HENRY IV PART II (International Actors Ensemble)***

By Dave

Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wvDlMsIryBk

Available until: Unknown

Shakespeare had such a big output of plays in such a range of styles, it’s natural that there will be some you like better than others. Henry IV Part II is not one of my favourites but it’s no reflection on the International Actors Ensemble’s performance that I wasn’t able to give them a higher rating.

I do tend to enjoy cut performances of this play more than the full thing (which isn’t far off being four hours long) and there are parts which I feel maybe doesn’t need to be there but I do applaud IAE for doing the full play. It’s a lot of very hard work (and they don’t have as long an interval as actors who are performing the work onstage) and I think they did really well.

There are some parts of this play which I do really like and IAE does them very well. The opening scene, where Paul Robertson’s Northumberland first celebrates the victory of his son Hotspur, then reacts angrily when he realises the rumour is false, is seriously impressive and very moving. You can feel the character’s anger and the sadness beneath it.

Henry IV and his son are both excellent. After being such a strong figure in Part I, it’s something of a shock to see the difference in Jonathan Fuller’s Henry IV. He seems physically much weaker in both his appearance and his voice and I think it must be down to the actor as there were only six days between the performances. Some of his air of command is still there but his struggle is visible and it is genuinely sad to see it.

Seton Pollock is back as Prince Hal and we get to see him growing up on the youtube screen, gradually maturing (emotionally) before our eyes and becoming slowly more responsible and accepting of his future. The scene in Act IV when he goes home to his father and his final scene with Falstaff (the irresponsible but good-hearted Aaron T. Moore) are especially good. Another of Henry IV’s sons, Prince John, is played by Bradley Storer who shows John’s intelligence and leadership qualities, as well as his more dubious ones.

There are also some great moments of comedy. Emma Drysdale, Ruben Francis and Angelique Malcolm continue in the roles of Poins, Bardolph and Mistress Quickly and all are excellent. Tim Ferris returns to the cast in different roles and is particularly good as Pistol. It’s also great to see Valentina Vinci as Lady Percy again. She shows a different side to the character and is equally brilliant. Karol Garrett and Greg Pascoe are hilarious as new characters Doll Tearsheet and Francis Feeble.

Two other new characters who made a particular impression are David Meadows (Part II’s Earl of Worcester) as a very authoritative Lord Chief Justice and Matthew O’Sullivan as the lovely and eccentric Shallow.

It’s a really good cast and it’s not their fault this play is so long with so much standing around and having conversations that didn’t seem to move the plot along very quickly. Those issues might be partly Shakespeare’s fault but I’m sure it’s mostly down to me. The scenes I like are all brilliant so it’s a pretty safe bet that they all are.