‘The Merry Wives of Windsor’ review
Walking into Fellow’s Garden, in Durham Castle, anticipation was high for what was the final show of a mammoth UK tour of The Merry Wives of Windsor, Castle Theatre Company’s annual Shakespeare production. Having performed more than 15 times before this date, I was expecting a polished, comedic and overall entertaining performance – and the cast fully delivered on this expectation.
The story of The Merry Wives of Windsor is one of Shakespeare’s most well-known comedies, and follows the misdoings of a certain Sir John Falstaff, portrayed hilariously and adeptly by Oliver Butler. Wooed by the lure of both Mistress Page and Mistress Ford, played by Aaliyah Angir and Rhiannon Morgan respectively, Falstaff pursues the pair, much to the amusement and dismay of their husbands, Master Page and Master Ford (acted perfectly by Harvey Hill and Gabriel Cardy-Brown). As this drama unfolds on stage, Anne Page (Khaliun Mark), the daughter of Mistress and Master page, is courted by suitors from all angles, providing a delightful, hilarious storyline that intersperses the aforementioned. The incredulity peaks at the end of the play, during a midnight rendezvous in Windsor Woods, where Falstaff is finally humbled and brought to reason by the less-than-pleased husbands. It was an entertaining and engaging choice of story – one that lent itself to the creative staging and paired back technical involvement within Fellow’s Garden, and one that was an absolute joy to observe.
The production opened to a joyful acapella sequence, that cemented the upbeat and lively nature of the performance from the beginning – credit to the creative vision of Director Harriet Miller. As I settled back into the language of Shakespeare, it would be rude not to start with the absolute powerhouse of a cast. From start to finish, you could see every member of the cast was completely at home in their own characters, having had lots of experience to shape and build their individual portrayals. What struck me most from the cast was the absolute fun they were having on stage – throughout the play, there were laughs, comedic audience involvement, and some stellar acting performances which really exhibited each and every cast members love for theatre and Shakespeare. Brilliant to see!
One must start with the performance from Oliver Butler, playing Sir John Falstaff, an incredibly confident, flirty and above all, side-splittingly funny character. Paramount to his success as an actor was his absolute grace on stage. Moments of audience interaction and participation had all watchers in absolute fits of laughter, as he looked on incredulously, unable to see the wrong in his actions. He exhibited a lovely commanding presence on stage, lighting up the stage whenever he walked on. Nuanced facial expressions and an expert knowledge and security with the script really played to his advantage, and you couldn’t help but feel sorry for the naivety of his character.
As an absolutely perfect contrast to Falstaff, Gabe Cardy-Brown was cleverly cast as Master Ford, a character who aimed to put a stark stop to Falstaff’s flirtatious actions. Cardy-Brown had the challenge of portraying two “separate” characters – as Ford goes undercover to trick Falstaff into revealing sensitive information regarding his attempted affair with Ford’s own wife. Cardy-Brown, to put it simply, was incredibly hilarious in this role – using carefully chosen body language to transform his character, much to the amusement of the audience. Through the play, we grew to look forward to his character donning the trusty spectacles that identified the transformation, and this was credit to Cardy-Brown’s superb performance.
As a duo, Aaliyah Angir and Rhiannon Morgan, playing Mistress Page and Mistress Ford, were great comedic relief, and both provided a sensationally engaging performance. Whether it was gossiping over letters, or plotting Falstaff’s demise, one was drawn to their charming bond on stage.
The rest of the cast shone in their moments as well – from Henry Smith’s fantastically masculine portrayal of Shallow to Harvey Hill’s impossibly uptight Master Page, I was impressed by the acting at every moment. The performances were immense, but because of the many characters required, some multi roling was, for me, slightly unclear – and this occasionally clouded the progression of the storyline.
That being said, it was an immense effort from the cast, having been at the very end of their undoubtedly exhausting national tour. Emi Sharples, Harriet Miller, and Catrin Morgan formed the formidable creative team. The comedic creative vision was clear from the start, and Miller especially had some inspired creative decisions which cemented the incredulity of the plot. My personal favourite was the staging. With actors leaping round the walls of Fellow’s Garden, running behind and between the audience, there were some surmountable moments of hilarity when an actor revealed themselves with well-tuned comedic timing. Another visionary choice was the comedic use of props which left the audience in stitches. When Falstaff was man-handled out in a kids play basket, returning soaked to the skin, you could easily witness the creative choices that had been carefully made during the production of this show. Without a doubt, this production has been fine-tuned over the course of the tour, and you could truly see the effort put in from all of the creative team.
The Merry Wives of Windsor was a resounding success, and a completely funny and enjoyable start to the Durham Fringe for me. Spearheaded by several stellar acting performances and founded by a strong story (as Shakespeare always provides), I left Fellow’s Garden holding in a laugh, having immensely enjoyed the performance.
By Jamie Duncan.