Not that I go as much as I used to, but I don’t ever recall a spontaneous standing ovation at a straight play in a British theatre before. This is what happened at the Old Vic in London last Friday for Kevin Spacey’s Richard III.
I say Spacey’s because it was very much his show. Stanislavsky said, “There are no small roles, only small actors,” but in this case, the rest of the cast were seriously in the shadow of Spacey’s masterly performance. By contrast, Laurence Olivier’s 1955 film was a Who’s Who of outstanding British actors of that time.
One factor that will have led inexorably up to the ovation was his extraordinary declamation, close to the end of the play, of “A horse! A horse! My kingdom for a horse!” Dramatic magic.
Does the ovation happen after every performance? I guess so. Does it betoken a change in the usually somewhat restrained response of audiences in Britain? Was the audience packed with Americans (who do this sort of thing rather as a matter of politeness)? Or is it simply the result of Shakespeare's genius and Spacey’s great acting skill?
One last question. Before Maestro Spacey, when was the last time a great American actor came to live and work in Britain, making such a tremendous contribution?
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