Twelfth Night
Young Vic Kwama Kwei-Armah & Shania Taub
2 OCTOBER – 17 NOVEMBER £10-£40
The Young Vic is known for doing groundbreaking, original, memorable productions which break the confines of its big brother venue, The Old Vic: to allow fresh, fun and inspiring works to take centre stage. Its most recent addition to a long list of successful productions is a musical adaptation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, conceived by Kwame Kwei-Armah & Shaina Taub.
The Young Vic is all about making Theatre more accessible. From the £10 under 25 prices to bringing works of Shakespeare into the modern day by a language update and R&B beats: the chorus is even composed of a community chorus from Southward and Lambeth. We went to the Saturday matinee show which was sold out and composed of a lot of young children (all hail half term). Although the production is fun for adults too, I think that children are a strong target audience, given the musical nature, the cheesy lines and the typical ‘comic’ trope characters. Not only has the script been altered in terms of ease, but the whole concept has been completely modernised: from characters vaping on stage, to entering and exiting on a Segway.
The main storyline still remains: Viola and Sebastian are victims of an awful shipwreck and believe the other to be dead, despite them both surviving. Viola falls in love with a Duke whilst is disguise as Sebastian, as well as breaking some hearts along the way… It is arguable, that the story itself it much better suited to this lighthearted, pantomime-esque style than original Shakespearian – as my favourite version remains as Andy Fickman’s 2006 film ‘She’s the Man’. The musical element I must say took me a little by surprise, but most of the vocals on stage were incredibly strong, particularly from Melissa Allan and Gabrielle Brooks.
Another strong point was the set design: a colourful explosion of a typical neighbourhood, with the beginning of the play depicting a street barbeque with music and a sense of community. The community feel is further extended to the audience: with a traverse stage jutting out into the stalls helping the audience to feel more included also. The play is 1 hour 45 minutes, with no interval. At first, this may seem like an awfully long time for anyone, particularly young children to sit still considering there is no re-entry once you are seated. However, the time genuinely does fly by, which lends itself to the easy-watching nature of the performance. I’m still not wholly convinced on the musical element, or if this reworking of Shakespeare necessarily works, but it is a lighthearted and fun way to spend an afternoon, particularly with the children!
OVERALL RATING: ***
https://www.youngvic.org/whats-on/twelfth-night
