FOR Scottish theatre doyenne Maureen Beattie, it makes perfect sense for King Lear to be played by a woman – even if it could have Shakespeare traditionalists tutting with disapproval.
In another bold production marking Alan Cumming’s first season as artistic director of Pitlochry Festival Theatre, Beattie is starring as Lear in a new adaptation of the famous play.
Taking the lead role in a coveted part usually landed by a man is particularly fitting for Beattie, a former president of actor’s trade union Equity – only the second woman to hold the role when she was elected in 2018. During her tenure, she championed worker rights, notably leading the union’s Safe Spaces campaign and forming a task force to combat sexual harassment within the industry.
Having played a host of major parts over her illustrious career, she still fancied many of the traditionally male Shakespearean roles and told Cumming this after congratulating him on his appointment, which she said was “great for theatre in Scotland”.
“So many of these parts that were originally written for men lend themselves beautifully to being played by a woman,” she told the Sunday National. “And Alan being the wonderfully open-minded person that he is, agreed.”
Director Finn den Hertog said that after seeing Beattie in rehearsal, he could hardly imagine a man in the part.
“It has unlocked the play in a different way, where Lear is a matriarch, a mother as well as a monarch,” he said.
In this adaptation, the women are the holders of power.
“I think it’s working brilliantly,” said den Hertog. “The story to me now feels so clear as a mother and her daughters. There is something about the war between the generations that happens in this version of the play that feels really of the moment. The younger generation are desperate for the cracks to open so that they can take that power.”
Beattie admits the part is challenging and demanding.
“These plays take a lot of physical energy, not necessarily because you’re running around but because of the energy it takes to speak at that volume with that amount of emotional intensity,” she explained.
One of the challenges of playing Lear is to make the audience sympathise with her even when she is saying terrible things to her daughters, according to Beattie.
“Then you see the story unfold and see the motivations and the causes behind this behaviour,” she said. “Lear is someone who learns this massive lesson through the play and hopefully people will care about her because that’s just so important really. I think we’re on the right track with that.”
The play has been shortened but the text is still Shakespeare’s.
“Finn has done a wonderful job by bringing the interesting meaty bits together and getting rid of some of the floss so I’m thrilled and I’m having a marvellous time,” Beattie said.
The gender pronouns of the characters have been changed but it was agreed simply to call the adaptation Lear rather than Queen Lear as Beattie said that felt “a bit pedantic”.
Den Hertog said he hoped people would come to see it with a desire to hear an entertaining story.
“When you are putting on a Shakespeare play, one of the questions that gets asked a lot is ‘why now?’ but it’s always the right time to put these plays on,” he said. “They still resonate now because he was writing about universal themes and about humanity.”
Beattie agreed, saying it was interesting that Shakespeare had written King Lear when James I and VI was arguing “big time” with the Westminster Parliament that the Scottish and English parliaments should be united.
“Some people were on the side of the king and others were saying no and in the middle of all this, Shakespeare was writing a thing about a kingdom being shattered into two pieces” she pointed out.
“But he never says it is a really bad idea or that it is a really great idea. It was so politically brilliant because it’s about the people, the individual people who are involved and what that power does to them.”
The play also deals with the issue of ageing and cognitive decline.
Den Hertog added: “You can view this play sometimes as the family as a metaphor for the state or the state as a metaphor for the family. When the roles in a family shift, it can be really disconcerting. There is a cognitive shift that Lear has to go through and that is an interesting lens through which to view the play.”
This production involves a 10-strong ensemble on stage which den Hertog said is becoming “incredibly rare” in Scotland for a play of this kind.
“It’s fantastic and that is testament to Alan and Pitlochry for seeing that is what this play needed,” he said.
Also featuring in the cast is Forbes Masson, fresh from The High Life – The Musical, who plays Gloucester. He and Beattie are joined by Lindsey Campbell, Ali Craig, Ailsa Davidson, Jenny Hulse, Reuben Joseph, Beruce Khan, Mercy Ojelade and Dylan Read. The production features music by award-winning Scottish musician Brìghde Chaimbeul,
Beattie said it was a “terrific” company of actors.
“As an older – old, some would say – woman, I look at what’s coming through in Scotland in terms of young talent and it just fills me with delight because I think the future is going to be okay,” she said.
“It sounds a bit magazine-y but it’s really heartening because our business has never been easy. You have to have a carapace of cement to get through it and it’s more difficult than ever before. There’s so many people chasing fewer and fewer jobs. The money’s not around and to see these young people, with their dedication and everything they bring to the table, is really thrilling.”
Lear will première at Pitlochry Festival Theatre from July 4 – August 1
