Arts:Blog

Theatre Review: Measure for Measure ***

Anna Burnside reviews a flawed production with good performances.

‘Believe women’ has become one of the central tenets of 21st Century Feminism. Measure for Measure, written by a man in 1603, shows how little progress we have made in the intervening millennia.

The heart of the plot is a piece of gross hypocrisy. Angelo, standing in for the Duke of Vienna, goes full Taliban and sentences Claudio to death for fornication. Claudio's sister Isabella, a nun, pleads for mercy on his behalf. Angelo promises to relent, if Isabella will have sex with him.

What a gent.

At one point he spells it out - he can do this because no one will believe her version of the story.

So, the relevance of the story is not in question. However, this is not enough to carry a show, and Jennifer Dick’s stripped back version is basically a radio play performed in the narrow corridor of the Kibble Palace.

This intimate space can be electrifying - seeing Nicole Cooper play Hedda Gabler there was very special. But it can also involve a lot of head turning as characters stomp up and down. Measure for Measure falls into that category.

The cast do a good job. Stephanie McGregor’s Isabella gets the balance between being wrought and being overwrought. A couple of tense moments where she drops her voice to a whisper are very effective.

James Boal effortlessly swaps between the nervous advisor Escalus and the disgraced Claudio with a quick costume change and a ruffle of his hair. The Duke of Vienna is basically a plot device, but Graham Mackay-Bruce does his best.

Sam Stopford is often cast as a nasty little man. His Angelo uses all this experience to be the creepy upstart drunk on temporary power.

What a shame to have to use all this talent and acting power to make a point that remains unresolved since the 17th century.

Measure for Measure performs at the Glasgow Botanic Gardens as part of Bard in the Botanics’ 2024 summer season. It performs until July 27, 2024. For more information, check their website.

Photo by Tommy Ga-Ken Wan.