Getting drunk with the RSC

continued

see classic British stagecraft at its best.

"Residency" is perhaps too ambitious a word. It's more of a time-share: the entire visit lasts less than a month. If you can't afford or can't score tickets to any of the three plays, you can still enter into the spirit of the thing by attending some of the many lectures, workshops, and receptions, many involving cast and crew, that take place throughout autumn. (A recent press release claims over forty public events and ninety-five discrete private events. Perhaps they meant "discreet.") On Tuesday, October 3, for instance, there's a panel discussion on Julius Caesar at Rackham. If you sit near the front, you may have your own moment of glory when it's broadcast on channel 22.

When the RSC was last here, in 2003, the three productions (Coriolanus, The Merry Wives of Windsor, and Salman Rushdie's Midnight's Children) were glorious, and I popped into as many of the ancillary events as I could. Late one night after the opening performance of Midnight's Children, I walked over to the community reception at Zanzibar. I suspected I wouldn't be able to get in the door, as it was to include the well-advertised presence of Salman Rushdie, as well as the cast and crew of all shows. I was surprised to find that though it was nicely crowded, even the big stars were accessible. I made my way to the corner to confront Greg Hicks, who had played the title role in the astonishing production of Coriolanus the week before.