Take a look at how critics have been reacting to this new play from Benedict Andrews and starring Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss.
Broadway World: “Both Andrews’s Electra and his Persona could more than stand on their own as imaginative takes on seminal texts that reward those with knowledge of the source material. But the production’s real strength is in the elegant parallels it draws, to form a new whole that enriches and enhances the work of both Sophocles and Bergman.”
The Guardian: “As a double bill, of sorts, the first is the showcase, not only of its two central performers but the power of performance itself.”
London Theatre.co.uk: “Next to each other, the plays say very little. So, it is best to enjoy the aesthetics of Magda Willi’s pine, pyramid-sloped set and the pleasure of watching two actors right at the top of their game. On camera, their screen training shines: feeling comes through in even an eye twitch from Hoss as Elisabet, while tears silently roll down her cheeks. As Alma, Blanchett lets go of all professionalism and starts to spill out her secrets. Together, they mimic each other’s movements, rubbing their faces in unison and sitting in exactly the same formation. When their faces morph into one another on screen, you feel their duality starkly.”
WhatsOnStage: “Hoss and Blanchett, so convincing in their previous performance opposite one another as a couple in the film Tár, relish every moment. As Electra, Hoss’s purposeful walk, her downturned mouth, and rising fury perfectly suggests a woman in the grip of mania, exuding “the holy stench of grief.” Her ability as Elisabet to reflect thought and feeling while staying utterly still is riveting; her strength and vulnerabilities are both delicately charted. As Clytemnestra, Blanchett is imperious and frightening, as Alma, needy, ingratiating and slightly terrifying. Ella Lily Hyland and Patrick Robinson make up the onstage quartet, in unrewarding but necessary roles. “
All That Dazzles: “What Benedict Andrews has achieved through his adaptation and direction is nothing short of impressive, matched and possibly even surpassed by the exceptional performances from Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss. One of the most creative shows I have seen this year, Electra/Persona has made itself easy to distinguish from every other take on the Greek tragedy, knowing exactly what its identity is and ensuring the result is a killer watch.”
Time Out: “As live theatre, it all comes back to that massive flex that says ‘look how good Cate Blanchett and Nina Hoss are’. And they are really bloody good, and watching them journey to the deepest recesses of the characters’ blurred souls is all you should want from the stage, really.”
The Reviews Hub: “And yet it is all somehow slightly detached. We are always aware of the theatricality in both Andrews’s direction and his writing, which pulls away from the emotional grip both actors otherwise command. That ultimately leaves Electra/Persona as a fascinating and commanding watch, though slightly sterile. There is certainly less of the torture one felt as an audience member of Blanchett’s first National Theatre outing, but her return is discomfiting and unsettling in places.”
London Theatre 1: “However, the omission of all but four characters certainly gives Andrews’ staging great impetus, enabling the audience to concentrate on the main protagonists; at times it is quite gripping, even if the momentum is not sustained throughout. Blanchett and Hoss work superbly together, almost convincing the spectators that a wide, tall staircase is the best way of using any stage.”
South London.co.uk: “Design carries real weight throughout — the staging inventive, the soundscape visceral. But the production as a whole is easier to admire than to feel: intellectually alive, only fitfully moving, and, for all its ambition, never quite captivating.”
The Telegraph: “Benedict Andrews’ audacious yoking of Sophocles’s Electra and Ingmar Bergman’s 1966 modernist masterpiece, Persona is a blast of fresh air.”
To find out more visit: https://www.nationaltheatre.org.uk/productions/electra-persona/