The Gods of Olympus take their sides and the fates of all men hang in the balance. On the battlefield of Troy the scene is set for the final conflict to claim the beautiful Helen. Only the invincible Greek warrior Achilles can tip the scales of war to glory or defeat, but humiliated by his leader Agamemnon, he is stubbornly refusing to join the fray. Homer's Iliad, the greatest and most influential epic poem ever written, tells of the tragic and bloody climax to the ten-year siege of Troy; the darkest episode in the Trojan War.
Terrifically thrilling.
Navigated by Thomson's cast of twelve with an intense ferocity.
Flawed but unforgettable.
This early in the run at least, it’s like watching a football team that’s unbalanced by several star players and only starts scoring goals during the second half.
The show's greatest asset is Chris Hannan's script, which is inevitably reliant on telling rather than showing in places, but which largely presents the story streamlined to its most essential core.
It adds up to a tremendous farewell from the Lyceum’s artistic director Mark Thomson, ending his 13-year reign with an ensemble production that is bold, dynamic and majestic.
The production is intelligent and sensitive – giving enough responsibility and freedom to all concerned, under an overarching vision that could not be a more fitting directorial swansong for Mark Thomson at the Lyceum.
The 12-strong cast navigates the blend of humour and seriousness in Hannan’s script honourably, even if the doubling of roles proves confusing and movement is constrained by Karen Tennent’s set.
All in all, a fitting end to Thomson’s reign, The Iliad is a grand production that reminds us that the war has a very real, and very human cost.
Thomson could have taken his leave with a crowd-pleaser by one of the Alans (Ayckbourn or Bennett). It is to his credit that he departs, instead, with a brave, if not entirely successful, Iliad.
Artistic director Mark Thomson achieves an intensity that respects Homer's poetry and captures the omnipresent grief and anger that pervades The Iliad, in his final production for the Lyceum.
The Iliad to herald Royal Lyceum's Mark Thomson's last hurrah.
The Iliad--War Horse with attitude!
Melody Grove--The Iliad
Greece is the word as Mark Thomson steps down as artistic director at Edinburgh's Royal Lyceum
Royal Lyceum, Edinburgh from Wednesday April 20, 2016, until Saturday May 14, 2016. More info: www.lyceum.org.uk
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