So off I tootled yesternight to my local Cineworld, where the price of icecream is close to that of gold, to see a 'simulcast' of the current production of Coriolanus at the Donmar Warehouse. If you have not yet tried these 'simulcast' shows I urge you to do so as soon as possible. At their best they offer you a better experience than seeing it live in a theater. And there's no excuse if you are Australian or American, or anything else, come to that, because these 'simulcasts' are shown all round the world. They have become so popular that you can see the very latest theatre, ballet and opera productions from the West End and Broadway in your nearest cinema - well, perhaps not if you live in Arkansas!
"The personal is political", according to 'Leftie wimmin' and in Coriolanus Shakespeare combines the personal and political into, arguably, one of his very greatest plays. For those not familiar with it, the hero is Caius Martius, an aristocratic Roman warrior who earns his honours the hard way by an act of extra-ordinary courage and by so doing defeating the city's perpetual enemy, the Volscians led by Aufidius. Thus Caius is poised to accept the highest honours his grateful city can bestow upon him but, alas, he is fatally flawed, Lear-like, with two weaknesses - pride and anger. As an aristo, he despises 'the people' who he quite correctly sums up as a multi-headed monster which will change its collective mind on a whim particularly if it is led by some smooth-talking sophists - which the Roman citizenry are in the form of two Tribunes of the People straight out of the 'Arthur Scargill Manual for Trade Union Leaders'!
As a recognition of his bravery in taking the city of Coriolan single-handed, Caius is now renamed Coriolanus. He is offered the rank of Consul but demurs at the prospect of abiding by ancient tradition which insists that heros so honoured must enter the market place naked under a gown and show their scars to the people in order to gain their 'voices' in support of his promotion - there were no votes in those days, political promotion was by acclamation. Apart from despising the people he is simply too modest to boast of his exploits. Needless to say, the Tribunes, who know Coriolanus's weaknesses, have primed the people and soon his anger erupts and in a furious argument the people, led by the Tribunes, threaten to banish him from the city, at which point Coriolanus erupts and tells them that he will banish them by leaving the city himself!
This he does and joins with his old rival Aufidius to lead the Volscian army to total victory over the Roman army. The city of Rome is now completely at his mercy and the people and their tribunes are forced to change their minds yet again! Various dignitaries come over by truce to plead for mercy, including his mother who rather craftily brings his wife and son with her. To begin with Coriolanus is adamant, Rome will be put to the sword, but in one last impassioned speech his mother succeeds in changing his mind. At this point, in the text, there is one of the vey few examples of Shakespeare actually writing a stage direction, in this case, "Holds her by the hand, silent". The resulting pause is a crucial moment because this brave, hot-headed man knows that by saving Rome he will doom himself to certain death at the hands of Aufidius who will see it as treason. And that, of course, is what happens. Thus, we see one of the very greatest creations by Shakespeare of the Tragic Hero, a man gifted with enormous virtues but fatally weakened by his faults.
Suffice to say that whilst every theatrical production is criticisable - er, including my own, darlings! - this particular one was superb. Tom Hiddlestone, a new face for me, was a younger than usual Coriolanus but one of the best I have ever seen. (Hiddlestone, I should add, for no particular reason, is yet another Old Etonian to follow in the footsteps of those other 'actor Johnies', Dominic West, Damian Lewis, Eddie Redmayne and, er, David Cameron!) Deborah Findlay played his monstrous mother, Volumnia, but interestingly she made her more motherly than matriarchal. Mark Gattis, who plays Mycroft Holmes, Sherlock's brother, in the current TV series is just excellent in the role of Menenius, the worldly-wise Senator and friend of Coriolanus. (Because I don't watch the current Sherlock series which seems to be the smash-hit of the season, I know nothing of Gatiss but in checking his Wiki entry he looks to be a very interesting and creative man.)
Almost certainly they will release this 'simulcast' as a DVD and I do urge you all to buy a copy if you can. The play is one of Will's very best and this production does it full honor.
