Richard III, the ultimate villain, who can murder whilst he smiles, is one of the great bravura roles and caught the imagination of actors and audiences from the very start. The play has been a virtuoso showcase ever since 1592/93, attracting memorable performances from Richard Burbage, Colley Cibber, David Garrick, Edmund Kean and. in modern times, Laurence Olivier, Robert Hirsch, Ramaz Chkhikvadze, Anthony Sher, Ian McKellen and Kevin Spacey. Most people’s knowledge of Richard’s curriculum vitae is based on Shakespeare’s play, which is sheer libel (“Off with his head!”) and outrageously over-the-top. But Shakespeare isn’t writing history; he’s writing for the box-office.
Mark Rylance, former artistic director of Shakespeare’s Globe, back on his home ground, knows the groundlings have come for a laugh. The performance is disappointingly lightweight. He doesn’t look right; his costume and wig make him unattractive. Where’s the charm? Where’s the sexy glamour? Rylance plays him for a buffoon and without a hump. I never felt I was watching Richard III. There are two moments when he really is frightening: firstly when he accuses Hastings of being a traitor and secondly when he refuses Buckingham an earldom: “I am not in the giving vein today!” he screams. Incidentally, since there are many parallels between Richard and Macbeth in words and deeds, and since Shakespeare calls the play a tragedy, I wonder why no brave actor has attempted to act it as a tragedy.
On the eve of the Battle of Bosworth Richard has a nightmare in which he sees all the ghosts of those he has killed. The effect is ruined here by having the ghosts standing upright in winding sheets. They look comic. Much more potent is when they re-appear in their usual clothes during the battle and come between Richard and Richmond as they fight.
Tim Carroll’s production is all-male. Samuel Barnett, who is playing Queen Elizabeth, gives a convincing account of how a young actor might have played the role in Elizabethan times.