Coriolanus - Bell SHakespeare

Coriolanus

Bell Shakepspeare

Roman general Coriolanus makes his name defeating an enemy army and defending Rome. The Senate nominates him as consul, but he cannot win the people's vote, so he is banished from Rome and allies with his old enemy. He comes to attack Rome, his mother persuades him not to, and his new-found ally kills him for the betrayal.

Bell Shakespeare tackle this less well-known play last produced by the company in 1996 with Stephen Berkhoff directing.  Peter Evans – the director of this 2025 version was then the assistant director; outgoing General Manager, Gill Perkins was then ASM. In1996 the production was set in the context of 1930s Fascism. Steven Berkoff’s reimagining of William Shakespeare’s final tragedy brings power to the masses as they turn against their ambitious leader, Coriolanus. This highly physical and meticulously choreographed production was captured in a version live at the Globe in Tokyo and can be watched here. With a minimalist set design and distinctive use of colour and costume, Berkoff utilises the ensemble to create special effects, props and environments using movement and sounds in this politically charged adaptation. It was a long time ago, but I recall it not being a well-received production. Perhaps it was because Berkhoff was really having a summer holiday or was it because Australian artists and audiences were not familiar with his hybrid style of work. I am a bit of a physical theatre junkie and had loved Berkhoff’s “Coriolanus in Deutschland” – a journal of directing the play in Germany.  Recommended. But I digress.

Bell Shakespeare in 2025:  Evans has loosely set this production in Europe in the mid-1990s, following the fall of the Berlin Wall, but it is never explicit.  Parallels are drawn between the political structures of ancient Rome and contemporary global politics. Evans also designs the production with traverse seating with a moving stage. It rolls the length of the room and is striking and effective (if a little overused and usually separate from the scenes which makes this already long play a chunky evening!). The wooden walls of the Neilson Nutshell have the text resonating around us. The occasional white floaty curtains at either end of the traverse soften the scenario. It has a few period details – rotary telephones for example – and the costumes sort of feel 80s/90s but overall, the production never really stakes a claim for its setting and therefore drifts aimlessly in an unfocussed vague past. Ah, that happens a lot with Shakespeare….

It is the stellar cast who carry the evening.  Lead by an outstanding Hazem Shammas as Coriolanus who physically and vocally crafts a performance of the highest order. Coriolanus is a Roman general of aristocratic birth, a deeply proud man of deep integrity and an astounding lack of social skills. The occasional twee gesture or hand-in-trouser-pocket feel disingenuous and self-conscious in an otherwise inhabited role of intentional thoughts, action and deed.  Peter Carroll is mesmerising as Menenius.  Menenius is an older patrician who serves as counsel to Coriolanus and actively champions his political advancement. Whereas Coriolanus lacks all political finesse, Menenius is a gifted mediator between social classes. Not a movement - whether swift or slow - denies Carroll’s 80 years.  His text is as clear as a cut diamond which perhaps only comes from a lifetime on the stage. Just to witness the technical ease of his entrances and exits is worth the (almost) 3 hrs of the production. Other memorable work comes from the very elegant Marco Chiappi, a robust Anthony Taufa, and a seasoned Suzannah McDonald. Gareth Reeves work resonated strongly in this world of ego-driven politics. Brigid Zengeni creates a sharp and visceral Volumnia in her Bell Shakespeare debut. Matilda Ridgway is a delight as one of the three women on the stage.  Jules Billington opens the play with such robust clarity that I thought – just for a moment – that perhaps we would see Shakespeare presented without the usual binary of male/female and/or the usual gender swapped casting to “even up the numbers”.  But alas no.  More time needs to pass before we can experience a contemporary Shakespeare where our accepted and enlightened understanding of gender, power and the politics of human interaction transcend the binary.

The struggle for power, both personal and political, is at the heart of “Coriolanus”. The play explores the dynamics between different political systems and the conflicts that arise when individuals seek power in ways that clash with societal expectations. Shakespeare, as usual, is on the money when it comes to humanity’s struggle with itself. 

Review by Kate Gaul

Image: Brett Boardman