Richard III: The Cockpit Theatre

This is an extraordinary production.  Directed and starring Nicolas Perez Costa it was per formed to great acclaim at Madrid’s Teatro Infanto Isabel.  It is in English but with a largely Spanish speaking cast it is a highly physical, visceral and arresting interpretation of Shakespeare’s classic play about power, ambition and evil.

The cast paint their faces white with heavy black make up, along the lines of the Joker in the famous Batman films, and are dressed in dysfunctional costumes of black, translucent tops and heavy ragged cloaks. Something like a cross between grunge and steam punk. The set consists of nothing more than six oil drums and two wooden ladders.  These the cast move into the positions required for each scene often standing atop them. The most amazing transition was when they created a horse out of them for Richard to sit astride during the fateful battle of Bosworth Field. The cast also use the oil drums as percussion which accompanied the actions.

The cast act as an ensemble playing parts as required although they made a great effort to make it clear which character was which during the fast moving 90 minutes of the production.   When not actually involved in a scene they normally remained onstage observing the action or the audience in sinister and sometimes threatening poses.   The choreography of the complex movements was outstanding.

Nicolas Perez Costa gave a memorable performance as Richard. His lithe body twisted and on crutches with a largely naked torso and exhibiting a severe facial twitch he was the personification of evil. The text had been cut down to 90 minutes, no mean feat for Shakespeare’s second longest play, the effect of which was to emphasize the ruthlessness of Richard’s ambition. There was little subtlety in the production.  Although many of the actors spoke with Spanish accents, including Perez Costa, this actually helped emphasise the dystopian and Machiavellian nature of the play.

I would not recommend this production for someone new to Richard III. I think without a reasonable knowledge of Shakespeare’s’ text it would be hard to follow, but anyone who knows the play and likes a radical and sometimes disturbing interpretation would, I think, find it compelling.

Do be aware the temperature in the Cockpit’s Auditorium in the current hot weather is uncomfortably hot.

Richard III is on the Cockpit Theatre until 11th July 2026.  Tickets are available at www.thecockpit.org.uk

Reviewer: Paul Ackroyd

Reviewed: 8th July 2026

North West End UK Rating: