Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead Review: Delightfully Absurd

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is the second Tom Stoppard production to be put on this semester after Arcadia (dir. Aidan Monks and Millie Chew), a play I also had the pleasure of reviewing. As a result, one might be tempted to compare the two and see who did greater justice to Stoppard’s material. To me, this misses the point. These two plays could not be more different, with one being a meditation on the ephemeral nature of the universe and the other boldly asking, “What are Rosencrantz and Guildenstern up to when they aren’t on stage in Hamlet?” (This is, of course, selling R&G short thematically speaking, but I will get to that later). I’m only here to review the latter, and I can say with confidence that I had a wonderful time.

As previously mentioned, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is a play that primarily takes place in the wings of Hamlet, as the two eponymous characters, played by Freddie Crawford and George Rook, struggle with the absurd nature of life as side characters with little to no agency. Crawford and Rook have an absolutely electric chemistry, bouncing off each other and around the stage with such enthusiasm that I was totally unable to be bored whenever they were on stage (which, luckily for me, was the case for basically the entirety of the play). Kiera Joyce also gives a standout performance as The Player, the head of a troupe of actors/prostitutes/eccentrics who shows up to expound on blood, rhetoric, and the believability of theatre. Joyce brings a great physicality to the role, sometimes moving as though she has to convince each of her limbs to go where she wants to go. Overall, the actors breathe a lot of life into what is already some pretty great material.

The material is also enhanced by the sound and lighting, courtesy of co-directors Annalise Roberts and Willa Meloth. Sound effects were used infrequently but impactfully, helping to emphasise Rosencrantz and Guildernstern’s very brief glimpses of life beyond the backstage. While there was one lighting slip-up in Act 3, Meloth’s lighting choices had some solid intentionality and creativity behind them, with two choices in particular (one involving a lantern and one in the penultimate scene) being very impressive. Both sound and lighting complimented the minimally-decorated set, which, while I initially felt was a missed opportunity, I think ultimately helped the audience feel like they were peering into the wings.

Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead is about many things, but what I found to be among the most salient ideas is the believability of theatre. Are we, as the audience, not like Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two characters ferried from place to place, scene to scene, who believe just about everything they’re told at face value? How much can our disbelief be suspended? Well, in the case of Roberts and Meloth’s Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, I had no trouble believing it. The performances, lighting, sound, and set design had me totally convinced, and, as the lights dimmed and the play came to a close, I felt my belief had been rewarded. 

Photo by Lila Patterson