Photo by Ros Kavanagh for the Gate Theatre, Dublin.
Featuring (L-R): Terry O’Neill, Eavan Gaffney, Stuart Graham, Fiona Bell, Hazel Clifford, Conleth Hill, Ryan Hunter, Emma Dargan-Reid, Jolly Abraham and Ciarán McGlynn

King Lear – Gate Theatre – Review

Photos by Ross Kavanagh
Dates – 21st Feb until 27th April

When King Lear (Conleth Hill) utters the immortal line ‘Nothing will come of nothing: speak again’ he sets in motion a series of events that will lead to his eventual demise. The King is a good man but has a flaw; his vanity. He has asked his three daughters, Goneril (Jolly Abraham), Regan (Eavan Gaffney) and Cordelia (Emma Dargan-Reid), to profess how much they love him before he divides his kingdom between them. Goneril and Regan come out with suitably lush and flowing sentiments, but his youngest and kindest daughter Cordelia is unwilling to enter into his game, and in doing so is left with nothing! The King banishes his only daughter who really loves him and leaves his two ungrateful daughters in charge of his fate.

The Tragedy of King Lear was written by Shakespeare and first performed in the early 1600s. In the intervening 400 years, the part of Lear has become one of the most iconic roles for an older male actor and Conleth Hill is the latest to take up the challenge. Conleth was born in Ballycastle, County Antrim, Northern Ireland. He is perhaps best known for his role as Varys in the HBO series Game of Thrones, but has a considerable career on stage. Hill made his Broadway debut in Marie Jones’ Stones in His Pockets and has won two Laurence Olivier Awards and two Tony Awards nominations.

Featuring (L-R): Michael Glenn Murphy and Fiona Bell

There are many other iconic roles in the play, including The Fool. The character was used by Shakespeare to point out the King’s failings and has many of the best lines. In this production, he is played by Michael Glenn Murphy, who has appeared in several Anu productions, including The Dead. He is an easy choice for the role, and has a scampish quality in this production along with his deadpan delivery.

The set and costume design by Ti Green gives the production a unique Medieval look and style, with long flowing robes in pale autumnal colours. Much of the set is created with light and sheets of fabric hanging from the rafters as animal hides. It is a move away from the more traditional view of 17th-century kings and queens to earlier times. The storm scene is another opportunity for a set designer to show their skills and the noise and fury of this production works well.

Despite the iconic nature of the play, it is rarely performed in Ireland other than productions aimed at those studying the text in school. It is always worthwhile to see a production aimed at a wider audience, such as this. There are 12 actors on stage and it feels like a large-scale production, with director Roxana Silbert giving an emphasis to the text and allowing the actors to shine. It would be hard to ignore the performance of Conleth Hill, showing the steady decline of a once-great man, who is left with nothing. it is at times harrowing to watch his portrayal of a man on the edge of madness pushed beyond the brink.

Featuring (L-R): Stuart Graham and Conleth Hill

Cast –
EARL OF GLOUCESTER – Stuart Graham
EARL OF KENT  – Fiona Bell
EDMUND – Ryan Hunter
LEAR  – Conleth Hill
GONERIL – Jolly Abraham
REGAN – Eavan Gaffney
CORDELIA – Emma Dargan-Reid
DUKE OF ALBANY – Ciarán McGlynn
DUKE OF CORNWALL  – Terry O’Neill
EDGAR – Aidan Moriarty
OSWALD – Hazel Clifford
THE FOOL – Michael Glenn Murphy

Creatives
Director – Roxana Silbert
Set and Costume Designer – Ti Green
Lighting Designer – Paul Keogan
Sound Designer and Composer – Benji Bower
Voice Director – Cathal Quinn
Movement Director – Sue Mythen
Fight Director – Ciaran O’Grady
Associate Costume Designer – James McGlynn Seaver
Assistant Director – Ursula McGinn

Production –
Deputy Stage Manager –  Iain Synnott
Assistant Stage Manager – Aimee Crilly
Assistant Stage Manager – Meabh Crowe