Twelfth Night at the Bard's hometown
- GutBer English
- Nov 11
- 3 min read
Updated: Nov 15
‘Malvoli-oh!
A few days ago, Prunella Scales, the unforgettable Mrs. Fawlty in Fawlty Towers, passed away at the age of 93 after more than ten years living with dementia. Last week, the London West End theatres dimmed their lights before the evening performance in her memory. Almost a year ago, her inseparable partner, Timothy West, also passed away, precisely on the last day of rehearsals for Twelfth Night, in which one of their sons, Sam West (whom we have recently seen as Siegfried in All Creatures Great and Small and as the corrupt politician Peter Judd in Slow Horses), plays the role of Malvolio. Exactly one month later, the play premiered at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's birthplace and home to the Royal Shakespeare Company. We had the privilege of seeing this production on New Year's Day. Now it will be transferred to the Barbican Centre in London for this Christmas season.
Twelfth Night is considered a comedy within Shakespeare's works, but like all comedies, it also contains a strong element of tragedy. So much so that this particular production doesn't necessarily elicit laughter. There were few laughs among the audience that night, but perhaps that was the intention. It has all the typical elements of a Shakespearean comedy: mistaken identities, cross-dressing, deception, revenge, and ridiculous situations, but this interpretation of the play emphasizes the more serious underlying themes: mental health, the strict social divisions of the time or alcoholism.
As usual with Shakespeare's comedies, it's a story told in several parallel and interwoven narratives. After a shipwreck, twin siblings get lost, and one of them, Viola, must try to pass as a boy, Caesarius, to survive in Illyria and enter the service of Prince Orsino. Orsino uses Viola to try to win the heart of Duchess Olivia, but Olivia falls for Viola, believing her to be Caesarius. Viola, in turn, falls for Orsino but cannot reveal her feelings because she is, theoretically, Caesarius. Meanwhile, the servants have their own issues to resolve. The strict Malvolio, Olivia's chief servant, suffers the wrath of his subordinates: the maid Maria convinces him that Olivia is in love with him, and Maria, Olivia's uncle Sir Toby, and the jester Feste lead him to make a complete fool of himself by believing and acting on it. Of course, in the end everything becomes clear and all ends well, except for Malvolio, whose self-esteem will be forever affected.
The Royal Shakespeare Theatre is an absolute beauty inside, bathed in reds and blacks, with a stage surrounded by a semicircular auditorium on three levels, at the opposite end of the building that also houses the Swan Museum and the exhibition "The Play is the Thing." We watched the performance from the back rows on the stalls, in comfortable seats with a full view of the stage, from which the actors entered and exited through aisles among the audience. The performances were masterful, as were the set design (the shipwreck and the two levels on stage were spectacular) and the costumes, as well as the musical accompaniment to Feste's songs. It was the perfect way to spend a cold and rainy evening on New Year's Day after a stroll along the river on the way to the theatre and a warm cup of tea in its café. We also took the opportunity to browse the shop and the exhibition of costumes from legendary productions by the renowned Royal Shakespeare Company.
After a successful Christmas season in Stratford-upon-Avon, Twelfth Night transfers to London next month. The same cast members are confirmed to reprise their roles as Olivia (Freema Agyeman), Feste (Michael Grady-Hall), and Malvolio (Sam West).
Although it may seem like a curse for the actor who plays Malvolio, since during the rehearsals of each of the seasons (in Stratford and in London) he has lost one of his parents, Sam West himself commented a few weeks ago that this is the best way to cope with the loss.
Twelfth Night, produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company and starring Sam West as Malvolio, can be seen at the Barbican in London from December 8th to January 17th, starting at £25. We saw it at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon on January 1st, 2025.
Cast
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