高清福利片

The Roman emperor Julius Caesar has been killed in the capitol, and the conspirators pause to reflect for a moment. Cassius, the main instigator of the assassination, wonders if this tale will be told again in the centuries to come.

鈥淗ow many ages hence,鈥� he asks, 鈥淪hall this lofty scene be acted over / In states unborn and accents yet unknown?鈥�

And Brutus, Caesar鈥檚 one-time friend responds, 鈥淗ow many times shall Caesar bleed in sport?鈥�

In other words, will theatres of the future put on shows about this world-changing event?

Kip Williams鈥� Julius Caesar (for the STC鈥檚 wonderfully refurbished Wharf 1 stage) takes this question from Shakespeare鈥檚 play and makes it the beating heart of the production.

It is not just that this 21st century Julius Caesar advertises the contemporary relevance of the story. We are also asked to consider just how political stories are told, re-told, and told again.

When Shakespeare wrote this play in 1599, the ageing Queen Elizabeth I was still on the throne after 41 years. Her reign had descended from an early promise of greater freedom and rational government.

鈥淚 would not open windows into men鈥檚 souls鈥�,听听in听an early speech to parliament, indicating a departure from her predecessors who had not held back from persecuting those who did not share their beliefs.

Modern historians have referred to Elizabeth鈥檚 early reign as a 鈥渕onarchical republic鈥�, a cautious blend of consultative government and royal prerogative. But, by the end of the century, the country had descended into a darkly tyrannous period of violence, factionalism and mutual suspicion.

For Shakespeare, the question of whether or not Caesar has become a tyrant is really a question about his own country鈥檚 increasingly dangerous politics. As Elizabeth鈥檚 death draws near, Shakespeare considers the tolerance of his countrymen for more autocratic forms of government. In 2021, those questions are being asked again.

The set-piece of Williams鈥� production 鈥� and the high-point of Shakespeare鈥檚 play 鈥� is a speech: Antony鈥檚 speech on the death of his friend, Caesar.

Brutus has tried to address the Roman people and explain the conspirators鈥� actions through reference to noble motives and truth-telling. Anthony knows that truth holds no sway over the public and that emotion will work every time.

For this production, Williams has brilliantly adapted the famous speech into a searing indictment of 20th and 21st century political charlatanism. During the course of the speech, Geraldine Hakewill playing Antony transforms from grieving friend into modern political demagogue.

Putting on her standard-issue white power suit and her Christian Louboutin shoes 鈥� like a cross between Julie Bishop and Goebbels 鈥� Hakewill鈥檚 superb performance of reveals the awful terror that lies at the heart of post-truth, political manipulation.

That Shakespeare turns the fortunes of his play鈥檚 characters - and of Rome and the world - on the reception of just one speech is a brilliant piece of writing.

Williams is not shy of a similar focus on the power of words to close debate down as well as open it up. But, if Shakespeare鈥檚 London was already at some remove from Rome, then we are now several steps further along the road of political degradation in this production.

Shakespeare wants us to think that Brutus holds on to his nobility in the midst of the mayhem that he helps to unleash. But, to the viewer watching the play in 2021, the conspirators never seem to find a real justification for their actions and the descent into chaos happens at speed.

Ewen Leslie鈥檚 Cassius is bitter and damaged, whilst Zahra Newman鈥檚 Brutus is less a remnant of past nobility than a naive fool who never had a secure grip on his own motivations.

The three actors play all of the roles in the play, with Williams鈥� smart use of video fleshing out the narrative. Video also plays an integral part in our consideration of the way that political motivations distorted by the media.

Perhaps not as spectacularly innovative as in last year鈥檚 Dorian Gray, Williams鈥檚 use of video in this show is nonetheless completely in tune with the production鈥檚 focus on failed political discourse.

But that鈥檚 not to say that the physical space of Wharf 1鈥檚 new theatre in the round isn鈥檛 also put to good use. The three actors bring a manic energy to this dynamic new stage, motoring an already lean (in Shakespeare鈥檚 terms) script towards its frightening conclusion at a breakneck speed. Command of the dialogue from all three performers is superb: clear, direct, and artfully controlled.

With its clear-eyed look at the consequences of failed politics, this production of Julius Caesar is both an appropriate, and an extraordinarily well-executed inaugural show for the STC鈥檚 new stage.

Dr Huw Griffiths is senior lecturer in English Literature. He is also the author of Shakespeare's Body Parts.听This story was first published in The Conversation as听.听
Banner image: Geraldine Hakewill and Ewen Leslie in Sydney Theatre Company's Julius Caesar, 2021. Photo: Daniel Boud.听