The longest interval in theatre history continues. Last week the National Theatre livestreamed a 2018 version of The Madness of George III produced by Nottingham Playhouse with Mark Gatiss in the title role. The script, written by Alan Bennett as a response to King Lear, is much easier to like than the original.
An engaging family comedy, with a sad bit in the middle, it benefits from a wonderfully happy ending. The good king is cured, the bad doctors are vanquished, order is restored. A real crowd-pleaser. Bennett’s research gives it the feeling of a documentary drama as he examines the difficulties faced by monarchs who wielded real political power. Family feuds spilled over into public affairs, and if the king happened to run an empire the consequences could be global.
After weeks of silence, Royal Opera reopened with a whimper – it felt cheap and wrong
The portrait of George is multifaceted, contradictory, instantly human.
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