Hot on the heels of his coronation, Edward II recalls his lover Gaveston from exile, lavishing him with titles and riches. Their all-consuming love makes enemies of the establishment, alienates the King’s once-devoted Queen and threatens to tear the kingdom to pieces. A political thriller and an intense love story, Edward II is a powerful exploration of how far society will go to destroy a love seen as taboo.
This Edward II emerges as a rough-edged but heartfelt tribute to a play whose boldness in celebrating gay love remains striking today and must, in its time, have been truly astounding.
For all of its vintage tailoring, gramophones and wide-eyed torch songs, it's a play which is somewhat hard to warm to – perhaps because it is so rooted in misanthropy and one-upmanship.
There’s a sense of urgency to Barr’s production that brings out a set of fearless performances from all four actors.
Inevitably, Barr’s focus on the love story tends to overshadow the explorations of power and society in Marlowe’s play.
An admirable staging of an important play.
Gordon Barr--Edward II
Bard in the Botanics, Glasgow from Thursday July 12, 2018, until Saturday July 28, 2018. More info: http://www.bardinthebotanics.co.uk
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