Harry Potter and the philosopher’s drone
ROSENCRANTZ & GUILDENSTERN ARE DEAD By Sir Tom Stoppard, The Old Vic
LET’s hope that all those harry Potter fans who have booked tickets to see Daniel radcliffe in his latest stage role know their shakespeare.
Mr radcliffe plays the doomed rosencrantz in sir tom stoppard’s 1966 eggheadish play about two minor characters from hamlet.
Words, words, words: that might be hamlet’s reaction, particularly to the opening scene in which rosencrantz and Guildenstern (Joshua McGuire) toss coins and talk, talk, talk.
it is highbrow dialogue, packed with philosophy and riffs on probability that reek of undergraduate look-at-me intellectualism. i have seen this play only four times – and once studied it for exams – and therefore still have some way to go before i work out what the blazes stoppard is on about for much of the first half. Messrs McGuire and radcliffe are well paired, being of similar height and design. their characters are two small men dwarfed by political events.
Guildenstern is the senior partner and Mr McGuire is full of beans. Yet he does not quite man- age to drive out his trademark whinneys and darting grins. he may be one of those actors bet ter seen just occasionally. Mr radcliffe’s rosencrantz, with red-rimmed eyes and a light beard, is slower on the uptake, easier to like.
it is possible to feel a flutter of sympathy – no more than a flutter – when the two face inevitable death. this is not really a play that peddles cheap goods such as sentiment. the cleverness is all.
David Leveaux’s production is helped by solid support acting from David haig as the Player, Luke Mullins as hamlet and William Chubb as Polonius.
Anna Fleischle comes up with an airy design using drapes which assist the paralellism with shakespeare’s Elsinore scenes. A few touches of rigging and deck furniture make for an effective ship voyage, complete with the sound of buffeted sails.
Mr radcliffe is game to try to escape type-casting by throwing himself into this quasi-Beckett absurdism.
he is a tidy little stage performer, light on his feet, the voice fluting but clear. towards the end, the Player has a line ‘it was merely competent’. i would go a little further than that. Mr radcliffe is certainly competent. But his fans may struggle with the play.