Little Lark of London

“The story that I’m about to tell you is so sad. There will be tears.”

Nearly Lear, written and performed by Susanna Hamnett, is an adaptation of Shakespeare’s King Lear told from the perspective of Lear’s fool, who in the play is not given a name, but in Hamnett’s work is given not only a name, Noreen, but a fully-fleshed backstory that takes over the plot. Noreen, a woman, who disguised herself as a man named Norris to serve King Lear, is encouraged by her father to tell the tragic tale of the king, even if a man named William [Shakespeare] had gotten to the story first. 

Hamnett does a fantastic job performing with physicality and facial expressions, truly playing the part of the Fool in a clowning manner. She speaks directly to the audience from the very beginning, establishing the play within a play from her the first scene. The Fool appears to be a character out of time, able to make modern references and contemporary songs while still blending in with the characters of the time period. Unfortunately, even with Hamnett’s talents in acting, the show, which has a runtime of 80 minutes but ran even longer, has a tendency to drag, making for a tiring show. 

Nearly Lear also struggles in its more technical aspects, as when there is audio playing in the background, it is impossible to hear what Hamnett is saying, making the story even more difficult to follow. Hamnett is also nearly impossible to understand when portraying Lear himself, making it difficult for the audience to figure out what is happening, let alone feel for the old, mad king. 

One of the major issues I have with Nearly Lear is how much it changes the story. Hamnett removes two of the central characters, Edgar and Edmund, the children of the Earl of Gloucester. These two characters, as well as the Earl of Kent, are, in a way, replaced by the Fool and another character, Oswald. The two sisters of Cordelia, Goneril and Regan, are made incredibly one-dimensional, only focusing on how “evil” they are with no regards to what might be going on in their own heads. The two fight over Oswald, who in this version of the play, is Lear’s manservant, not Goneril’s, and decides to have both sisters fall in love with him in order to gain a higher status within the court (originally Edmund’s plan). Oswald becomes the main villain, the one responsible for the death and destruction following Cordelia’s banishment. Even the ending, the most heartbreaking part of the play, is changed, and not for the better. 

Having seen no warnings on the site or before entering the show, I was not pleased by the amount of audience interaction and participation, both of which were not used very effectively. Before one of the biggest moments in Lear’s story, a great storm appears, and Hamnett decides that describing it is not enough. Instead, she sprays herself with water and then literally climbs into the audience to spray people as well – I had to duck to cover my notebook so it wouldn’t get hit by the lavender-scented “storm.” There was also another incredibly awkward bit in which Hamnett has the audience sing along to a song about the seaside, having them clap along. And, somehow, both of these occur within approximately ten minutes of each other, leaving no time for recovery. Another bit of audience interaction involved Hamnett as Gloucester playing a game of “Warm/Cold” with the audience to find his eyeballs, a tasteless way to end what could have been quite an emotional and dark scene. 

Ultimately, Nearly Lear is an interesting take on Shakespeare’s work but struggles to find itself between the modern and the past. Hamnett has some interesting takes on the characters, particularly the Fool, but the changes made take away from the powerful play and leave the audience struggling to figure out what emotions they are meant to feel. The audience interaction also really takes away from any enjoyment of the play.

Nearly Lear ran from 6 to 11 February as a part of the Riverside Studios Bitesize Festival. For more information about the festival, click here.