As You Like It – Shakespeare North Playhouse

‘As You Like It’ – one of William Shakespeare’s many comedies – is ultimately a story of love: what it means to be in love and how to find your true love. Of course, as in many of the Bard’s works, the course of true love never runs smooth, and this play is no different. The lovers here have to navigate banishment from their homes, hidden identities and burning jealousy in order to see the way through the trees and find their way to what they really want.

In this particular production, the players also had to battle through the lack of rehearsal, the absence of a set, and minimal props and costumes, as well as the elements in the Sir Ken Dodd Performance Garden; with only the support of the book-holder to prompt lines and missed cues.

For this is Shakespeare, but not as you know it… proclaims the website of Shake-Scene Shakespeare, the only company in the UK that produces the Bard’s plays as he would have done. In practice, that means that the company of seven actors are only given their own lines and cues to learn shortly before the performance. Other than the fight scenes (for obvious safety reasons) the company does not rehearse together at all!

Artistic Director of Shake-Scene Shakespeare and book-holder, Lizzie Conrad Hughes, introduced the company and the method in a Shakespearean prologue read from a rather damp script on a rainy Prescot evening… but nothing else about this performance was damp!

In this production, all seven actors were tasked with playing multiple roles, and I was particularly impressed with their ability to separate the identity of each with minimal costume changes and only variations in accent or physicality – without the support of any backstage or technical crew. All members of the company played their parts well, each truly listening and playing off the previously unheard lines delivered between their own. As a result, the comedy (and some interaction with the audience breaking the fourth wall) was spontaneous and unpredictable, and I loved that. I believe that it made the play feel very human and accessible – no mean feat when performing Shakespeare. Particularly as the text was retained in its original form.

Special mention must go to the two actors playing Rosalind and Orlando: Georgia Andrews and Valentina Vinci, respectively. Their chemistry and vulnerability were authentic and strong, which is even more impressive when you remember that they had not rehearsed the play together.

The flyer produced by the Shakespeare North Playhouse describes this production as “controlled creative chaos” – which I believe is an apt description on the surface. However, at the same time it fails to take account of the work the company must have put in to build trust and hone their improvisational skills, in addition to the challenge for each actor to learn their lines and develop their characters in total isolation. That takes much more skill than many would give them credit for.

Shake-Scene Shakespeare are continuing their inaugural residency at the Shakespeare North Playhouse in Prescot with a production of Anthony and Cleopatra on Friday 16th August and Saturday 17th August at 6:30pm, and As You Like It will be performed anew (not again, because how can it ever be the same without a solid rehearsal period!!) on Saturday 17th August at 2:00pm. Tickets and information are available at: http://shakespearenorthplayhouse.co.uk/event/shake-scene-shakespeare/

So, while the actors might not have been entirely line perfect, if you want some original Shakespeare as you have never seen it before… but just as you’ll like it (!) … then this residency is for you!

Reviewer: Jo Tillotson

Reviewed: 15th August 2024

North West End UK Rating: