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Theatre

Cymbeline, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse review ★★★★★

02 Dec 15 – 21 Apr 16, 7:30 PM – 10:00 AM

Shakespeare's late romance comes to life in the historically accurate surroundings of the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse

By Lucy Brooks on 9/12/2015

1 CW reader is interested
Cymbeline, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse
Cymbeline, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse
Cymbeline, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse review 3 Cymbeline, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse review Lucy Brooks
Cymbeline, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse review: Culture Whisper says ★★★★★


We were very much looking forward to Shakespeare’s Cymbeline at the Sam Wanamaker. The first play the Bard had written for the new, inside stage at the Blackfriars indoor, it was meant to be the perfect fit for the Globe’s candlelit jacobean space.
In this regard, Cymbeline is a bit of a missed opportunity. Admittedly Shakespeare is still learning to write for the intimacy of an indoor theatre and Cymbeline’s tragicomedy feels like a work in construction compared to the complexity of The Winter’s Tale and The Tempest (both of which will also be staged at The Wanamaker over the winter).
With its many plots, lurching between romance raucous humour, racy scenes, battles and patriotic moments, the play is a challenge to bring to life. Director Sam Yates finds the balance between comedy and tragedy deftly, but the production lacks imagination and feels stiff at time, a far cry from the expected extravaganza.
The lighting, such a strong asset of the theatre, is less than its usual magic. And what of Alex Baranowski’s subdued score? It feels strangely irrelevant - at times even non existant - to a play that is begging for more luxurious texture.
Some highlight though, the strong and charming presence of Emily Barber’s Innogen, well supported by Jonjo O’Neill’s Posthumus and Pauline McLyn’s wicked Queen. But it is the disturbingly intimate night scene as well as the immersive battle moment that bring the play to life.


Eleonore Dresch


What Cymbeline, Sam Wanamaker Playhouse review
Where Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, 21 New Globe Walk, London, SE1 9DT | MAP
Nearest tube Blackfriars (underground)
When 02 Dec 15 – 21 Apr 16, 7:30 PM – 10:00 AM
Price £1- £48
Website Click here to book via Shakespeare's Globe



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What members say

    A delightful evening. The director focused on the language which is essential for a Shakespeare play. Actors' diction was marvellous. The foreigner that Read more

    Isabelle Scheibli Gallet

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