30 minutes of Shakespearean death scenes certainly makes for an unusual afternoon excursion, but Death by Shakespeare, on its fifth run at the Fringe since 2013, offers just that. The show presents the familiar and iconic fatal moments of Shakespeare’s folio, made anew by choral work and physical theatre that shows the scenes in a new light.
We are taken through a series of infamous Shakespearean deaths by a quirky group of spirits, through murder, betrayal, and suicide. For such a brief show, the cast was large, but this felt necessary, especially in moments of choral speech where around two dozen voices were layered together, capable of being both cacophonous and melodious where appropriate.
Divided into sections categorised broadly by modes of death, the transitions throughout felt seamless and natural. It was a layered performance and escaped feeling monotonous by not being merely a linear series of deaths. Particularly interesting was the separation of Romeo and Juliet’s deaths, a unique touch that, notably, presented Juliet as an individual. My only drawback was that, due to the fast pace of the show, I sometimes felt a little muddled between whose death was being presented, and this is coming from someone highly well-read in Shakespeare. In some places they could have slowed down and provided a little more clarity.
I will acknowledge the small hypocrisy when I now admit that I wish they had packed more in and we had seen more deaths than we did. While many of the major deaths were featured, there were a few that I sorely missed. Desdemona’s murder in Othello is one of the most emotional and devastating deaths in Shakespeare, and I would’ve liked to see that. As macabre as it sounds, I felt that too much time was devoted to suicides rather than the many dramatic, thrilling murders that occur in Shakespeare’s tragedies.
Incidentally, however, the highlight for me was a suicide; the show offered an absolutely beautiful and emotive interpretation of Ophelia’s death in Hamlet. The use of blue light, partnered with the choral sounds and fluid movement to evoke the sense of water, created a highly impressive and powerful visual sequence. On the other hand, Lady Macbeth’s death was somewhat underwhelming and lacked the gravitas I would have expected from such a pivotal Shakespearean moment.
A show entirely about death doesn’t sound funny- and in many places, it was not- but the inclusion of Pyramus and Thisbe, the characters in the hilarious fictional play performed in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, was an amusing surprise, as well as a great way to vary the tone of the production. I commend the writers for thinking outside of the box because this certainly wouldn’t be close to the top of my list when thinking about deaths in Shakespeare.
Death by Shakespeare was an enjoyable, interesting performance that I would recommend. Considering it is only half an hour in length, it is not tricky to fit it into your hectic Fringe schedule and it makes for a fun afternoon watch.
Death by Shakespeare is on at 2:15pm at theSpace @ Niddry St from 9-12 August. Tickets available here: https://tickets.edfringe.com/whats-on/death-by-shakespeare
Image provided to The Student as press material by theSpaceUK.