The Rape of Lucrece
February 2013
A one-woman production, ‘The Rape of Lucrece’ stars acclaimed Irish performer Camille O’Sullivan taking on the roles of Tarquin and Lucrece while accompanied on stage by long-time collaborator and pianist, Feargal Murray.
As an actress, O’Sullivan has appeared in films including ‘Mrs Henderson Presents’, ‘Summer in February’ (due out in 2013), ‘Over the Edge’ and ‘November Afternoon’, and has gained a formidable reputation for her interpretation of the songs of Jacques Brel, Nick Cave and David Bowie. She explains why the rarely-performed Shakespeare tragedy was a hit at the 2012 Edinburgh International Festival, winning a prestigious Bank of Scotland Angel Award for outstanding performances.
“Shakespeare paints pictures with his words, it’s so easy to get lost in them,” O’Sullivan says. “He uses landscape and animals as metaphors and he relates it all to people. He understood so much the vulnerability of somebody but I love that he understood the evil and strength of people, too. Growing up in Ireland, I was always intimidated by Shakespeare’s words but the Royal Shakespeare Company encourages you to speak it in your own words and your own emotions, to make it your own. You feel like you’re living his words. It’s very important not to get scared by the language. It all feels very present and not like something from 400 years ago.”
The Rape of Lucrece shows at the Southbank Theatre, The Sumner until February 10.
Photo by: Keith Pattison
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