Othello Peckham
Zackary Momoh as Othello and Harriet Green as Desdemona. Photo by Adam Levy.
Selected Reviews
‘Nominated for three Offies (off West End Awards), critics have hailed this powerful retelling of
Shakespeare’s classic tale of love and betrayal. Catch it before it ends.’
~
‘If you see one retelling of a Shakespearean classic this year, make sure it’s this one. ‘
~
‘The Peckham Spring may have been a myth, but if anyone tells you the area currently hosts the
best performance of Shakespeare London has to offer, believe them. A remarkable piece of work’
~
‘…gives new perspectives on relationships between characters. ‘
~
‘This is a deeply engaging production.’
~
End of year review.
‘.a horrifically compelling Othello at Peckham’s extraordinary Bussey Building. My favourite Shakespeare of the year, this production was bang up to date, but captured all the poetry of the Bard’s
tale of jealousy and scheming. It was, as Shakespeare should be, entertaining and thought-provoking, delivered with energy and wit.’
~
‘an electrifying production with a young and talented cast who inhabited the immediacy of each moment. This is an exceptional phenomenon…and is a mark of this company’s excellence that they
have achieved it.’
Review Highlights.
The cast
Magnificently ~ Staggering ~ Passion ~ Conviction ~ A gem - Excellently played ~ Fantastic ~
Chemistry ~ Superbly ~ Playfully ~ Stunningly painful ~ Poignant ~ Touching ~ Effective ~ Heart
wrenching ~ Very moving ~ Very strong ~ Truly heartbreaking ~ Sexual sizzle ~ An interesting
sisterhood ~ Convincing ~ Funny ~ Great passion ~ Emotional pyrotechnics ~ Committed ~
Nominated
The Production
Powerful ~ Catch it ~ Really special ~ Confident ~ The best Shakespeare London has to offer ~
Remarkable ~ Cohesively ~ Honest ~ Confrontational ~ Excels ~ Interesting ~ New perspectives ~
Deeply engaging ~ We assure you its worth the jaunt ~ Horrifically compelling ~ Bang up to date ~
Entertaining ~ Thought provoking ~ Energy ~ Wit ~ Nominated
THE DIRECTION
Spirited ~ Fresh ~ Relevant ~ Committed ~ Good knowledge ~ Fiery ~ Sincere ~ Talented cast ~
Interesting production ~ New perspectives on the relationships ~ Immediacy of the emotion hits you
between the eyes ~ Focus on the performances ~ Weeping on the edge of their seats ~ Nominated
Tweets
Tears shed ~ Breath held ~ Fantastic ~ Spellbound ~ Wonderful ~ A pleasure and privilege to attend
~ Great ~ Buzzing ~ Brilliant ~ All should see ~ Cracking ~ Bursting ~ Extremely well directed ~
Highly recommended ~ Thoroughly enjoyed every minute ~ Compelling ~ Congrats ~ Loved the
production ~ Amazing ~ Rapturous applause ~ Amazing evening, go see ~ Amazing performances ~
Fantastic actors ~ A night well spent ~ Heartfelt ~ Don’t miss it
COMMENTS
Fantastic ~ Energy ~ Passion ~ Excellent ~ Profound impact ~ Intimate ~ Pacy ~ Relevant
transformed ~ Positive impact ~ Electrifying production ~ Talented cast ~ Inhabited the immediacy
of each moment ~ An exceptional phenomenon ~ Excellence ~ A new generation ~ Excel ~
Completely bowled over by an extra-ordinary production ~ Renewed faith ~ Engrossed ~ Involved ~
Fascinating ~ Alive ~ Consummate story telling ~ Most engaging production ~ Innovative ~ Fresh ~
Compelling ~ Lost for words ~ Moved me ~ Completely blown away ~ Power ~ Emotion ~ Passion ~
Talent ~ Privilege ~ Just amazing ~ Thank you
Nominations for The Off West End Awards 2014.
The Cast were nominated for a Best Ensemble.
Jack Johns was nominated for a Best Actor.
Anthony Green was nominated for a Best Director.
Reviews for the Cast.
There isn't a weak link.
Zackary Momoh…rises magnificently to the challenge of Othello's turmoil and rage.
Zackary Momoh gives a staggering performance as a man driven to despair by the twisted lies of
someone he trusts. Every emotion he expressed with passion and conviction, making it impossible
to hate Othello even when he finally commits murder.
Zackary Momoh gives a magnetic performance as Othello the Moor.
But any
stands or falls by its Iago, and in Jack Johns the production has unearthed a gem.
The comic potential of the enigmatic Iago is exploited to good effect here. Iago, who is excellently
played by Jack Johns.
Jack Johns gives a fantastic lead performance as an insidious Iago; comic and beguiling but with
flashes of real malice. Meanwhile, Zackary Momoh has a strong presence as Othello and portrays
his inner conflict with a resolute pride. The chemistry between the two makes for the play's best
scenes.
The performance, like Shakespeare’s language, is so decadent that the audience might as well be
one of Iago’s playthings – being passed around and mesmerised by the tale.
Zackary Momoh and Harriet Green work superbly together as the tragic lovers, Othello and
Desdemona. They bounce off each other playfully, making the second half of the production – the
gory climax– stunningly painful.
An excellent build of tension and tone was created in the poignant scene where Emilia (Izabella
Urbanowicz) prepares Desdemona (Harriet Green) for bed.
Harriet Green's Desdemona is touching and effective without being saccharine.
In particular the relationship between Desdemona (Harriet Green) and Emilia shows an interesting
sisterhood of two women drawn ever closer together as their husbands turn against them.
Urbanowicz’s shows Emilia’s despair at the climax of the play and it is all the more moving and
convincing because we have seen her reliance on Desdemona for mutual strength.
There are some heart-wrenching moments in the performance, especially in the final act when
Desdemona chats to Emilia before her impending death and when Emilia (very moving Izabella
Urbanowicz) slowly realises that her husband is responsible for her friend’s death which drives her
to despair.
The cast as a whole are very strong, particularly Izabella Urbanowicz as Iago’s wife and
Desdamona’s attendant Emilia. Urbanowicz has a relatively small role until the final scenes, where I
found her acting truly heartbreaking at the moment Emilia realises the part she has played in
Desdamona’s death.
Harriet Green gives the maligned wife some backbone (and sexual sizzle with Othello)…she and
Izabella Urbanowicz's Emilia are moving in their final scene together as two women shadowed by
violence.
The production’s greatest asset is its cast; they’re all strong particularly Max Calandrew, as a funny
and rather pitiful Roderigo, and Izabella Urbanowicz, who brings great passion to the role of Emilia.
Max Calandrew is a wonderfully gormless Roderigo.
There is some solid support from Max Calandrew’s gormless Roderigo, Callam McGowan’s smooth
Cassio and in particular Izabella Urbanowicz as steely Emilia.
Bianca may be a minor character whose function is little more than to bring in the handkerchief at
an opportune moment, but Tanya Mattouk for once makes us feel her pain at Cassio's treatment of
her.
The supporting cast…is also memorable - Max Calandrew's love-sick Roderigo increasingly tearful
and Callum McGowan a flirtatious Cassio... Nick Howard-Brown as Brabantio, Nathan Lee as the
Duke and Alex Woolf as Lodovico balance the emotional pyrotechnics and subterfuges of the lead
characters.
The cast all put in committed performances that are based on a good knowledge of the text.
Jack Johns as Iago and Zackary Momoh as Othello. Photo by Adam Levy.
Reviews for the Production.
“Nominated for three Offies (off West End Awards), critics have hailed this powerful retelling of
Shakespeare’s classic tale of love and betrayal. Catch it before it ends on February 22.”
If you see one retelling of a Shakespearean classic this year, make sure it’s this one.
The production feels like something really special.
"ragged, robust energy…pacy production"
"This confident staging of Shakespeare’s tale of murderous obsession and sexual intrigue... rarely
puts a foot wrong."
“The Peckham Spring may have been a myth, but if anyone tells you the area currently hosts the
best performance of Shakespeare London has to offer, believe them. A remarkable piece of work”
The talented cast work cohesively to create an honest and confrontational version of Shakespeare’s
play which excels”
This is an interesting production which gives new perspectives on relationships between characters.
“This is a deeply engaging production. Peckham Rye may be as off West End as it gets, but we
assure you, it's worth making the jaunt south of Leicester Square… particularly whilst such a strong
production is running there.”
End of year review.
Just £12 was enough to secure a seat for a horrifically compelling Othello at Peckham's
extraordinary Bussey Building back in January. My favourite Shakespeare of the year, this production
was bang up to date, but captured all the poetry of the Bard's tale of jealousy and scheming. It was,
as Shakespeare should be, entertaining and thought-provoking, delivered with energy and wit and
made you look forward to seeing your next version of the work.
Reviews for the Director.
“Anthony Green’s production of
is not a showy one, but this is a relief….the production’s
greatest asset is its cast; they’re all strong.”
“Director Anthony Green has brought Othello to the Bussey Building in Peckham Rye; where a
spirited young company in modern dress make the play - arguably the most difficult of all
Shakespeare’s tragedies - feel fresh, relevant.”
“Anthony Green’s directorial debut goes a long way to portraying the many facets of this tragedy…
the cast all put in committed performances that are based on a good knowledge of the text…Green
has kept his focus on the performances, which are fiery and sincere.”
“Director Anthony Green has guided his talented young cast well and the language flows with a
rhythm that draws out the nuances of characters… Also to Green's credit is the fact that the cast are
universally able to communicate the meaning clearly within the text…This is an interesting
production which gives new perspectives on relationships between characters”
“It's this immediacy of emotion that hits you between the eyes…Green is very well served by his
young cast”
Green has kept his focus on the performances, which are fiery and sincere.
Also to Green's credit is the fact that the cast are universally able to communicate the meaning
clearly within the text.
“When the curtains go down on Anthony Green’s production, the audience will be weeping on the
edge of their seats… If you see one retelling of a Shakespearean classic this year, make sure it’s this
one.”
Director Anthony Green has guided his talented young cast well and the language flows with a
rhythm that draws out the nuances of characters.
Audience feedback
via Twitter.
Please check out these and more @othellopeckham
Other Comments
“In February 2013 I took twelve A level Students from Bonus Pastor Catholic College in Lewisham to
see Anthony Green’s Othello. It was a fantastic production, bristling with energy and passion. The
young cast were excellent and their performances left a profound impact on my students. For my
students, who had studied the text in class, to see a live performance which was so intimate and yet
pacy and energetic and a production design that was so modern and relevant to them, really blew
the students away.
Back in the classroom their understanding and appreciation of Shakespeare’s play was transformed,
and I am convinced that the experience had a positive impact on their A level examination results. In
addition Anthony Green, the director, came into my school following the performance, to run a
workshop in class with the students. This was a huge benefit to the students who were not only
able to meet and learn from a real theatre director, but were also able to see the play from the
perspective of a professional actor,
and to think about Shakespeare in a new performance focused context. I would not hesitate to bring
my students to any future productions that Anthony directs. He is able to make Shakespeare come
alive for students.”
“I knew that when I came to visit the company during rehearsals, there was a already a highly
committed company led by a more than capable director.
What transpired was an electrifying production with a young and talented cast who inhabited the
immediacy of each moment. This is an exceptional phenomenon even though it should be on top of
everyone’s production list and is a mark of this company’s excellence that they have achieved it.
It should come as no surprise that in somewhere like the Bussey Building in Peckham, a new
generation of actors are cutting their teeth and providing excellence. It may however be difficult to
recognise; but with the almost total disappearance of the national repertory system and fringe
theatre often working with established names whose careers are under way, such a company as
this, is where the leading actors of tomorrow start to excel. I look forward to their next production.”
“I knew no one involved in Anthony Green’s Othello at Peckham; I went because the social media
websites were buzzing about it. I was completely bowled over by an extraordinary production – and
came away with renewed faith in both the power and the enjoyment of theatre. The production was
bold but detailed and whilst being moving and passionate, was never indulgent. It was only clear in
retrospect that it had been worked on with a ferocious intelligence and diligence; at the time I was
too engrossed by the story to have such concerns. The acting was also uniformly excellent, with
characterisation that was both fascinating and alive. Most importantly of all, there was full
engagement between the characters, with the audience being involved in every tiny moment as it
was lived out in front of us, whilst we were also being swept along by consummate story telling. It
was the best Othello that I had seen but it also joins the handful of the most engaging productions I
have ever seen, which includes Peter Brook’s Midsummer Nights Dream and Trevor Nunn’s Nicholas
Nickleby. It is a mark of genuine appreciation that I got in touch with Anthony, simply to ask how he
did it!”
Anthony Green’s production of Othello was an innovative, fresh compelling new look at the play,
which left me feeling I was seeing it for the first time. I can’t wait to see what he tackles next.
To all the cast and crew
- I came to tonight’s performance of Othello and I am actually quite lost for words in explaining how
much it moved me. I have never seen a live performance of Othello before, or indeed any Shakespeare play. I was completely blown away by the impact, power and emotion of the play and
thought your cast were absolutely outstanding. The passion and talent I was privileged to witness
tonight will stay with me for a long time and I cannot thank you all enough for that. Just amazing.
Thank you.
Zackary Momoh as Othello and Callum McGowan as Cassio. Photo by Adam Levy