![]() Since the “excellent good friends” are employed to spy on the prince, they can only remain frustratingly in the dark as to his state of mind and intentions, thus questioning their own purpose - not just in Elsinore, but in life.Īs the pair mope, argue, play word games and toss coins to pass the time, their monotony is broken by The Player (David Haig) and his troupe, also bit players in Hamlet but with more import, rubbing salt in the wound of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern’s inconsequence. Rosencrantz (Radcliffe) and Guildenstern (Joshua McGuire) are the two minor characters from Hamlet who are brought center-stage, but consigned still to the margins of Shakespeare’s action as it now happens off stage. ![]() In essence, the play is pure Stoppard: a killer conceit, extrapolated through endlessly erudite and witty wordplay. When a character declares that “truth is only that which is taken to be true,” the sentiment could have been written today. ![]() ![]() The themes bubbling beneath Stoppard’s existential scenario - not least his reflections on life itself as acting, and on the elusive nature of truth - have great resonance in the age of Donald Trump, Brexit, fake news and a growing disconnect between politicians and what might be called their audience. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |