Director: Stephen Daldry
Starring: Helen Mirren, Paul Ritter, Nathaniel Parker.
Running Time: 140 Minutes (inc. 20 min interval)
A two-hour play about the Queen meeting with her Prime Ministers on a weekly basis is not necessarily expected to be of political substance, or heavy drama. Surprising;y The Audience manages to become an enthralling collection of vignettes which aims to entertain, and succeeds impressively.
The play sees Helen Mirren reprise her role as Queen Elizabeth II, having already blown the world away and won an Oscar with her depiction once before. Rather than stay safe however, Mirren dares to be different in The Audience portraying the Queen with that famous stern gaze, tilted head and perfect posture months away from her coronation. The performance is quite magical and Mirren’s ability to play a 20-something year old Elizabeth is truly magnificent.
The Audience is also incredibly funny as all characters are portrayed satirically. It’s evident that the melancholic Gordon Brown, the insecure John Major and the goofy Harold Wilson are a reflection of how the British people perceived them over the years; whilst the Queen is portrayed as strong, humorous, caring and importantly politically engaged – an image she’s earned after 60 years on the throne, and correctly insisted upon by Morgan. Occasionally though, Morgan goes overboard with his imagination and even turns silly as the idea a closed and informal 20-minute conversation between Prime Minister and sovereign could result in chummy conversations, crude comments and insults from Wilson about the Royal German heritage feel too good to be true.
Unlike THE QUEEN, Tony Blair plays no big part in the play – never seen and only referred to negatively by the queen, successors, and even the Head Butler serving as narrator and presenter of the play. Instead of feeding the assumptions that attention would be given to Blair, Churchill and Thatcher, The Audience instead brings forward lesser known Prime Ministers including Harold Wilson (Richard McCabe) and John Major (Paul Ritter) who are both funny, and moving in their meetings.
Mirren along with her co-stars brilliantly come together amidst Bob Crawley’s production design. Everything including the chandeliers, chairs, desk, right down to the video footage playing in the background is majestic and a stage fit for the Queen.
The Audience is an original play not to be missed, and will hopefully find a long term home in the West End thanks to its timeless, memorable and incisive content.
The Audience is playing in the Gielgud Theatre and runs until 15th June. Click here for more details and scroll down for stills.
