Greg Doran uses his Cameron Mackintosh Professorship of Drama at Oxford to pass on his skills to the next generation

Two Gentlemen of Verona

at the Oxford Playhouse

from Wednesday, May 15, to Saturday, May 18

Review by JON LEWIS

THERE’S plenty of Joy and much division among the characters in former Royal Shakespeare Company artistic director Greg Doran’s exuberant production of William Shakespeare’s Two Gentlemen of Verona. The only play in Shakespeare’s First Folio Doran hadn’t previously directed, he used his Cameron Mackintosh Professorship of Drama at Oxford to pass on his skills to the next generation.

The two central roles, gawky Proteus (Rob Wolfreys, reminiscent of a young Mackenzie Crook) and the more confident Valentine (Will Shackleton, a tyro actor in the footsteps of Sam West) are best friends who fall out over Proteus’ betrayal of his beautiful, loyal girlfriend Julia (Lilia Kanu, a captivating, natural performance).

Proteus pursues the glamorous Silvia (Rosie Mahendra, focused and enchanting), also betraying Silvia’s official suitor, the dyed red-haired scowler Thurio (Saul Bailey). It’s a showstopper when Thurio serenades Silvia with his iconic song Who Is Silvia? playing his accordion. Proteus then enters cooly carrying an electric guitar, upstaging his rival. Neither young man shifts Silvia away from her lover, Valentine.

There are multiple scenes that delight. The audience’s first view of Julia’s father, the Duke of Milan (Jake Robertson) is his outrageous drag act belting out Rosemary Clooney’s 1954 hit song Mambo Italiano. The luxurious frivolity of the Milan court is played out thrillingly on the forecourts of Formula 1’s Monza, Silvia emerging sexily wearing her driver’s helmet, all eyes on her.

The cast’s youthfulness is a huge benefit, authentic and realistic for demonstrating love’s agonies.

Many students in the cast were acting amazingly well in the week of their final exams. The play’s most engaging character, Proteus’ assistant Launce, is performed with comic excellence by Jo Rich in a way that would be difficult to improve by a professional. His wooing on social media of a milkmaid (another drag act) is a cue for a series of hilarious gags including texts and Tik Tok films projected on to a screen.

Rich owns the scenes with the stealer of hearts, the cockapoo Rocky, playing Launce’s bad-tempered dog Crab, eliciting oohs and ahhs from the audience.

Lucky Playhouse to stage this outstanding production.