We round up the reviews for Tom Littler’s production in performances until the 25th January 2025.
Broadway World: ***** “The comic timing is impeccable, the pathos wholly earned, the acting dazzling enough to be hung in The Louvre.”
The Guardian: **** “Shakespeare is such a generous writer that Lears can be upstaged by Fools, or Othellos overshadowed by Lagos. It’s startling, though, to find Twelfth Night dominated by Feste, a minor clown only once named in the Folio text. By conflating him with the equally junior Curio, Littler makes the character central, with actor-musician Stefan Bednarczyk a master of revels, seated at a slowly revolving central piano from which he picks out storms and church bells and croons lovely settings of Feste’s half-dozen songs, while cast members encroach on his instrument.”
The Arts Desk: **** “Tom Littler’s decision to present the action in a very English Illyria during the years following World War II immediately sets the melancholy tone, but with pleasure bursting to make an entrance.”
West End Best Friend: ***** “Another aspect worth mentioning is the fact that Viola’s disguising herself as a man isn’t pushed as shocking or made a big show of. This is a great decision as it allows us to experience typically gendered perspectives in a more fluid and objective way, aided further by Patricia Allison’s captivating interpretation of the character as highly adaptable and perceptive.”
The Reviews Hub: *** 1/2 “Fortunately, Littler can rely on the expert skill of his wider cast and putting Oliver Ford Davies, Jane Asher, Clive Francis and Robert Mountford together proves a winning formula as this group of experienced actors delivers the ` balance the production is looking for.”
There Ought to be Clowns: “The sense of entitlement of those upper classes – even from a lady-in-waiting – percolates strongly here too, clock the unrepentant smirk on Maria’s face at the end as she passes Malvolio, Asher giving poised hauteur so very well. It all adds up to a rather gorgeous production that I unexpectedly found incredibly moving – highly recommended.”
To book tickets visit: https://orangetreetheatre.co.uk/whats-on/twelfth-night-2/