Review: Antony and Cleopatra (Shakespeare's Globe Theatre)

Review by Sophie Wilby

⭐️⭐️⭐️

It has been ten years since The Globe staged a production of Shakespeare’s tragedy Antony and Cleopatra. The current production, however, has at least one major difference from its predecessor. It is a bilingual production, using a mixture of British Sign Language (BSL), Sign Shakespeare (SSL), and sign theatre to bring Shakespeare's words to life alongside spoken English. 

It is at this point that I would like to preface this review by saying that it is written from the perspective of a non-deaf or hearing-impaired audience member. I appreciate that my experience is likely to have been very different to someone deaf or hearing impaired. I would encourage anyone interested in the performance to read reviews from both perspectives. And while I am prefacing, then consider this the spoiler warning. Though if there is a cut-off point for spoilers, then I think almost 500 years would be it, especially considering the historical basis for the play.

Antony and Cleopatra is a tragic story of love and war across the globe between the Egyptian Queen Cleopatra (Nadia Nadarajah) and the Roman General Mark Antony (John Hollingworth). In this bilingual production, the Egyptians primarily communicate using sign language, while the Romans primarily use spoken English. This serves as a visual representation of the two different cultures that complicate the relationship between the two.

The central point of the play is the relationship between Antony and Cleopatra, which drives much of the action. For me, I struggled to connect with the romance of the piece as I didn’t quite feel the loving relationship between the two when they shared a stage. Rather than this being a critique of the performance of either Nadarajah or Hollingworth, I believe that this is likely a result of the balance between needing to read the captions during Cleopatra’s scenes so that much of what was taking place on the stage below was missed. Herein lies the challenge of viewing a signed performance as someone who cannot read sign language. 

Whilst there are moments where their relationship shines - notably in Antony translating dialogue for Cleopatra or her heart-wrenching reaction to his death, where she uses speech to demonstrate her anguish. For the most part, however, there was just something missing - a love great enough to tear treaties apart and ultimately bring down an empire, should jump from the stage in a lustful, insatiable romance, whereas, within this production, it was a lot more subtle, giving almost the air of an old married couple rather than passionate lovers. 

As I was familiar enough with the story I was able to get a vague sense of what was happening within a scene when concentrating on the signed performance alone, but more often than not my attention was drawn primarily to the captions, meaning that such scenes became more of a reading exercise than a visual performance. 

With this being the case, it was perhaps more important than usual to get the visuals right. A dramatic fight scene, for example, should have been just that. It is a moment where the audience’s attention is focused solely on the stage, rather than split between stage and screen so it should have been entirely captivating. Unfortunately, such scenes, though short, were a little underwhelming which undermined the drama of the piece. It is war, after all, and the sheer intensity of such a scene was lost. 

Despite the war and tragedy within the tale, there is still plenty of comedy. Most notably contained within the scene between Cleopatra and her messenger, Mardian (Nadeem Islam) whose use of physical comedy in combination with his use of sign language whenever he graces the stage is simply a joy to behold.  Daniel Miller is notable too in his comedic portrayal of quick-witted Enobarbus who does not mince his words in his exasperation at Antony’s actions, leading to his tragic conclusion. 

The staging is simple, a blue fabric drapes the back of the stage with a circular screen in the centre displaying the captions for the performance. The screen itself is coloured to represent a sun, which at times displays a waning moon to reflect the scene being performed underneath it. It’s clear that the intention here is to focus on the caption screen, but nevertheless, it felt a little plain. The captioning itself, however, (designed by Ben Glover and Sarah Readman) was well executed, particularly the poignant disintegration of the final words spoken by several characters upon their deaths. 

The triumph here is in inviting an audience without a hearing impairment experience a show in a way that deaf or hearing-impaired audience members might experience a BSL-signed show. Where BSL interpreters are often to the side of a stage, thus drawing attention away from the performance itself, in this production, it is for members of the audience who are unfamiliar with sign language to balance their divided attention. It is perhaps unsurprising that this can be a slightly jarring experience, detracting from the performances themselves, but it remains an interesting experience. Perhaps the more familiar that an audience who cannot read sign language becomes with the use of sign language, the easier it will be to balance your attention so that everyone’s performances can be fully appreciated. 

Antony and Cleopatra was an interesting choice for staging a bilingual performance, and it would be interesting to see Blanche McIntyre use this direction to transform another of Shakespeare's works. It may not be the simplest watch, but it is an experience I would recommend. 

Antony and Cleopatra plays at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre until September 15th

For tickets and information visit https://www.shakespearesglobe.com/whats-on/antony-and-cleopatra/

Photos by Ellie Kurttz