THE REVIEWS

Review of Concentric Circles 'Othello' (at Basingstoke)

'To see, or not to see', was never the question. From the moment I heard that Mandana Jones was to play the part of Desdemona in this production of 'Othello', it became 'a must see'! I am, undoubtedly, a Shakespeare enthusiast. I am,decidely, a Mandana Jones fan. Put the combination together and for me it was something of a 'Mid Summer Night's Dream'-albeit in February! My only two possible *tiny * hestitations about seeing this production were the fact that 'Othello' has never been a particular favourite of mine, and that I wasn't sure how well 16th century Venice would transpose to a modern setting. It could be dire, but by now the idea was too firmly set in my mind not to happen.
I won't attempt to cover the story-it's well enough known already. The main interest lies anyway in the production, the cast, and the director Christopher Fettes, but I have to admit that, other than Mandana, none of the other names meant much to me at all when I first read through my programme that night in Basingstoke. Christopher Fettes, I have since come to realise, is a name that instantly speaks 'Respect man' from vast numbers of his theatre contemporaries, and the young aspiring actors/actresses he has worked with. Pierce Brosnan remarked once that Christopher Fettes 'inspired in me years ago a love and understanding of international theatre which has been invaluable throughout my career'. Those that have trained under Fettes at the Drama Centre would seem to share this sentiment.
The cast therefore, was mostly a youngish one, with the lead roles played by Ricky Fearson (Othello), Christopher Middleton (Iago), Mandana Jones (Desdemona), Daniel Betts (Cassio) and Tracy Sweetinburgh (Emilia).
William Hoyland played Brabantio, Desdemona's father.

The play opened with characters dressed as soldiers in khaki, gents in 'nice soots'(!), and a very minimilist greyish/beige set. Thoroughly contemporary, but one that seemed very *comfortable*, and easy on the eye, almost immediately. From the moment we, the audience, met the main characters there was, I felt, a sense that this would be an excellent production. The play had actually been running in Basingstoke for a couple of weeks prior to my attendance, so I had high hopes that any production problems would have been sorted out thoroughly by now.
Ricky Fearson certainly had the look of the 'Moor of Venice', but after a few minutes of hearing him speak it was evident that he wasn't managing to project his voice sufficiently for many in the audience to hear him clearly. Iago, (Christopher Middleton) fared better with his Northern twang and quickly established a loathing with the certain sections of the audience as he plotted and schemed Othello's downfall. A nasty piece of work if ever we saw one! Daniel Betts gave a very confident performance as young Cassio-smitten with Desdemona, but being naively manipulated by his 'friend' Iago.
And Desdemona, the Italian lady played by Mandana Jones was ...well, simply a delight to watch from start to finish. Clear, well projected diction, a sweet singing voice, and powerful emotional scenes intermixed with light-hearted exchanges. All of which, for me at least, combined to make her performance in this production something akin to poetry-in-motion. She exuded style, she exuded talent, and she had ( what I think is essential to Shakespearean acting!) real presence on stage.

For a three hour production the whole thing went by far too quickly but that, I feel, was a good thing. Shakespeare,in the hands of some, can soon lose its charm and quickly become very tedious. Iago says at one point in the play... "Pleasure and action make the hours seem short". This production by Christopher Fettes did exactly that. He had his cast play this *his* way undoubtedly...but for the most part it worked! The shower scene has been interpreted by some as depicting Othello's vulnerability....I'm not convinced by that, but it certainly focused most of the audience on the powerful physique of Othello, which in turn made his strangulation of Desdemona at the end more shocking and *real*. The drunken drinking songs scenes I also found very effective-the stereotypical laddish behaviour associated with groups of young men relaxing together!Admittedly, some of the voices weren't too clear at times, and there were a few hiccups with timing and lines that stopped it flowing quite as well as it could have done, but overall it was a powerful and passionate performance of a great Shakespearean tragedy. A most enjoyable evening!

VBG.