Thrilling, Sensual, and Heartbreaking
You wouldn’t expect a grand, sweeping tale of medieval romance to begin with a welcome into “The Club of the Unloved”, a cagoule-clad, binocular-toting crew of lonely hearts who spy on both performers and audience through their binoculars. But in Kneehigh and Emma Rice’s Tristan and Yseult, the silly intertwines with the tragic in a rambunctious cabaret.
It is a restaging of the original 2003 production by Kneehigh, which had great success being played around the world and staged many times, though audiences in the UK have had 10 years to wait for a new production. The aloof “Whitehands” is our guide through the story, introducing is to the titular characters, their servants, allies and enemies, and eventually revealing herself as Tristan’s eventual wife who shares a name with his true beloved Yseult. Through a mix of aerial circus, dance, modern pop covers and slapstick, we are swept into the passionate love and tragic demise of the characters, musing along the way about what it means to love, be loved and especially to be unloved.
Tristan and Yseult (John Leader and Nandi Bhebhe respectively) are the heart of the show, both beautiful dancers whose every movement expresses the intense passion they have for one another. They particularly impress in the number where the pair begin their fateful affair, with aerial pulleys making them appear so in love they’re dancing on air, despite the cautionary warnings of Whitehands, played by Stephanie Hockley with wry humour.
The dual role of Morholt and Brangian was taken on by Tom Fox, managing to hit both the biggest laughs and the most tragic moment of the show. For the majority of the time, Brangian is the human embodiment of slapstick, throwing herself onto crash mats and shrieking in shock seeing the torrid affair happening before her eyes. However once she’s pulled into the story, giving up herself to protect her mistress’ secret and facing up to the fact she may have lost the chance of love for herself, it becomes heartbreaking and is pulled off touchingly by Fox.
All cast are also performing as the Club of the Unloved “love spotters” and some love spotters are also performing musicians, with the onstage band bringing a feeling of intimacy within the space and some sparkling covers of songs. Raye’s Where the Hell is My Husband both opens act 2 with a bang and perfectly encapsulates the desperate yearning of the Unloved.
Director Emma Rice created magic with this show – turning a medieval folk tale into a madcap cabaret with mambo dance break fight scenes is something just so bonkers it’s a delight to watch. It does feel like some of the sparkle might have dimmed over the last 23 years – some of the humour came across a little bit Michael MacIntyre (if you know you know), and no aspect really had the punch of scandal that I was hoping for from such a raucous vibe. However, the show is bright, beautiful, and a brilliant night out.
Tristan & Yseult runs at Citizens Theatre until Saturday 3rd October. Tickets here.