In the
programme notes for Nicholas Hytner's modern-dress production of Timon of
Athens at the National Theatre,
Shakespearean scholar Peter Holland reveals that the little-performed play only just escaped disappearing altogether.
Shoehorned
into the First Folio (1623) at the last moment to plug a gap, the
play was unfinished, probably never performed and believed to have
been co-written with Thomas Middleton.
So
if it only just made it onto the ark, is it worth a
revival in 2012?
Simon
Russell Beale plays the title character, an Athenian noble renowned
for his generosity. However, when he realises too late that he's
mortgaged up to the hilt and his philanthropy is founded on crippling
debt, his friends soon scatter.
The
production stops just
short of overcooking the reflections of the current financial
situation. It opens with Athenian protesters as an Occupy camp,
before we see Timon splashing his benevolence by sponsoring a room at
a gallery - dominated, tellingly, by a painting of Christ driving the
money-lenders from the temple.
His
parties for poets, painters, jewellers and actors conjure up images of
glittering gatherings at Chequers. Later, when it's all going tits-up for Timon,
his aide visits the offices of Lucullus Capital - with a
picture-window view of Canary Wharf - in a vain effort to extend his
credit.
The
first half of the play ends with him turning his back on Athens and
what he sees as hateful humanity, and sadly there isn't much in the
second half to match the fulminating invective with which he curses
Athens in particular and mankind in general.
In
fact, the rest of the play gets a bit repetitive as Timon, holed up
in a derelict building (a cave in the original) with just his
shopping trolley full of junk, finds his solitude
shattered after he uncovers a stash of gold.
In
rapid succession he gets turned over by bandits; hurls a bit more
ugly abuse at the rebel Alcibiades and two women; has an
mutual insult-a-thon with the cynical philosopher Apemantus; and rebuffs the
urgings of the senators and his steward/PA Flavia for him to return
to the city (with his stash).
Probably
reflecting its unfinished status, the play doesn't offer any kind of
tragic catharsis, as Timon's ambigious death is reported after the
event by Alcibiades and the senators, who have reached a political
compromise that will largely preserve the status quo.
Simon
Russell Beale gives a suitably weighty performance as Timon, eager to
flaunt his benefaction in the first half and then plumbing the depths
of roaring misanthropy when he realises the true nature of the 'friendship'
in which he'd felt himself so rich earlier.
The standout performances from the rest of the cast are from Hilton MacRae as the sour-faced
Apemantus and Tom Robertson as Ventidius, a Hooray Henry who is
bailed out of prison by Timon but then drops his benefactor like
a hot potato once the tables are turned.
The
NT has done the best it could with the patched-up text - around 250
lines were cut or amended and small portions transplanted from other
Shakespeare plays - and Tim Hatley's design is simple but effective.
And thanks to the NT's excellent Travelex £12 scheme, you can take a punt on a decent seat in the Olivier without breaking the bank yourself.
However,
if you're pressed for time you could probably hop off at half time -
sorry, the interval - with a good grasp of the play's message and
Timon's thundering curses rattling in your ears.
(There'll also be a global National Theatre Live cinema broadcast of the play on 1 November 2012)
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