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BrumHour saw King John at The Swan Theatre at arrangement with The RSC.

by Dave Massey twitter.com/BrumHour

Please note this production contains; strobe lighting effects, violence and a food fight!

King John at The RSC

Directed by Eleanor Rhode

King John (Rosie Sheehy) is trying desperately to keep his throne but everyone it seems is after the crown. But we aren’t at the start of the 13th Century here. No. This version of King John is set in the 1960’s complete with rotary phones, wireless radios and flower power music. Even the musicians on the balcony have flutes to emphasise the time frame and the costumes are firmly in the 1960s as well.

There are lots of characters to pay attention to but the standouts for me were, Michael Abubakar as Philip Faulconbridge, Katherine Pearce as Cardinal Pandulph and Rosie Sheeehy as the titular King John.

This is an energetic and at times frantic production, exploring this a piece of history which reflects our current volatile situation. I found myself engrossed and bewildered in equal measure. Compared to the very mainstream Shakespeare’s like Twelfth Night or Romeo and Juliet, this is a challenge, but the words of Shakespeare seem easier for me to understand than ever before.

I wasn’t entirely sure what to make of the time jump. But the pace of the storytelling means there’s little chance to consider this. There’s more than a hint of Austin Powers and Ab Fab in the proceedings and even the square patterned tiles on the stage floor reminded me of my grandmother’s kitchen.

At 2 hours and 40 minutes plus an interval, this is a lengthy production but it also made me feel like I’d not absorbed everything going on in the first viewing. This is an uncompromising tale of power struggles and seeing no end to challenging situations. Well worth a look!

King John is at The RSC’s Swan Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon until 21st March. Book tickets here: rsc.org.uk/king-john

This isn’t a sponsored post.