Set on the banks of the river Humber, Hull Truck Theatre’s production of Jack Lear is a windy storm peppered with Shakespeare’s classic tale of family, betrayal and jealously. The story, written by Ben Benison, centres around an ageing fisherman father who, after being disappointingly gifted three daughters and not sons, brought them up as “men daughters”, learning the trade of gutting and cutting “a thousand fish an hour”. Familial ties are soon twisted and cut as Lear’s inheritance is rationed out, dividing the family completely.
With a powerful sea shanty start, we meet the characters Morgana, Freeda and their father as they delve into their tough-love, genderless upbringing. This scene soon leads to a sword fight between the daughters in order to settle an argument. Although the scene kept its pace, the sword fight itself seemed lacklustre and clumsy as the actors slowly fumbled about and performed more sword-pressing than fighting.
Kate Unwin’s set was a clear showstopper, with fishing nets and rope strung across the proscenium arch, along with a towering mast and sail, later used as a blank canvas to project recordings of a choppy sea during Lear’s turn of madness, an echo to the original. The set was used to its full potential, being pushed and pulled around by Lear, and looked strikingly beautiful from the audience’s perspective.
Andy Cryer’s enthralling and sexually-infused performance as Edmund was a particular highlight. His use of grand gesture and movement owned the stage and captivated the audience as they followed him around the space. The only time this steadfast, sure performance was confused was during a peculiar stylistic change into an 80s-themed disco dance interlude, although the audience laughed, it left questions as to which style of theatre the creative team were attempting to portray.
Jack Lear himself, played by the show’s director, Barrie Rutter, was a three-dimensional performance. Toying with the line between the tough-love father his children were accustomed to growing up and the aging, confused old man he has become, Rutter showcases this well, albeit with the occasional melodramatic response.
Hull Truck Theatre’s Jack Lear manages to put a new, refreshing spin on the classic Shakespeare play, weaving in sea shanties and Nordic myths along the way. Occasionally the Northern Broadsides-esque acting choices fell slightly flat, making the production feel neither classic nor modernised, however, the production as a whole was enjoyable to watch.
Reviewer - Neve Francis
on - 12/2/19
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