King Lear

First published on 26 Nov 2009. Updated on 5 Apr 2011.

The Bell Shakespeare Company's associate director Marion Potts has proved many times over that she is one of the most innovative directors in Sydney, and it is a sign of her maturity that for her final production with the company she chose not to hijack the play onto some directorial ego trip but simply used her excellent actors to focus on the feelings of the unhappiest play ever written. She confidently discards the chatterish preamble and substitutes a silent tableau of the royal family before it lapses into dysfunction, clearly establishing the white background to this black and red tragedy: Lear in his heyday was truly loved by everyone. In his foolish need of assurance of this fact ("Which of you shall we say doth love us most?") and the apprehension of his faltering ability to govern he brings death and ruin down on everyone.

Speech begins with Lear's formula for disaster: "Know that we have divided/In three our kingdom: and 'tis our fast intent/To shake all cares and business from our age;/Conferring them on younger strengths, while we/Unburthen'd crawl toward death." John Bell is a master of emotional understatement, preferring generally to hold his upper lip stiff rather than raising his voice; even through the storm ("Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks!") his Lear maintains an almost cheerful resignation (perhaps numbed by encroaching dementia), so that when he finally discovers his youngest daughter hanged, the howling is heartrending. But even the quiet jokes with his fool are deeply saddening, thanks to Peter Carroll's mastery. Bruce Myles makes Shakespeare's most important subplot a success with his hapless, doddering Gloucester, softening up our sympathies for innocent victims before we are shown Cordelia's corpse.

The actors playing baddies transcend the caricatures those roles have often become. Tim Walter makes a surprisingly amiable Edmund - he doesn't sound like a bastard at all, did he really shag two of Lear's daughters and condemn the third? - and the two nasty sisters seem at least in their own minds to be doing the best they could at geriatric care in difficult circumstances. Leah Purcell is perfectly positioned as the middle sister Regan next to an imperious Jane Montgomery Griffiths as the eldest Goneril, whose fall from being top bitch down to an indecorous mess deserves a play of its own. Indeed, the supporting actors are so well cast that even some undistinguished minor roles become memorable: Yalin Ozuclik as Goneril's steward and Anthony Phelan as Regan's head-shaking husband.

Dale Ferguson's fake fur coat costumes are sumptuous, but he keeps his sets simple – not only for convenience while touring, but surely also so as not to distract from Potts's focus on emotional interaction. They reflect the fact that the locations, although in Britain, are essentially mythical: the white cliffs of Dover are gently suggested by a backlit translucent curtain; the court is indicated by a downlit circle, from which Lear throws the faithful Kent, played with suitable bluntness by Peter Kowitz.

Sydney and the BSC will be losing a great talent when Potts moves to Melbourne to become the artistic director of the Malthouse Theatre next year. For her last production here she has given us one of Shakespeare's greatest tragedies, beautifully and simply performed. Jason Catlett

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Preview:

Statisticians warn against retiring too early, lest one lose a sense of purpose and thus the will to live. For example, a 2009 University of Maryland study of 12,000 retirees found that those who took on post-retirement jobs in their chosen fields reported significantly better physical and mental health than those who stopped work completely.

Shakespeare, writing around 1603-6, seems to corroborate this with King Lear, his adaptation of the myth of Leir, a pre-Roman Celtic king who, by surrendering his crown to two scheming daughters, plunges his dominion into civil war. Destitution, insanity and death quickly ensue.

"As soon as Lear relinquishes his status as King, he doesn't know who he is anymore," says Marion Potts, Bell Shakespeare associate artistic director, who is directing John Bell in his third crack at the mad monarch. "It's about how much human beings invest in their role in society to give them their identity. He doesn't want the duties of king, but he wants to retain the status. He can't have it both ways and he is cast out because of that."

This King Lear arrives on the auspicious occasion of Bell Shakespeare's 20th anniversary. Founder John Bell last played the part of the more-sinned-against-than-sinning sovereign in 1998, and Nicholas Harding's portrait of Bell in character won the 2001 Archibald Prize.

"I think it's fitting that John undertake a big role for the anniversary," says Potts, director of the company's all-female Taming of the Shrew last year. "It's one of the biggest in the repertoire and he's almost the right age for it [69]. It's about celebrating his ability as an actor, and the fact he's led this company for 20 years."

For Potts, the play is an extraordinary insight into the highs and lows of human experience. "The central character being a king makes his fall even greater. The play deals with the question of human dignity and worth, so it's fitting Shakespeare takes us from the highest status to the lowest."

The director is also interested in the godless, chaotic vision of the world that the play paints, exemplified by the mad scene in the storm ("Blow, winds, and crack your cheeks!"). The mythical Leir, she notes, predates Christ by some 800 years. "It's interesting how people behave without a God to give us a moral anchor. That pre-Christian world is something that I find is resonant today, in what could be argued to be a post-Christian world."

Bell's Lear will be matched with a Fool who has a comparable age and stature as a Shakespearean: Peter Carroll. "Against John, Peter will create an interesting interplay as to who is the fool and who is the king. They're sort of the flipside of each other: the Fool says out loud everything that Lear should be saying and feeling."

As Lear's harpy offspring Regan and Goneril, Potts has cast Leah Purcell and Jane Montgomery Griffiths, while the faithful Cordelia will be played by Susan Prior. "All three are a powerhouse on stage," Potts says. "I didn't want Cordelia to be some sort of shrinking violet; her goodness is all about being truthful, but certainly not sweet. These are strong women with strong ideas about their position in the world - traits they probably have inherited from their father."

In a way, Potts is a Cordelia to Bell's Lear: someone an ageing figurehead can trust to give him honest direction. Potts confirms that her boss may be theatrical royalty, but he accepts her prompting with good grace. "Most strong actors are good at taking direction," she says. "That's what makes them strong actors." Nick Dent