan Lee Davies and Alex Scott Fairley sing well and take turns to move centre stage while Alex Morgan delivers crisp lines, gets good laughs and moves superbly with the sort of panache that this cabaret style show requires.
Anna Stolli is hilarious as a pretentious lovey drama teacher tormenting a hapless actor about the meaning of the word ‘Time’ and the importance of it being spelled ‘t.i.m.e’ in the normal way.
Although there are in jokes for theatrical types and some of the material could be a little tired, the introduction of updated and rewritten sketches and songs with contemporary references to pop stars and celebrities prompted prolonged laughter. There was even a mention in song to Donald Trump being cast as Bottom – a bum rap if I ever heard one.
The more raucous elements worked best and the show veered towards a Shakespearean bawdiness, although standards like Cole Porter’s Brush up your Shakespeare and a version of Let’s Do It easily stood the test of time and were warmly appreciated
The Shakespeare Revue is not only a revival of Revue, but a reminder of the way Shakespeare has become part of our shared culture. Audiences will leave with a smile on their face, a song in their heart and as Victoria Wood’s amateur dramatic director says “it may be Hamlet but it’s got to be Fun Fun Fun!”. And it is. ★★★☆☆ Bryan Mason 20th September 2016
