SYNOPSIS
Review
Robespierre should have been equal weight to Danton given his greater historical significance. One needed I think a prior knowledge of Revolution to get much out of it otherwise a lot of actors declaiming rather than relating to each other. Convetion scenes totally unconvincing just seemed to be a....
gerry
Penned in 1835 and first performed in 1902, Georg Büchner’s “Danton’s Death” is a classic piece of theatre that provides a compelling insight into the traumas inflicted by the Revolutionary Tribunal during the French Revolution. With Robespierre consolidating power and Georges Danton regretting his most famous creation, it depicts a power struggle between two of the biggest names of the new order, with the guillotine forever dripping with the blood of thousands.
It will make for a gripping performance when it appears at the National Theatre from July with Büchner’s legendary play given a makeover by the acclaimed English playwright Howard Brenton and the renowned Artistic Director of the Donmar Warehouse, Michael Grandage, taking on the duties of director. It also stars a host of talented actors, including Toby Stephens as Georges Danton and Elliot Levey as Robespierre.
The story transports audiences to a period between the first and the second terrors during the French Revolution in 1794. It is an era in which people were sentenced to death whether the accusations against them were true or not as the might of the Revolutionary Tribunal grips the nation. Its creator, Georges Danton, regrets his part in the killings of so many people and the blood on his hands forces him to change this and to stop the procedure from continuing. But his main political rival has other ideas and when faced against the motivated Robespierre, Danton’s fate is sealed.
Georg Büchner was in hiding from the police when he penned “Danton’s Death” in 1835 at the age of 21 and whilst the play would take almost a century to be staged in 1902, it would be regarded as one of the most important political tragedies in existence. So it is with great care that Howard Brenton presents this new version of the classic in the same year that his play “Anne Boleyn” appears at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. A renowned English playwright, “Danton’s Death” could not be in better hands.
Actors Toby Stephens and Elliot Levey have both appeared in various productions across London and the West End, with credits in the Royal Shakespeare Company amongst their work. Stephens has also appeared in television shows like “Wired” and “Waking the Dead”, with well known film roles such as “Die Another Day” and “Dark Corners”. Levey has been seen in shows like “Robin Hood”, as well as the movie “The Queen”.
Danton’s Death makes its appearance at the Olivier National Theatre from Thursday 22nd July 2010 (previews from Thursday 15th July 2010) to Sunday 22nd August 2010.
Reviews
Robespierre should have been equal weight to Danton given his greater historical significance. One needed I think a prior knowledge of Revolution to get much out of it otherwise a lot of actors declaiming rather than relating to each other. Convetion scenes totally unconvincing just seemed to be a a small crowd of easily persuaded passers by. Still a play intriguing for those interested in fate of revolutionaries even if there is little attempt to connect ideas being expressed to what was going on in streets. Mentions of Lyon where Jacobins where a civil war was going on which prefigured fall of Jacobins must have been baffling to uninitiated.
gerry I guess I'm not into this type of play. In my view even boredom died. It was dire. Comments in the toilets at the end indicated others were not enthralled by it either. Personally there are much better ways to spend two hours of one's life.
Kevin
