See it if you want to see a modern, surprising, and engaging take on the bard. Audience participation was VERY enjoyable and totally surprised me
Don't see it if shakespeare is tough for you, though it's so well delivered that language isn't much of a barrier really. You dislike gold phallic objects
See it if Quirky Is the right word to describe this production. It’s a very different take to most interpretations of Henry VIII but we enjoyed it.
Don't see it if Director tried to make a serious play funny and in parts succeeded. The language is occasionally tortuous. Don’t go if your easily shocked.
See it if You enjoy Shakespeare and like a slight twist on the formula. Standing tickets are super engaging as the standing area is part of set
Don't see it if You don't like Shakespeare
See it if You like history, like beautiful singing, like a slightly different take on female roles in history
Don't see it if You don’t like sexual references or Shakespeare
Though it has flashes of brilliance, Amy Hodge’s splashy, revisionist, female-focused staging makes Shakespeare’s troublesome late history play even more of a mess. There’s enough going on here to please nerds and Shakespeare completists, but I can’t honestly recommend it to anyone else.
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The play itself feels slightly disjointed. It is worth seeing this production for curiosity value alone but dramatically it feels like a lesser performed work for a reason.
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The first act takes a while to crank into gear, and Hodge doesn’t always accommodate some of the show’s visual riffs ... to a cast who rarely seem to inhabit the same play.
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Do what needs to be done to make a middling play sizzle. Dramatically, though, nothing much does. Georgia Lowe’s purple and gold design is one of several successes of staging.
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Hodge's production has a slight sense of hurling everything at the wall to see what sticks. It's messy but appealing, and about as subtle as being smacked over the head ... but you're unlikely to be bored.
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This production valiantly transcends the scratchiness of the script with a bold aesthetic, punchy performances and a well-judged musical score. Even with Khalil’s additions this work will never be ranked as one of Shakespeare’s greats, but it’s worth a look.
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Amy Hodge’s production is bawdy and more-or-less ahistorical, playing a bit like a pastiche. The production is probably most effective when it eschews the gimmicks. Debbie Korley and Anna Savva are good value as a pair of gossiping ragamuffins.
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Casting Bea Segura, a Spanish actor in the role [of Catherine of Aragon] further renders the historical woman more real to us now. All the profound, well-wrought speeches are an actor’s dream. Henry VIII [is] a very clever, funny and absorbing two and a half hours of pure theatre magic.
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