William Shakespeare
Ricard III
Arden Producciones
Chema Cardeña
Cast
Richard Juan Carlos Garés
Reina Elizabeth Amparo Vayá
Buchingham Carol Linuesa
Ratcliff Vicente Pastor
Lady Anne Esther López
Clarence / Richmond Ismael Carretero
Hastings Chema Cardeña
Reina Margaret Laura Useleti
Stage manager on scene Alfonso Tadeo
Artistic and technique group
Adaptation text Chema Cardeña
Stage design Del Busto & Monterde
Lighting Ximo Rojo
Costumes Pascual Peris
Sound space Gilles Martin / Ximo Rojo
Voice-over Antonio Martínez & María Poquet
Characterization Inma Fuentes
Photography Maque Falgás
Video Cabeza Líquida S.L.
Graphic Asaltinbankis
Technique coordination Ximo Rojo
Production design Juan Carlos Garés
Distribution David Campillos
Management Mer Badía
Production assistant María Poquet
Play-writing and stage management Chema Cardeña
From 14th October to 6th November, 2005. Theatre L’Altre Espai.
Characters
The main character of this play is Richard. He has a strong personality and that makes that people submit to his will. Richard is an usurper that does not doubt in disregard everybody. He wants all the power to become in the king of England and, in this way, to govern all the citizens. To achieve his objectives, he does not doubt in kill all the people that to intervene in his way. He has no scruples to do all he does. He also murders his brother Clarence to get his objective, and he does not suffer pangs of conscience. Richard is married Lady Anne. She is the sister of the people that are against him. In this way, Richard demonstrates that nothing and nobody are going to stop him. In the battle against the rebels, he dies. He is become in Ricard Henric VII.
Ratcliff is Richard’s allied. Ratcliff is like Richard’s faithful doggie. He is as villain as his lord. He is the person that kills Clarence. Ratcliff does it because Richard orders it to him.
Buckingham is other Richard’s allied. He supports Richard in every moment but, finally, he rebels against Richard and this tells that somebody kills him.
Elizabeth Queen is dressed with a long red dress. She has been reigning until Richard overthrew her. He snatched her power away.
Clarence is Richard’s brother. He also is called Jorge. He is the Duke of Clarence. He is murdered by Ratcliff when he is having a bath.
Lady Anne is Elizabeth Queen’s daughter. At the beginning of the play, she is crying because her husband is dead. She hates Richard, but, he is married her, after much insistence on it, to achieve the power.
Hastings is a man that supports Richard.
Richmond is the deceased husband of Lady Anne. He dies at the beginning of the play.
Play’s place
The play is developed in only a stage. All the characters are always on stage. In this stage, take place different scenes that are marked by the focus. Many scenes follow one another; for instance, the first scene starts with all the characters. After that, we can see Lady Anne crying because her husband is dead.
We can say that the stage design is incredible. The characters always surprise us with his costumes, with the elements that they use to do possible the play…
Lighting
We have just said that all the characters all always on stage, but not all are focused. Those that are talking are focused. All their movements are followed and it is impossible that if somebody is talking we do not know who is. Those characters that are not talking are on stage too, but they are not focused. They stay at the bottom of the stage and they do not move.
Costumes
All the characters are dressed with elegant clothing. Their costumes are like clothes that people used to wear five hundred years ago. Women wear elegant and long dress and men wear suits that are very similar to those that men wore in the Middle Age.
Other aspects
The furniture of the stage in not wide but the characters have all the necessary to perform every scene; for instance, a throne for Elizabeth Queen and other for Richard, a bathtub where Clarence is having a bath when is murdered…
The Audience
During the performance, we can see that the audience was surprised, not for the dialogues of the characters, but their actions several times; for instance, when Clarence took off his clothes and he stays naked to have a bath. I have a question to the audience, how many people have a bath or a shower dressed? Maybe they were surprised because they not used to be to watch a naked person before people.
Conclusion
In my point of view, Chema Cardeña has done an incredible, striking and real version of Richard III. The stage design, the costumes, the characterization, the performance… everything is brilliant. Thanks to it, we can see a wonderful performance of this great play of William Shakespeare. I have liked the play a lot. I have seen a few plays because I not usually go to the theatre, but I think this play is worth it. The scene that has surprised me a lot is when Ratcliff kills Clarence. He does it with an incredible cool. It seems to be real when water is become red because of the Clarence’s blood.