Amadeus Review

Star Theatres, Sat 26 Nov, 2022

Presented by Independent Theatre

Amadeus is a remarkable play. Written by Peter Shaffer and first performed in 1979, it is based on a fictional feud between Mozart and the court composer in Vienna at the time, Antonio Salieri. It’s quite Shakespearean in its level of gravitas and epic drama.

As an old man in his final hours Salieri feels the need to come clean and tell the audience (his ghosts of the future) what he’s done so we might set the record straight when we are born in our own future time. It’s a fascinating theatrical device and it works brilliantly.

Shaffer’s Mozart is a rude shock. He’s a bumbling, crass buffoon in the style of Monty Python’s depiction of upper class twits. No manners, no sense of decency, but a prodigious musical talent nevertheless. It drives Salieri crazy and he can do no better than refer to him as ‘that creature’.

The challenging task of portraying this brat of a Mozart falls to Ben Francis and he does a wonderful job. Manic, excitable, passionate, even vaguely endearing – he’s like an uncontrolled schoolboy buzzing about in his own world. Until he plays music – when he transforms into an angel.

Even Salieri has to admit Mozart’s music is magnificent. There are some wonderful moments when Salieri (played by David Roach) waxes lyrical in trance-like admiration of Mozart’s genius as we hear his music playing in the background.

The vast majority of the play has Salieri on stage and usually talking – it’s an incredibly demanding role that would challenge the best of actors. Roach has not quite got all of Salieri under his skin yet but it is an inspirational performance all the same. But ‘that creature’ certainly gets under his skin as he struggles with an intense jealousy towards his musical peer.

I loved the two Venticelli who function as Salieri’s spies around town and their scenes of eagerly reporting gossip back to Salieri in tandem comedy are really enjoyable.

There is so much to like about this production. The cast made ample use of the whole performance space of the Star Theatre to take us to the salons and concert halls of Vienna.

The set and costumes were a visual treat and though Shaffer’s Amadeus might be a little liberal with the facts, in this instance it’s a case of never let the truth get in the way of a good story!

(This review also published on The Clothesline.)