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Adrian Lester, as Cyrano and Susannah Fielding as Roxanne. Pictures Marc Brenner Cyrano De Bergerac The Swan Theatre Stratford-upon-Avon ***** In a play dominated by the weight of words, I shall use precious few in my review of the RSC’s production of Cyrano De Bergerac at their fabulous Swan Theatre. In fact, I could just easily just use one – wow. For it is, without doubt, one of the best pieces of theatre I’ve ever had the privilege of watching. It is accessible, innovative, funny, crude, clever, heart wrenching and intimate. It feels both modern and yet also distinctly classic, with a life and a rhythm which echoes the spirit of the titular character. Cyrano, played on his RSC debut by Adrian Lester, is a mesmerising centrepiece of a performance to a dazzling ensemble piece. All players play their pivotal part in making this production special, with Susannah Fielding as Roxanne, Levi Brown as Christian and Scott Handy as Comte De Guiche providing both the central choices of the tale and also the rich tapestry of tempos and language. Susannah Fielding is both subtle and sensational as Roxanne, whilst Levi Brown’s seemingly simple Christian is perhaps the most intelligent of them all.
Susannah Fielding as Roxanne and Levi Brown as Christian Aided by the thrust stage and musicians being part of the stage production, this is a play which envelops its audience. By the end you hardly dare breathe as it reaches its tantalising climax. Simon Evans and Debris Stevenson have done a fantastic job at giving this story its own identity and its own place within the modern world. Their production feels so organic and so collaborative it is easy to overlook just how ruddy clever it is. Each character is firmly rooted in their own style of delivery, given each one their own unique place in this wonderful universe. Their masterpiece deserves not to be ruined by me spilling the beans too much on the story - which is fitting, as for a play all about words, what is not said is as important as what is. Cyrano has a relatively short run at the Swan Theatre until November 15th. Tickets starting at a modest £5 means it is nothing short of a bargain for this quality performance. I would suggest the play is suitable for teenagers upwards but there is a useful content advisory page for those who want a bit more of a steer. Buy tickets here and there are a variety of accessible performance options such as chilled, handheld captioned, audio described and BSL interpreted. With some performances down to single digit ticket availability, if you want to go then act quickly. While the production is being recorded at some performances, this is so good it is ones of those theatre moments where you want to be able to tell people in years to come that you saw it live, it really is that good. Theo Clarke 21-10-25 |
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