Richard II At The Barbican: Reviews Round Up



Following last night's press night for the Royal Shakespeare Company's production of Richard II starring David Tennant, reviews have appeared in a number of publications today. Here's around up of a few of them: 

Londonist.com: King Of Grief
“It is, quite simply, brilliant…”say Londonist."Tennant is a natural focal point and, as the title character, rightly so. He is neither a straightforward hero nor outright villain, and Tennant toes that line with great precision." They also highlight Nigel Lindsay, Michael Pennington and Oliver Ford Davies for praise.


The Mirror
The Mirror chose to compare Richard II  with Matt Smith's American Psycho: The Musical which also opened last night. Of David's performance they say:
“…Tennant's performance is magnificent because, most of the time, he strikes a convincing balance of pomposity and menace - two characteristics we least associate with this actor…this version of Richard II also sees Tennant become a true star of the stage, as well as our TV screens.”
Read the article here


Metro: Richard II looks like he just stepped out of a salon
Metro largely fixate on David's hair extensions, but call the production splendid, with a 'visually ravishing' set design, and they also have praise for Jane Lapotaire and Oliver Ford Davies.


The Arts Desk: This is more than a one-man show
Describing the production as "...one of the strongest company performances of Shakespeare that I’ve seen for many a year." The Arts Desk also draw attention to the pathos David draws from a character initially set up to be arrogant and unlikable.


The Standard
The Standard lead with the reminder that David was an accomplished stage actor before his TV success: "His mercurial central turn in this knotty play offers a timely reminder of that, as does his accomplished delivery of some of the most exquisite poetry in all of Shakespeare."




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