Titus Andronicus October 6, 2006

'Probably the best production I've seen at Shakespeare's Globe in
the 10 years of its existence.' Paul Taylor - The Independent

Returning to Rome from a war against the Goths, the general Titus Andronicus brings with him the queen Tamora and her three sons as prisoners of war. Titus’ sacrifice of Tamora’s eldest son to appease the ghosts of his 21 dead sons, and his decision to refuse to accept the title of emperor, initiates a terrible cycle of mutilation, rape and murder. At the centre of the nightmare moves the self-delighting Aaron.

Spectacularly, even grotesquely, violent and daringly experimental, Titus was the smash hit of Shakespeare’s early career, and is written with a ghoulish energy he was never to repeat elsewhere. All the resources of the Globe stage will be exploited to realise this macabre apprentice work that combines black comedy with Grand Guignol.

Titus also sees a roof placed on the Globe's famous open-air amphitheatre for the first time in its history. Designer William Dudley has taken as his inspiration the innovative feature of the Colosseum known as the valerium – a cooling system which consisted of a canvas-covered, net-like structure made of ropes, with a hole in the centre. His designs create a dark and funereal setting, echoing the play’s themes of war and death.

The production will employ Elizabethan staging, clothing and music.

The running time for this production is three hours including one interval.

Official Website: http://www.shakespeares-globe.org/navigation/showpageNS.asp?l1=3&l2=1&l3=4&l4=0