37 Plays, 3 actors and many laughs in 90 minutes!

At the Belgrade until 14 March.

The Reduced Shakespeare company present this updated version of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield and directed by Adam Long, currently on at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry until Saturday 14 March - matinee and evening performances.

Review by Alison Manning.

The Reduced Shakespeare company in this updated version of The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged) by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield and directed by Adam Long, currently on at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, take us on a merry romp through all of Shakespeare's plays in one short show, with a few sonnets thrown in for good measure. Featuring just three actors and involving a certain amount of audience participation the show begins with a (deliberately muddled) biography of Shakespeare (who remembers him invading Poland??!) before taking us through all of his classic plays in around just ninety minutes, including an interval and no less than four versions of Hamlet. 

The scenario is that of three friends, each acting versions of themselves, who set out to retell the complete works of William Shakespeare. One is portrayed as a more serious academic, one as more of an enthusiast verging on clown, and one somewhere in between. They discuss the inaccessibility of Shakespeare whilst making it accessible. The show serves both as an introduction for those who know little about Shakespeare, or find it inaccessible, as well as a humorous satire for those more knowledgeable about the bard and his works.

All the comedies are amusingly combined into one, with the argument that they all essentially have the same plot. The histories are homogenised into a football match, with the crown being passed between consecutive rulers. The most time is given over to the tragedies which, ironically, and perhaps accurately, are stated to be funnier than the rest. Each is treated with a deliberate mixture of humour and seriousness, featuring original lines and sentiments of the classic plays with a light satirical touch, both irreverent and sanctified. Sometimes this is done through the setting, for example repositioning Titus Andronicus as a cooking YouTube video, sometimes through modifying the language with a direct comic brevity, for example Hamlet’s immortal utterance: “Horatio, do one” and sometimes by the physicality and sheer clowning of the performance.

The set is minimal with a single long bar of light, reflecting the more minimal sets of contemporary Shakespeare productions. The action progresses and the plots of the plays are presented through the aid of simple costumes, rapidly changed, and a whole array of props from the usual swords and vials of poison to the possibly more unexpected including sock puppets, a confetti cannon and some inflatable dinosaurs! What do you mean, you don’t remember the triceratops from Troilus and Cressida??!

Female characters are inevitably, and, partly true to Shakespeare’s time, played by male actors in a succession of wigs, with a tendency to pretend-vomit into the audience. This possibly stereotyped female characterisation is countered by strong performances of prominent male characters, such as Hamlet, by the one female cast member, Efé Agwale.

The audience is frequently directly addressed and included in the action, most notably when they are all called upon to collectively play every aspect of Ophelia in a key scene from Hamlet. There are also direct appeals to “Bob”, the lighting person, including to raise the house lights at times, adding to the inclusion and direct connection with the audience. The lighting and music add to the atmosphere, with both background music and live playing by actors of guitar and ukulele, with the latter featuring in a brief rendition of Othello. The slight comicality of the instrument contrasts with the seriousness of the storyline.

The mock academic analysis and passing comments about Shakespeare and his plays prove oddly informative and the reworked and abridged plays shine a light on the plots and framework of the original works of the Stratford Bard, often with a riotous farcicality which will appeal to those who have seen just one play or all 37.

There was a bonus post-show Q and A on Friday night at the Belrgrade, hosted by Dr Ronan Hartfull from the University of Warwick, a scholar of Shakespearean performance and a big fan of the Reduced Shakespeare Company.  This included an interesting discussion about the creative process of forming this production from its 1980s original, following street theatre beginnings, featuring three Californian men, one of whom directs this production. There were also insightful questions from the audience, including “What one question would you ask Shakespeare if you got to meet him today?”

I, for one, am glad the original Reduced Shakespeare Company show has been reused and recycled into this entertaining and informative production with its comic contemporary and classic, as well as local, references.

There are two more chances to catch The Complete Works of Shakespeare (abridged) at the Belgrade Theatre, Coventry, on Saturday 14 March at 2pm and 7.30pm. After this you can track it down on the rest of its UK tour.