As this was my first trip to the Tabacco Factory, I wasn’t really sure what to expect. Entering the theatre, I was pleased to find the stage set up in the traditional in-the-round format and the close proximity of actor to audience created a very personal and intimate atmosphere.

The house lights dimmed and the first scene began, introducing one of the play’s central character’s, Orlando (Rupert Ward-Lewis) who the audience learns is being mistreated by his elder brother, the Duke Oliver (Alex Maclaren). Ward-Lewis instantly commanded the stage providing a powerful opening and setting the tone for the rest of the play. The Duke’s hatred of his younger, more popular brother is evident and he plots against him, challenging Orlando to fight the champion wrestler, renowned for his skill and strength. However rather than being killed in the fight as the Duke had planned, Orlando wins and is praised even more highly. It is also at the fight that Orlando meets and falls in love with Rosalind, (Saskia Portway) the rival Duke’s niece. The rest of the play involves the banishment of Orlando and Rosalind from court, who separately retreat to the forest where Rosalind’s banished father and his men are living. In order to remain inconspicuous, Rosalind disguises herself as a man and it is under this guise that she meets Orlando. All ends happily though with Rosalind revealing herself to Orlando, all couples becoming happily married and the banished Dukes being returned their kingdoms.

The performance was, on the whole, very strong with notable performances from John Mackay as the melancholy Jacques, who kept the audience constantly entertained and Saskia Portway’s portrayal of Rosalind was extremely convincing in both her performance as the female Rosalind and also her male counterpart, Ganymede.

The stage was used effectively, and it was evident that much thought had been given to the positioning of the actors in order to engage the audience to the fullest. Simple props were cleverly incorporated to indicate setting, with a particularly successful use a gate in the country scenes.

One of the most successful aspects of the performance was the use of live sound. Several Shakespearian plays include songs in the text, but they are often missed out by some companies as they do not have the resources to perform these musical interludes. In this performance, however, music played an important role with the actors themselves singing and playing instruments such as a guitar, a recorder and oboe to great effect. This added another dimension to the piece and worked very well within the context of the forest setting.

Having only ever seen productions of Shakespeare plays that I have studied, it was interesting to see a play with which I was completely unfamiliar. The company have created a highly successful performance; easily accessible to contemporary audiences (although I was a little surprised at the presence of some under tens- the youth of today must be getting cleverer!) Altogether an enjoyable and entertaining evening well spent.

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Performance Times:

Monday to Saturday at 7.30pm

Thursday at 8pm

2.30pm each Saturday except 8th Feb and 15th March.

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From £10 to £17

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