Richard II is a tough ask of a piece, the opening salvo in Shakespeare’s tetralogy of history plays that itself begins in medias res, with politicking and scheming and betrayal carried out by a bewildering array of characters whom we struggle to slot into their appropriate places. Some canny prior genning up on the plot – as well as the royal family tree – is highly to be advised. Yet the central thrust is clear and compelling, a dilemma that rings clearly down the centuries: the divine right of kings versus a king who is not right for the job.
Royce Pierreson as Henry Bullingbrook in ‘Richard II’ (Photo: Manuel Harlan)Rami Malek fans might want their money back after seeing Oedipus
Read MoreThe scene changes are accompanied by music (by composer Grant Olding) that has uncanny, yet highly fitting, echoes of the theme tune to Succession. For what this play boils down to is a struggle to the death between two cousins, Richard and Henry Bullingbrook (Royce Pierreson), a businesslike and efficient man whom we will know in later plays as a morally wracked Henry IV. Richard, ever the showman, grandstands even when he is abdicating, handing over his crown to Henry before peevishly snatching it back. In a highly symbolic gesture, the crown proves way too big for Henry’s head.
To 10 May, Bridge Theatre, London (0333 320 0051, bridgetheatre.co.uk)
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