British Universities Film & Video Council

moving image and sound, knowledge and access

Tempest, The

Synopsis
A video recording, using a single, fixed camera, of the Royal Shakespeare Company’s 2002 production of The Tempest. Directed by Michael Boyd with Malcolm Storry as Prospero. Aerial choreography by Gavin Marshall.
Language
English
Country
Great Britain
Medium
Video
Technical information
Colour / Sound
Recording date
2002

Credits

Director
Michael Boyd
Writer
William Shakespeare
Music
John Woolf
Production Design
Tom Piper
Choreographer
Gavin Marshall
Cast
Malcolm StorryProspero
Sirine SabaMiranda
Kananu KirimiAriel
Geff FrancisCaliban
Alan TurkingtonFerdinand
Brian ProtheroeAntonio
Dylan CharlesAdrian
Fiona LaitMariner
Gracy G. GoldmanMariner
James GarnonFrancisco
James HylandMariner
James StaddonJuno
James StaddonMaster of the Ship
James TelferBoatswain
James TelferCeres
Jami QuarrellMariner
Jerome WillisGonzalo
Kananu KirimiIris
Keith BartlettAlonso
Roger FrostStephano
Simon GregorTrinculo
Tom BeardSebastian

Additional Details

Theatre
Roundhouse, London
Theatre company
Royal Shakespeare Company
Production type
Stage Recordings
Historical period
17th Century
Plays
Tempest, The
Subjects
Drama
Keywords
Shakespeare, William (1564-1616); Black actors

Notes

Notes
The RSC made video recordings of a performance at the Roundhouse and at the RST.
General
Boyd used the massive arena-like space at the Roundhouse by having much of the action taking place at a mezzanine level on a raised platform in the centre and a narrow walkway between the pit and the audience. He also made much of the circus skills of his actors many of whom ascended and descend ladders and ropes 50 ft or more above the ground.

Boyd’s casting of a black actor as Caliban led to critics writing about the play as a post-colonial statement.
History
Press night 7 May 2002. The production later transferred to the Royal Shakespeare Theatre.
Reviews
Lindley, David. The Tempest. London: Arden Shakespeare, 2003.
[Studies post World War II Royal Shakespeare Company productions of The Tempest by focusing on Prospero and the other main characters in relation to him, the staging of the spectacular, and the music. Discusses productions by Eric Crozier (1946), Norman Wright (1947), Michael Benthall (1951 and 1952), Peter Brook (1957), Clifford Williams and Peter Brook, John Barton, Keith Hack, Clifford Williams, Ron Daniels, Nicholas Hytner, Sam Mendes, David Thacker, Adrian Noble, James MacDonald, and Michael Boyd ].

Production Company

Name

Royal Shakespeare Company

Web
https://www.rsc.org.uk External site opens in new window
Address
Royal Shakespeare Theatre
Waterside
Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire
CV37 6BB

Archive

Name

Shakespeare Centre Library and Archive

Email
scla@shakespeare.org.uk
Web
https://www.shakespeare.org.uk/ External site opens in new window
Phone
01789 204016 (bookings)
Fax
01789 262073
Address
Henley Street
Stratford-upon-Avon
CV37 6QW

Record Stats

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