The world of Shakespeare 
By Miki Watanabe
Staff Writer
Monday, September 4, 2000 

The Almeida, a London theatrical company, will tour Japan in October with two of 
Shakespeare's plays "Richard II" and "Coriolanus," in association with HoriPro Inc. The 
plays have already been performed in London under the direction of Jonathan Kent and 
both star British film actors Ralph Fiennes and Linus Roache. These productions 
opened on March 30 this year at the Gainsborough Studios in East London to packed 
houses. A week before the run of the plays came to a close at Gainsborough, this 
reporter visited the aging studios and spoke with actor Roache, who plays opposite 
Fiennes in both productions. 



At 36, Roache is already a veteran of stage and screen. He starred in "The Wings of the 
Dove," an Oscar-nominated film adaptation of Henry James' novel of the same name, 
and is a former member of the Royal Shakespeare Company. One of his most 
outstanding roles was as the main character in the controversial film "Priest," directed 
by Antonia Bird. In one scene of the film, Roache rails against God for not helping a 
young girl who had been molested by her father. 

"I also liked that scene best," said Roache, whose manner is as sincere as the young 
priest he played in the film. By contrast, however, Roache turns in a performance in the 
Shakespeare plays that reveals a much more strident side as he vies for power. 



The brick buildings of Gainsborough stand on Poole Street in Islington, about a 10-
minute walk from Old Street Station on the Northern Line of the London Underground. 
The working class neighborhood is dominated by row upon row of apartment buildings. 

Stepping inside the spacious studios, one might think they'd entered an abandoned 
factory by mistake. However, large portraits of the cast members hanging from a wire 
stretched along a wall and a bar crowded with theatergoers soon dispel this notion. Just 
like the makeshift foyer, the theatre itself is a no-frills affair with the gallery constructed 
from scaffolding and long, plain benches for the audience. At the back of the stage was 
a huge, fissured brick wall that looked as though it had been ruptured by two opposing 
forces -- very Shakespearean. 

On Saturdays, the company gives two performances (as they will do on the Japan tour). 
This is nothing unusual for British stage actors and Roache recalled having doubled up 
on performances with another company. "Richard II" and "Coriolanus" use the same 
stage, the only difference being that real turf is put down on the stage for "Richard." 
Such sparseness of scenery makes great demands on the actors to fill the void. 



Ralph Fiennes shows us a lighter Richard II, a king with a sense of humor whose 
indecisiveness eventually loses him his crown to his cousin Bolingbroke, played by 
Roache. We first see Richard as he comes onstage clad in white. In the background 
can be heard a Gregorian chant. The play closely follows the original scenario and the 
cast all wear period costumes. Kent uses the music and lighting effects -- ominous 
sounds of pending tragedy and shafts of light that peer from the crack in the wall -- in 
such a way so as to give the play its own rhythm. Roache appears on stage in 
contrasting black, a cool, unruffled figure. In the scene where Richard hands his crown 
over to Bolingbroke, Fiennes plays it like a spoiled aristocratic child having a toy taken 
from him. Roache, meanwhile, maintains the demeanor of a man bent on excising his 
political foes. 

Coriolanus is set in Rome in the fifth century B.C. Again we see Fiennes and Roache as 
rivals, but the play revolves mostly around the relationship between Coriolanus, played 
by Fiennes, and his mother, a dominating woman played by veteran stage actress 
Barbara Jefford. Fiennes give us an effeminate Coriolanus, who is by turns immature 
and belligerent. His subordinates are often shocked by his outrageous behavior as he 
becomes increasingly embroiled in conflict. The limited space in the theater does not 
allow fighting scenes to be staged but Kent uses the sound of a heavy iron door closing 
to remind us that the threat of battle is ever present. Though, overall, the play lacks 
some vitality, it is worth the price of admission to see the performances of Fiennes and 
Jefford. 



Speaking with Roache, he talked about Kent's way of directing and how he decided to 
prepare for his current roles. 

"He prefers spontaneity," he said of Kent's approach. "We must be quick to move under 
his direction, almost like this (snapping his fingers). I felt it was a fresh way to do 
things." Regarding his playing opposite Fiennes, Roache said he decided to be more 
reactive than aggressive. 

"Of course, he and I had many discussions," said Roache. "But this time, I gave more 
consideration to how to play my characters as foils to the characters he inhabits." 

For many actors the task of memorizing the lines in a Shakespearean play is a daunting 
task. 

"The way to memorize them is almost the same as memorizing popular songs," 
explained Roache. "There is no difference. And, yes, I do sometimes worry about what 
to do should my head become totally blank on stage." 

Roache also spoke about other projects he is involved in. 

"I love films," he said. "I just finished an Australian film and next I play Coleridge." An 
open fan of the film "Matrix," he says he wants to appear in the sequel. The reason he is 
so attracted to this high-tech thriller is presumably because of his belief in an Indian 
religion that melds elements of Oriental and Western philosophy. He travels to India 
every year to hear the teachings of his American guru. He also says he is keenly 
interested in the upcoming tour of Japan. 

"I am looking forward to visiting Japan, since I've missed the chance three times thus 
far," he said. 

Japanese audiences are in for a treat when the Almeida tours here as both of its main 
stars are not only handsome but highly charismatic. The schedule of the Japan tour is 
given below. 



The Almeida 

The theatre was established in 1990 under the leadership of Jonathan Kent and Ian 
McDiarmid and has a reputation for staging top-notch productions featuring leading 
actors, directors and designers. One of the theater's high points came in 1995 when 
Fiennes won a Tony Award for his acting in an Almeida production of "Hamlet" under 
Kent's direction. 



Gainsborough Studios 

During its heyday as a film studio, Gainsborough was home to young Alfred Hitchcock 
and it was here that his filmmaking talents developed. Unfortunately, the studios are 
dilapidated and are scheduled to be demolished to make way for an apartment building. 
The Almeida chose the historical studio to put on the two plays over a four-mouth period 
and transformed it into an extraordinary performance space. Before the start of 
Almeida's Japan tour, its very first to this country, the group will head to Broadway in 
New York. 

** 

Dates: Oct. 11-29 (1 and 7 p.m.). 

Admission: 10,000 and 8,000 yen. 

Venue: AKASAKA ACT THEATRE (accessible from #3 Exit of Akasaka Station of the 
Chiyoda Line). 

Information: Call HoriPro ticket booking center at (03) 3490-4949, (03) 5237-9999 or 
(03) 5802-9999