King Lear is one of the most iconic tragedies plays by the hand of the bard, William Shakespeare. With a normal running time of over three hours, the relationships and complexity of the play required the time for the tragedy to develop and conclude.
Pip Utton’s adapted version of King Lear runs for 45 minutes. Anyone familiar with the original storyline cannot fail to be impressed by the attention to the details included in the performance.
The storyline is set in the original plays Act 3, scene 4. Lear has been cast out by his two daughters Goneril and Regan, with who he divided his land and his third daughter Cordelia whom he turned away as she refused to pander to his demands of an over inflated declaration of love for him.
Cordelia and her husband, King of France are about to declare war on England and Lear believes that the pair will meet up and become reunited once again. However, as anyone familiar with the story will know this never takes place.
During Act 3, scene 4 a storm is raging and the thunder and lighting reflect the madness Lear is facing as his mental and emotional well being is declining rapidly and old age takes over.
Several times Utton breaks the fourth wall as he grapples with understanding what is happening and reflecting on his past behavior. Vanity and ego took over and destroyed the bonds and relationships he once had with all three of his daughters.
Utton is a powerful performer who becomes the distraught King with believable ease. It was such a pleasure to witness a stripped-back version of one of my favourite Shakespeare plays without any of the main themes missing.
It doesn’t matter whether you are familiar with the original story or not you will feel you know the text by the end of this performance.
For more information about King Lear at Prague Fringe please click on the link below.
Five Stars.
Theatre, Art and Film Reviews 
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