Henry V at Old Red Lion

Henry V at Old Red Lion

03 August, 2012
by: Naima Khan

Two Henrys are better than one...

Apparently when American troops left for Basra in 2003 they were provided with copies of Henry V; so Nick Hytner wrote in the Telegraph in reference to his own 2003-set production of the play.  It's a little unfair to bring up Hytner's production given that director Henry Filloux-Bennet's takes in so much more time. But that's what this version of Henry V at Old Red Lion Theatre reminds me of, the “never ending hell” that Henry spoke to me about earlier this week. 

Transposing excellently edited chunks of Shakespeare's text onto images of a familiar politician, his bumbling aids, his meek advisors and careless troops works brilliantly. It successfully subverts the patriotism that Shakespeare spurred and reminds us of the horrors of war but it could go further in its streamlining and broader in its references and be stronger for it. 

This becomes clear when we're introduced to the latter of the two Henrys used to make two separate points in this production. Henry the politician, played by Jack Morris is the smarmy, arrogant man you'd expect but it's Mark Field's military Henry that provides a more complex picture of the catastrophes and consciences of war. When he talks to his troops in disguise, he makes me think of the dozens of troop leaders and what they might have felt after hearing about instances like Abu Ghraib and the death of Baha Mousa: does their relationship to their soldiers require fear? What would they feel if they were questioned by their troops? 

Military Henry is freer, not clogged with the image of Blair and Mark is therefore able to reference something wider, a more multifaceted grey area. Jack Morris' task on the other hand requires a Blair-flavoured Henry in a sharp suit and the results are much more black and white. He is villainous, which isn't a bad thing except that the humour is expected and doesn't quite deliver. It's the numpty Blair that's funniest, his lack of understanding, getting tied up in his own words and his special relationship with Bush. So when we're presented with someone angry and dismissive, it gets boring. 

There are some clever turns and disturbing juxtapositions in this solid production but maybe it could be much more if its setting weren't so well-defined?


Henry V runs in repertoire with The Revenger's Tragedy at Old Red Lion until 29th September

Image: Mark Field and Jack Morris by R.W Davenport


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Naima Khan