Arcadia Review: Old Vic Revival Brings Stoppard's Masterpiece to Life
Tom Stoppard's celebrated play Arcadia has returned to the London stage in a stellar and lust-filled revival at the Old Vic. Directed by Carrie Cracknell, this new production excels at weaving together two distinct time periods, building towards an ending that delivers powerful emotional resonance.
A Timeless Exploration of Knowledge and Desire
Set across two centuries—the dawn of the Romantic era in the early 1800s and the modern day of 1993—Arcadia follows characters obsessed with uncovering hidden truths. As historical author Hannah, played by Leila Farzad, declares: "It's wanting to know that makes us matter." This line encapsulates the play's central theme: humanity's relentless pursuit of knowledge, often derailed by the distractions of sex, boredom, and existential fears.
Cracknell's production abandons traditional rolling lawns and Classical architecture for a fluid, dimly-lit, in-the-round staging. This innovative approach emphasises how these characters reach beyond the known world, grasping for understanding amidst personal turmoil.
Brilliant Performances Across Time Periods
In the Romantic past, Isis Hainsworth delivers a captivating performance as Thomasina, a teenage maths prodigy reminiscent of Ada Lovelace. She portrays a thirteen-year-old whose intellectual brilliance surpasses modern scientists, yet retains whimsical dreams of marrying Lord Byron. Her tutor, Septimus Hodge (Seamus Dillane), encourages her genius with promises of extra jam, while navigating his own romantic entanglements that threaten to culminate in a duel.
The modern scenes feature Prasanna Puwanarajah as the hilariously unsavoury scholar Bernard, whose ponytailed perversion and ill-advised theories about Byron provide comic relief. However, Cracknell's interpretation occasionally lets these cynical moments drag, with Hannah's sexually repressed feminist archetype feeling somewhat dated for contemporary audiences.
Staging That Mirrors Cosmic Connections
Designer Alex Eales transforms the Old Vic into an intricate miniature galaxy. A revolving set with concentric rings allows the cast to orbit each other like planetary bodies, creating a beautiful naturalness to their near-collisions. This physical staging underscores the play's themes of missed connections and unsolved historical mysteries.
One particularly moving moment sees Septimus burn an unopened letter from Byron, sacrificing potential knowledge to prove a point to the woman he desires. Such scenes highlight Stoppard's exploration of how lust, arrogance, and random fate often hinder intellectual pursuit.
Emotional and Intellectual Depth
Stoppard masterfully demonstrates the power of learning through passionate speeches on algorithms and the nature of time. Yet he equally exposes the human frailties that obstruct understanding. Watching Arcadia feels like being educated by a brilliant lecturer who uses the "hot sauce of sex" to make complex material digestible.
Gradually, the play transitions from intellectual exercise to emotional experience, building towards a heartbreaking conclusion that illustrates how easily passion and knowledge can dissipate. Cracknell's revival ensures this balance between thought and feeling resonates powerfully with audiences.
This production of Arcadia runs at the Old Vic until 21 March, offering a timely reminder of Stoppard's enduring genius and the timeless human quest for meaning amidst chaos.
