Twelfth Night (Vol. 26) | Eric Keown (review date 25 May 1960)

Eric Keown (review date 25 May 1960)

SOURCE: A review of Twelfth Night in Punch, Vol. CCXXXVIII, No. 6244, May 25, 1960, p. 737.

It is always interesting to see a successful production revived with a different cast, and from Peter Hall's 1958 Stratford Twelfth Night only Dorothy Tutin, Patrick Wy-mark and Ian Holm remain. This makes the third in Mr. Hall's sequence of Shakespearian comedies. Its performance is considerably stronger than it was two years ago.

In particular Miss Tutin's Viola has grown up immeasurably. I admire very much the way she has overcome her inability to speak verse. To the most taking sincerity which is natural to her she now adds maturity and confidence; her Viola, fresh and spirited and full of humour, is altogether delightful. From Eric Porter Malvolio gets a new complexion. Instead of the fantasticated butt who must always have been a poor steward, he plays him as a grave and responsible administrator...

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