SOMETHING profound happened in Leeton at our beloved Roxy Theatre this week.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
For four nights in a row, a talented company of Shakespearian actors played to a full house. They delivered to audiences a powerful rendition of one of Shakespeare's most famous plays, in a production of Henry V that would have been at home on any theatre in the world.
People, some of whom had never been on stage before in their lives, transcended the everyday and took wing. They inhabited their characters with confidence and playfulness and told audiences a story that has stood the test of time for more than five hundred years.
Though the language was Shakespearian, the themes were as relevant and resonant for us now as they ever have been - what does it mean to be a good man, a leader and a king? What is the price of war, and what are the parameters of a just war?
How does a community band together to triumph over seemingly insurmountable odds? What does true courage entail? How do we make our own truth manifest through the trials and obligations of our lives?
The audiences laughed, gasped and applauded. The set was at once dramatic and deeply familiar with its grand wood and steel industrial palette.
The lighting was moody, immersive and unlike anything we have seen at the Roxy before, with fire, mist and explosions, reds and blues, the Chorus's magic staff, and use of spotlights, shade and shadow that transported the audience to another imaginative plane.
IN OTHER NEWS:
And the soundtrack, with its dark mythical undertones, ethereal harmonies, guttural chants and driving ancient warrior beats, was an emotional backdrop that deepened the story for all who witnessed it.
For those two and a half hours, audiences were in another world - the world of Henry V.
This production has been a triumph of community. Every volunteer, from the costumier team to the set and backstage team, to the support team for catering, accommodation and front-of-house during show week, has given their all.
Photographers, graphic designers, tradesmen, writers - and their families who spared them for days and hours on end. Every single contribution was evident, woven into the gorgeous fabric of this production.
This show could only have been made here, in our town, in our theatre, but it is one that would wow audiences and critics anywhere.
And at the centre of it, one man who himself has been transformed by the experience of bringing his vision of Henry V to life. Jake Speer.
This has been his coming of age.
As a first-time director, and in a lead role that is one of the most notoriously demanding in terms of sheer amounts of text to commit to memory, let alone to embody the emotional complexity of the character of the king, Speer has been transcendent.
His commitment to the project, his generosity toward, love for and mentoring of his company of players, the countless hours working with designers, speaking to community groups, and working with all collaborators behind the scenes, is hard to quantify. But it is his performance in the lead role that has been something else to behold.
This production has been a triumph of community.
- Sarah Tiffen
April 23 is the date of Shakespeare's birth and death, and also St George's Day, once the key day of celebration of English culture - and the spirits were alive in the rafters and wings of the Roxy this past week.
The performances Speer gave us, were utterly compelling and raw. In his soliloquies on kingship, his rousing cries to battle, his delivery of the Crispin's Day speech - one of the most famous of all Shakespearian tracts of poetry - he stripped himself bare, as actor and man, and became great.
A moment of transcendence and becoming that it was an honour to witness and be part of.
After Saturday night's finale show, at a private VIP party, the launch of the Roxy Institute of Performing Arts (RIPA) was announced.
With Speer as creative director and, with the partnership of NIDA, The Australian Chamber Orchestra and other world-class creative entities, there will be no stopping the creative momentum that has filled Leeton.
Due the COVID, nowhere else in the world right now can audiences of 600-700 people sit together in a theatre and watch a live performance.
As Speer himself said when launching RIPA, "Shakespeare cannot be stage in the country of his birth at the moment".
And here we are, in our little country town, making history, and experiencing something magical, driven by the sheer force of love and comradeship that lies at the heart of this magnificent production.
The future looks very bright.
Our journalists work hard to provide local, up-to-date news to the community. This is how you can access our trusted content:
- Bookmark www.irrigator.com.au
- Make sure you are signed up for our breaking and regular headlines newsletters
- Follow us on Twitter
- Follow us on Instagram
- Follow us on Google News