REVIEW – HENRY 4

Crashing drums and a snarling guitar assault the ears. Madcap performers tear across the stage, producing a cacophony of yelping and banging. The backdrop — a wall of milk crates forming the Union Jack — is unceremoniously smashed to bits. It’s absolute anarchy! You’d be forgiven if you thought so, but no: this isn’t a Sex Pistol’s reunion. This is Shakespeare.

A composite of Henry 4 parts one and two, the latest Bell Shakespeare production is, if anything, bold in its presentation. Critically, Matthew Moore simmers with intensity as Hal, the wayward prince torn between a life of misrule and another of rigid order.

Jason Klarwein’s pugnacious show-pony Hotspur, Sean O’Shea’s dithery Shallow and David Whitney’s po-faced autocrat Henry also deserve praise. However, it is John Bell, as Hal’s debauched mentor Falstaff, who truly commands the stage. Conjuring laughs with the greatest of ease, Bell reaffirms why the portly sexagenarian is such an enduring comic creation.

Despite losing some ‘oomph’ in its second half, this grimy, punk-rock take on the Bard’s two great history plays is hugely entertaining. (JH)

Until May 26, Sydney Opera House, Bennelong Point, $33-79, 02 9250 7777, sydneyoperahouse.com