Oh Lear

Bring a book. Queueing for under-26s day seats for Royal Shakespeare Company's King Lear meant that we arrived in front of the theatre at 8:05am and H and I were already 6th and 7th in line. The first in line was a girl who was used to queueing for six hours for operas in Vienna. But considering that I've had my fair share of queueing this week, that should be enough. But then, there's next week's quota to fill, if I get my writing done in time.

Ian McKellen as King Lear is unparalleled. The standing ovation was well-deserved. I don't see the fuss about the nudity, though staring would be rude. There was only one point that I thought, hey, he sounds like someone...oh yeah, Gandalf. And that was already more than halfway into the play. Then the thought promptly left my mind.

The lighting and stage design were great. Sometimes the sounds worked for me, sometimes they didn't. I liked how Trevor Nunn put in the procession-like opening scene. I felt sorry for the Fool because I thought he would be hanging on a noose for the entire interval (fortunately not). Forgot about him when I got myself some expensive ice cream. My issue with the production is that the pacing is too slow and 3 hours 25 minutes seated feels like forever.

As McKellen pointed out not too long ago to the full house at New London Theatre, it's World AIDS Day today. Spread the love, not the virus.

King Lear image by Manuel Harlan via Sir Ian McKellen Official Home Page, copyright RSC 2007