"...rip-roaring good fun ... strong performances all round ... Anna Westlake makes Feste, originally a male role, genuinely complex and mysterious."
**** John Holmes for The Metro
"The Belch-centred sub-plot dominates - thanks largely to some snappy interaction between Rob Benson's Belch, Carrie-Anne Lewis' Maria, Anna Westlake's Feste and Gerard Cooke's long-wristed and inevitably 'Mr Bean' recalling Aguecheek."
Tom Phillips for Venue Magazine
In December 2007 I began rehearsals for an exciting new production of 'Twelfth Night' for Roughhouse Theatre at the Alma Tavern and Theatre in Bristol. Set against the backdrop of 1930's Berlin cabaret, I would play Feste as the resident entertainer at club Illyria; a secret place of free-drinking and hedonism where the local elite could play out their underground lives.
Music was integral to the piece, with the songs of Marlene Dietrich, Kurt Weill and the 1930's swing movement providing a strong influence. Feste is a wonderful part, and the reinvention of this character as a female cabaret performer gave me opportunity to not only act a great role but also use my singing and clarinet playing to full effect. We played from late January to mid February 2008 and were excellently received, with sold-out houses for the majority of the run and great press.
The show then returned to Bristol in July 2008 as part of the Bristol Shakespeare Festival. Bringing together the original cast in a new and exciting venue, this was the perfect opportunity to explore the play's 1930's Berlin setting even further, and use the solid grounding we already had to push the boundaries of dark and light in the script to new distances.
It was a liberating experience to arrive in a rehearsal room already knowing the play back-to-front, and with established relationships between the whole cast and crew. This was a very different play from the one seen in the Alma Tavern earlier in the year, not least because of the amazingly atmospheric space, the Bristol Bierkeller. Usually a live music venue, its dark and mysterious feel suited our interpretation down to the ground, and the larger acting space allowed much more scope in terms of the physical. The result was something much bolder, darker and more visceral, but still with an intimacy and clear sense of truth running throughout.
Music played a large part in the original conception of this show, and 'Twelfth Night Redux' brought this to a new level. With a group of live musicians supporting myself as Feste and the actor playing Curio, we were able to place the show firmly within its cabaret club context, and audiences enjoyed live music both pre- and post-show as well as throughout. My songs included Kurt Weill's 'I'm A Stranger Here Myself' and 'Speak Low', 'Bei Mir Bist Du Schon', an old Yiddish song made famous by the Andrews Sisters, as well as some commonly associated with Marlene Dietrich: 'Falling in Love Again' and 'Lola', both of which I sang in German.
The world is on the brink of war.
Tempers are running high and survival is paramount.
Orsino is rejected.
Olivia is in exile.
The twins are separated.
Malvolio is persecuted.
When troubles arrive at the door of Illyria, music is the only escape.
Set in the dark and dangerous world of underground Berlin, Roughhouse Theatre presents Twelfth Night as you've never seen it before.
Inspired by German cabaret, this timely revival mixes live musical performances with classic Shakespearean text.
