Measure for Measure – Shakespeare North Playhouse
So, how to approach Shakespeare’s plays at time when his work is easily accessible, in written or recorded format, and when every word and nuance has been studied in depth? How to reproduce the spontaneity, the freshness of experiencing the play as if it were for the first time? The answer, according to Shake-Scene Shakespeare, is to use cue-based performance. Originally, rather than each actor having a copy of the entire play, they had only their own part and their cues, plus any direction of when to enter or leave. Reproducing this technique means actors and audience ‘discover’ the play at the same time. Does it work? Based on this production of Measure for Measure, yes. Absolutely.
Briefly, the Duke of Vienna (Eugenia Lowe) has allowed the city to become corrupt, so pretends to g...