by Jim Keaveney.
Poor Britannicus - a bit-part player; not only in the life of Nero but also in the play that bears his own name. Much like Shakespeare’s Julis Caesar where arguably Brutus is the protagonist, in Jean Racine’s 1699 play, translated and adapted by Timberlake Wertenbaker, Nero is the true protagonist.
Agrippina (Sirine Saba), the mother of the emperor Nero (William Robinson), has been sidelined by her son and fears she is losing her influence to his advisors Burrhus (Helena Lymbery) and Narcissus (Nigel Barrett). Meanwhile, Nero has imprisoned and fallen for Junia (Shyvonne Ahmmad) who has been promised in marriage to his older-half brother Britannicus (Nathaniel Curtis) who he has usurped as emperor. Set in a modern Rome, Wertenbaker's translation updates the language so that it resonates with contemporary events - 'tyranny always promises good things' quips Agrippina.
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The cast of Britannicus. Photo: Marc Brenner |
Curtis, fresh from his It’s a Sin success, fails to garner the audience's sympathy for the tragic hero Britannicus who is naive about his situation to the point of being unbelievable. His pining for Junia is tragic in the wrong sense. Sirine Saba is generally impressive, with the Freudian aspect of her relationship with Nero hinted at but not overplayed, though there is a strange out-of-character moment where she appears to enact a drunken lout as she confronts Burrhus.
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William Robinson. Photo: Marc Brenner |
Like many classical adaptions, the references to unseen historical characters, many long dead, are left unexplained, their relevance lost on those without prior knowledge of the setting or the complicated family ties. Though they are partially explained by Agrippina towards the end, by this time much of the play has passed by.
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Sirine Saba, Nathaniel Curtis and Nigel Barrett. Photo: Marc Brenner |
Britannicus is at the Lyric Hammersmith until 25 June.
Jim Keaveney is the lead critic at The Understudy. He tweets occasionally from @understudyjim