Jim France as Charles III
Mike Bartlett’s deliberately and delightfully Shakespearean King Charles III is a history play about things that haven’t happened yet. It begins with a sad eventuality — the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II who’s still very much alive, but 90-years-old. What follows is the story of a man — Prince Charles — who gets the thing he’s been been preparing for his entire life, only to discover it’s all happened too late. Written in verse, Charles is a show with everything — suspense, intrigue, the ghost of Princess Di, etc.
As evidenced by supermarket tabloids, Americans remain fascinated by Great Britain’s royal family, even if New World audiences don’t seem to care for Shakespeare’s multi-volume game of thrones. Still, given the Parliamentary crisis at the heart of Bartlett’s play, there was something I wanted to ask Dave Landis, who’s directing the show for Playhouse on the Square: Just how British is it?
Dave Landis: It obviously deals with the royals we know — Charles, William, Harry, Kate Middleton, Camilla. Even the next generation are mentioned in passing. There is some British politics involved but it’s all pretty straight-forward. Parliament passes a bill into law and the King is supposed to sign it because that’s tradition. But, out of the blue, the King decides ‘I don’t want to sign it.’ That’s when all hell breaks loose. Beyond that as a basic catalyst, there’s stuff about the role of the monarchy. It’s purpose. Has it out-lived it’s usefulness?
In a more personal way, it’s about the family and their individual wants and desires and objectives and how they set about pursuing them.
Dave Landis Talks About ‘King Charles III’ at Playhouse on the Square
An interview with King Charles III star Jim France.
