Young Critic Review: TWELFTH NIGHT – The Lord Chamberlain’s Men
‘Twelfth Night’ by the Lord’s Chamberlain’s men, with the backdrop of sunny skies over Lichfield Cathedral, was an impressive spectacle of song, dance and of course, drama. The group’s shared talent and passion created a hilariously joyful production accessible to all experience levels with the Bard, despite the script’s contextual and structural complexities. ‘Twelfth Night’ is a lesser-known Shakespeare; it is not drilled through the minds of GCSE candidates like ‘Romeo and Juliet’ or ‘Macbeth’ and yet it remains one of his most relevant and universal comedies. The Lord Chamberlain’s Men’s adaptation was thoroughly engaging, ‘capturing the audience’s attention instantly’, according to a member, and eliciting many laughs as the show went on.
From its opening, I knew the show would be memorable as it did not begin, like most Shakespeares, with a hero or villain, nor even a chorus explaining the plot. The Lord Chamberlain’s Men instead sang an acapella opening number led by ‘The Fool’ a favourite character of the show and typical Shakespearean convention. As a musical theatre performer, I was thoroughly impressed by the use of harmony and acapella projection outside and without microphones. The song transported the audience to the original Globe, establishing the faithful adaptation’s loyalty. As the actors began their first scene, I was again struck by their successful projection and connection with the audience. Eye contact broke the 4th wall, drawing me into the play’s world. As the scene progressed, I quickly noticed the actors’ preservation of Shakespearean pronunciation. Much research has been done proving the RP accent is not realistic for Shakespeare, but instead a less formal but still clear dialect was more common due to actors’ status in the era.
The production was particularly faithful in more ways than one, with the cast, their costumes and the easy, practical comedy providing a distinctly Shakespearean feel. I’d never seen an all-male Shakespeare before, but this worked particularly well for a show that plays with gender, making the comedy only more entertaining and confusing. The costumes were beautiful, although probably very warm on such a nice day! The changes between the period accurate costumes were impressively fast and exaggerated the comedy, with matching outfits for the siblings and bright yellow stockings becoming a comedic motif. Comedic relief was added to by ‘The Fool’, a standout singer and actor (and crowd favourite). Despite the script’s pre-existing wordplay humour, the company furthered this with organised-chaos dance routines, their dramatic use of pitch, and incredible stunts involving hat-tossing, sword-fighting and cage-slamming which all kept the audience engaged.
The performers overcame a few obstacles to facilitate the show, the most obvious being its outside nature. Overall, this didn’t hinder the performance at all with great projection and overdramatic gestures allowing me to see and hear from a bench behind the designated seating. However, when the Cathedral bells sounded, some meaning was lost. The performers took it in their stride however, raising their voices as much as possible. The stage’s size worried me at first as it didn’t allow for great movement but I was surprised by how much it seemed to grow as the performers confidently used the whole space and the clever entrances and exits were revealed. Proxemics were very developed for such a small area. Finally, the actors had to overcome the absence of female actors for female characters. Those who did play women, however, delivered touching and convincing performances, to the point that until the end, I forgot they were male actors at all.
The show was an incredible success, and the performers should be so proud. I certainly hope the Lord Chamberlain’s Men return to the Lichfield Festival to share the love of Shakespeare, that I too have, with Lichfield.
By Amy S