It’s a big ask for a weekday in Hammersmith: a radical reworking of Jean Racine’s 17th century French verse play about Nero’s metamorphosis from Rome’s brat-emperor into its psycho tyrant. At least adapter Timberlake Wertenbaker prunes the action – if that’s the right word for something so declamatory and explanatory – back to 95 minutes, which is a blessing.
Atri Banerjee’s half-solemn, half-ironic production is mounted on a starkly lit stage, largely bare apart from conference chairs, a water-cooler, a tapestry of Romulus and Remus and a stuffed wolf. It features some fine performances, though sadly not from It’s a Sin star Nathaniel Curtis in the already-insipid title role of Nero’s rival stepbrother. The knot of political, filial and incestuous sexual tension in the story is so tight and specific that the idea of contemporary relevance is laughable. Yes, Nero is a murderous dictator. Yes, there are murderous dictators in the world today. Duh.
