Rambert: Life is a Dream at the Theatre Royal Plymouth Review

Reviewed by Chelsea Wright

As always, staff at the Theatre Royal in Plymouth were accommodating, warm and welcoming. Their professional yet friendly nature is always endearing. The site itself was clean and everything ran smoothly this evening.

Before watching this play, read the programme, the stories inside are compelling and add a lot to what is happening on stage. It’s basis on the Spanish baroque play from 1635, written by Calderón, comprising a Polish prince who has been incarcerated since childhood due to his father’s nightmares. The prince is freed for a single day, and his rage at what he has missed consumes him, leading to a day of violence, rape and murder. He is incarcerated once again, but told that what he experienced in the outside world was merely a dream, and his mind grows as he wonders if everything he knows his merely an illusion; he approaches the world with caution when he is set free a second time, in fear that it will be taken from him like a dream.

Brandstrup and Bruls drew from this play to create a simple, yet vividly engaging story. In this recreation, we focus on the director’s thoughts and imaginations as he falls asleep in the rehearsal space. You learn the story of the Polish prince through these sectors, however these are wildly built upon and exaggerated in parts as the director’s imaginations continue to grow without limitation. The Rambert dancers involved in this production were beautifully skilled and their physical power and grace is completely awe inspiring. Further, the music was gripping and beautifully entwined with the choreography.

Overall, this masterpiece is mesmerising and utterly thought-provoking, leaving us all wondering more and more about the limits of our imagination and the existence of the realities around us.

Rating: 5/5

Tickets cost from £12.50 to £28 (booking fees may apply).

Rambert: Life is a Dream is at the Theatre Royal in Plymouth from 27-28 November 2018, for more information or to book tickets visit www.theatreroyal.com or call the box office on 01752 267222.

Theatre Royal Plymouth, Royal Parade, Plymouth, PL1 2TR | 01752 267222