ALL’S WELL THAT ENDS WELL (Globe Theatre)****

 

By Dave

Link: https://globeplayer.tv/videos/all-s-well-that-ends-well £5.99 to rent, £11.99 to buy or send as a gift

Available until: Forever, or until the Globe take it off their site. But even if you buy it or receive it as a gift, you can only access it through the site for a limited time. So you need to download it. Once it’s downloaded I think it’s yours forever.

All’s Well That Ends Well is one of the great problem plays. And the usual problems people have with this play are either a complete lack of understanding of why an intelligent woman like Helena would want an idiot like Bertram – and whether the trick Helena and Diana play on Bertram is entirely right.

It can be difficult to see what Helena sees in Bertram but she’s grown up with him. She probably knows his good and bad points a lot better than we do. Maybe all we can do is trust that she knows best.

As for the other thing… no. It’s not right. Not at all. But unlike in Measure for Measure, where it’s very difficult to avoid thinking about the various issues, a good production of All’s Well That Ends Well can push the concerns to the back of your mind so you can get on with enjoying the play. Whether this is a good thing is definitely open to question. As a rule, when you see something wrong, you do want to call it out. You don’t want to laugh it off.

But at the same time, is it right that we should hate every work of fiction just because someone in it does something wrong? There will always be some works of fiction – or non-fiction – that go too far and we’ll all have different limits on that. But in the end it’s our own values and what we personally are prepared to do that matter most, not the values and behaviour of characters who might not even be real. And fiction can be a great educator. We see the way people behave in books – their behaviour and their motives and the results of it – and I think that can teach is a lot about right and wrong, and about humanity.

I wonder if director John Dove felt uncomfortable about what Helena does too. There are things in this production to suggest Bertram does love Helena really. He takes her handkerchief in an early scene and is seen with it on a few occasions afterwards. The goodbye kiss he shares with Helena is most certainly not one-sided. I’m not sure how much light this throws on Bertram’s behaviour. The only explanation I’ve thought of that he’s afraid of the wedding night aspect and believes he’ll disappoint Helena in some way. His attempts to bed Diana might be an attempt to learn about women so he can go back to Helena later with some idea of what he’s doing. I’m not sure I’m completely convinced by this idea (which could easily be wrong) but I’ve definitely heard much less convincing stories.

Whatever the intentions were, this production did make me feel I could just enjoy the story, the characters and the language without worrying about anything else… at least until the play was over.

The cast is very strong. Sam Crane doesn’t hide Bertram’s idiocy but still gives him plenty of charm – and maybe I can see Helena’s point. Ellie Piercy’s Helena certainly has the intelligence and persuasiveness to keep him in line – she is consistently good at getting exactly what she wants in this play - and there’s also a deep sincerity in her performance which makes it difficult to see her as being completely manipulative.

The King of France could be seen more as a plot device than a character – he’s certainly not at the centre of the plot like many of Shakespeare’s Kings and is far less complicated a character – but that has its own challenges when it comes to making a character memorable. Sam Cox makes him a very likeable character who I do remember. A man who’ll listen and keep his promises but I don’t think I’d want to push him beyond a certain point.

Janie Dee is magnificent as the Countess – I’ve never seen her perform Shakespeare before, but I’m not surprised she can. After all, she can do everything else. James Garnon is an amusing Parolles and Sophie Duval delivers the Widow’s lines very wittily. Naomi Cranston is a sweet Diana, not a big personality but exactly the sort of girl I can imagine Bertram choosing for ‘practice’. She’s lovely but she’s not as intelligent and formidable as Helena so she’s a lot less terrifying.

The roles of Lafeu and Lavatch (who are not the identical twins their names suggest) are played by The Show Must Go Online’s excellent King Lear, Michael Bertenshaw, and Shakespeare Happy Hours’ brilliant Richard III, Colin Hurley. I believe this is what is known as luxury casting. They both bring so much character and humour to their roles in All’s Well That Ends Well. Michael’s Lafeu is wonderfully eccentric but also very kind. Colin’s Lavatch certainly earns his alternative name, Clown. Unlike most of Shakespeare’s Fools, he’s not secretly wise and anyone who reads Shakespeare for the filthy bits (as I admit I used to) will find a lot to enjoy in Lavatch’s speeches. Colin’s characterisation and delivery of the humour was perfect.

I can see why this is a problem play but I didn’t have any problems with it this time.