TNT THEATRE presents
William Shakespeare’s
KING LEAR
Touring Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Suzhou, Ningbo, Huzhou and Zhuhai
DIRECTOR’S NOTES
TNT’s King Lear is a unique theatrical event that blends live music, spectacular imagery and thrilling action. The production focuses on the families of Lear and Gloucester, stripping away lesser characters and incidental scenes to concentrate on the main narrative. No one knows what KING LEAR was performed in Shakespeare’s day, certainly not the full text that we have today, cobbled together by Victorian editors. We will never know but we do know that KING LEAR is a too great play to be left in the library but one that seldom thrills on the stage. TNT have addressed the problem and gone for the heart of this dark and dramatic work.
Cello, violin, drums and a five part sung score add a whole dimension to the play – a dimension that existed in Shakespeare’s own day – there may have been no set, no lights and little special costuming in the Globe but there were certainly musicians. The Music of TNT’s KING LEAR was composed during the rehearsal period and is seamlessly integrated in the play. The storm scene is a tour de force of choreography and sound, music and raw energy. Shakespeare’s magnificent language is not sidelined by this approach, but rather allowed to breathe, freed from the distractions of lesser characters and incidental scenes the play emerges in sharp focus.
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