Lover. Heretic. Revolutionary. Queen. Read more …
Compelling, witty and often laugh-out-loud funny, this celebration of Anne Boleyn leaps cunningly between generations to expose the life and legacy of Henry VIII’s notorious second wife.
Anne Boleyn is traditionally seen either as a pawn manipulated into the King’s bed, or as a sexually licentious predator, even a witch. But Howard Brenton puts a very different Anne – and her ghost – on the stage. Witty and confident in her sexuality, she takes on the vicious world of Tudor Court politics. She is in love with Henry but also in love with the most dangerous ideas of her day. Conspiring with the exiled William Tyndale, Anne plots to make England Protestant for ever.
Following two sell-out London seasons, ETT and Shakespeare’s Globe, join forces to stage this vivid and vibrant production; gripping, rich in humour and shot through with sublime chamber music and visual imagery. Unmissable.
For all the dark historical romance of dusky silks and John Donne lyrics set to live music, what really propels this touring version is Marxist playwright Howard Brenton’s startling freshness of vision.
A triumph in the way it brings the drama of history to life.
You can see why the original Globe theatre production of Anne Boleyn sold out, and why Howard Brenton’s iconoclastic re-imagining of Henry VIII’s second wife was subsequently sent on a tour of the UK: the show is a hands down, no-arguments crowd-pleaser.
Brenton’s production moves seamlessly between tenderness and tension and laugh out loud humour.
Brenton's play is large scale in production terms but also in ideas - irreverant, illuminating and enormouly entertaining.
Definitely one to file under Must See.
This is a very entertaining history lesson, despite losing laughs during the second act, but it’s little more than that.
There’s no doubt that John Dove’s eloquent and flowing production offers a superb evening’s entertainment, for those who enjoy gripping drama, fine words, and generous production values.
Anne Boleyn from playwright Howard Brenton examines Tudor dynasty
The crowning glory
Festival Theatre, Edinburgh from Tuesday May 8, 2012, until Saturday May 12, 2012. More info: http://www.edtheatres.com/festival