“Comes together for a mesmeric finale, exquisitely staged and acted.”
Pitlochry Festival Theatre’s first Lear in its 75-year history is an ambitious and visceral modern updating. Finn den Hertog’s adaptation delivers on the classical elements of Shakespeare’s work while leaning into the contemporary themes – gender, family relationships, dementia, and fidelity.
This is a play of two parts. The first act almost has too many ideas. Mythic England is transplanted into affluent Scotland. It begins by aping its source material’s most well-known modern influence in Succession. The costumes are the smart casual gilets and jodhpurs of the super-rich amongst the dust-sheet-covered faded grandeur of a country house. But after the initial clamour for favour and inheritance expands, the play includes classical turns on the Fool (played with flair by Ailsa Davidson) and Poor Tom (by Dylan Read, who mixes unsettling physicality with some comedic turns). These performances and costumes are both excellent, though they seem to belong to different plays.
Almost by contrast the second act is singularly focused. The ideas that clash in the first half coalesce into a dark, visceral finale. The set transforms into the fabled heath, with the characters remaining on stage throughout, moving through the mist in a series of manoeuvres that mirror the plot. The darker tone is reinforced by Emma Bailey’s authoritarian-leaning costumes, while the low-fi background music hums beneath the action like a horror film score, amplifying the tension. It is the perfect reimagining of the source material – and is paced to perfection.
There is some seriously high-class acting in every role. The production is part of Alan Cumming’s inaugural season as artistic director, and he has used his contact book well. Maureen Beattie is the titular Lear and is the production’s central force. A certain and authoritative voice to begin with, before the loss of status and sanity take hold. In amongst the darkness, she manages to deliver those lucid moments of reflection and loneliness that can just about evoke sympathy for the character.
Forbes Masson, as the other Scottish theatre grandee in the cast, is excellent as the pitiable Gloucester, delivering both humorous moments before the eventual tragedy. The ensemble also gives some excellent performances, with Lindsey Campbell’s Regan, Jenny Hulse’s Goneril and Reuben Joseph’s Edmund each having a turn to ham up the emotional and physical cruelty without straying into the melodramatic.
In the end, this is a bold and imaginative Lear, a modern retelling that complements and illuminates Shakespeare through the clarity of its performance and staging, with the design, movement, music and performances combining into a mesmeric finale.
Lear runs at Pitlochry Festival Theatre from 4 July – 1 August. For tickets and further information visit pitlochryfestivaltheatre.com.