This
production of the Judas Kiss by David Hare has now gone on tour from the
Hampstead Theatre where it had been sold out.
I had tried in vain to get a ticket for a matinee a few weeks ago and
waited till it opened in Richmond Theatre, Surrey. A friend booked through the ATG box office which
worked out well and we collected the tickets at Richmond Theatre.
I can recall
seeing David Hare’s play “Plenty” at the National Theatre in London when it
opened with Kate Nelligan in 1978.
Hare’s work is well known for being anti- establishment, though this
play is rather more entertaining than a comment on politics. We do get Bosie trying to get his cousin, George
Wyndham an MP, to pull strings with the Attorney General and Asquith, the Home Secretary,
but Oscar Wilde has realised that fate has given him no choice. He does not want to ‘run like a fox’ and
decides to enjoy his lobster and rice lunch, while a clock ticks away, chiming
his lost moment to catch a boat train into exile. The first half ends with a loud knock on the
door.
In the second
half, Wilde, having served his prison sentence, joins Bosie in Naples. He spends much of his time sitting, only
rising for a final farewell with Bosie, and wondering out loud who is the real
Judas.
There are
some witty lines in this play. Ones that
I can remember include a reference to “a horizontal Uffizzi”, “a sunset with
topaz and orpiment colours” and Bosie describing Ross as always being “the
third party”.
The programme
has some interesting essays included along with the credits and
biographies. A timeline of Oscar Wilde is
provided covering the important events in his life and works.
Rupert
Everett gives an outstanding representation of Oscar Wilde and as far as I
could make out from listening there was no hammy acting. (I heard his latest autiobiography on BBC Radio4
Book of the Week and had not liked it, giving up after two instalments.) Freddie
Fox, who plays Bosie, is also believable as the son of a marquis.
A friend had
told me that there was quite a lot of full frontal nudity and I was able to
detect this from the dialogue. My friend
at the performance commented during the interval (chocolate ice cream at one’s
seat) that the nudity in the first half seemed to be a bit gratuitous. I said “Wait till you see the second half!”
I managed to
enjoy the play without the graphic description or even any audio
description. There are enough sound and
lighting cues to indicate time passing.
Apparently the clock in the first half has no hands, but it does
chime.
The three
main characters were:
Robert Ross played
by Cal Macaninch
Oscar Wilde played
by Rupert EverettLord Alfred Douglas (Bosie) played by Freddie Fox
More
information on the production can be found on the Theatre Royal Bath Productions
website: http://www.theatreroyal.org.uk/page/3028/Main+House/437
as well as ATG Tickets http://www.atgtickets.com/shows/the-judas-kiss/
The Judas Kiss, with Rupert Everett, is scheduled to be in London's West End at Duke of York's Theatre from 9th January 2013 for a limited season. More information can be found on www.thejudaskiss.co.uk or by calling ATG on 0844 871 7623
The Judas Kiss, with Rupert Everett, is scheduled to be in London's West End at Duke of York's Theatre from 9th January 2013 for a limited season. More information can be found on www.thejudaskiss.co.uk or by calling ATG on 0844 871 7623
You may wish to check out an audio described performance but if you can’t make it, take a friend and get them to describe the bits of interest!
