Ruth Leon recommends… Phaedra – National Theatre
Ruth Leon recommendsPhaedra – National Theatre
The National Theatre has just released their terrific modern dress production of Phaedra, reimagined in a contemporary setting and starring a brilliant Janet McTear and Assaad Bouab (some viewers may remember him from Call My Agent ) making his London stage debut.
I’m sure you know that Phaedra started life in about 50CE as an epic Roman poem composed by Seneca The Younger, and then in 1677 it was mangled by Racine into a rambling play which unfortunately became the mainstay of the Comedie Francaise (which they’re still performing to this very day) and that may be the only Phaedra with which you’re familiar. Now, I report delightedly, there’s a new Phaedra at the National, at last comprehensible in this strikingly resonant new play by writer-director Simon Stone, Seneca’s tragedy making sense at last.
In this version, after years of fierce focus on her political career, a politician turns her attention to her personal life. The reappearance of a figure from her past shakes the foundations of her house and the beliefs that have underpinned her power. As buried lust and loneliness surge to the surface, her actions threaten to destroy everything she has built.
Chas been nominated for an Oliver Award for this splendid performance. A much underrated actor, she is far less lauded than she should be as she transforms every role she plays into something really special.
Seneca’s Phaedra was a tragedy, not an epic poem. That is a pretty basic error, easily avoided by a quick online search.
Also, it’s Janet McTeer, not McTear.
McTeer is brilliant in everything.