Measure for Measure – a play by William Shakespeare, a Cheek by Jowl production

Measure for Measure by William Shakespeare, a Cheek by Jowl production (in Russian)
Silk Street Theatre, Barbican Centre until 25th April 2015

www.cheekbyjowl.com

It takes a huge amount of creativity, imagination and bravery to stage Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure in Russian and make the result as compelling as it is powerful. But this production is masterminded by Declan Donnellan and Nick Ormerod, the co-Artistic directors behind the innovative theatre company, Cheek by Jowl. The tag line, coined by The Guardian, certainly rings true: Whatever Cheek by Jowl does next constitutes a major happening.

The staging is stark, with just five large red cubes on show. The symbolism immediately springs to mind, are they part of the “Soviet Bloc”, Moscow’s Red Square or neither? This version of Measure for Measure lends itself to a depiction of contemporary Russia and stretches Shakespeare’s themes of power and corruption versus mercy and virtue. But on many levels Cheek by Jowl show a country, where draconian rules are enforced and the ordinary person’s struggle against those rules, that is almost timeless. There are scenes throughout the play, from the cast running around in a mob like frenzy to the final moments when the main characters take to the microphone like demagogues; these could relate to many periods in Russian history post 1917. Perhaps that is the point: nothing much has changed. But as the play draws to a close, hope lingers in the minds of the audience because, in the same way that the Duke made amends for Angelo’s despotic rule, ultimately virtue can triumph over vice.