This is part of a series of shorter reviews from Edinburgh Fringe, August 2024.
From theatre group “Three Witty Fools”, “The Complete Works” is a retelling of Shakespeare’s 37 plays across 50 minutes. The result is a mix of mayhem and silliness in what is ultimately a sketch comedy, with some linking themes of friendship between the three players.
The play begins with the actors performing “Romeo and Juliet” (after getting rid of ‘unnecessary’ characters such as Lady Capulet and Lady Montague), with Juliet recreating the balcony scene by sitting on another actor’s shoulders. The fight scenes and death scenes are suitably chaotic, and at the end of this heavily edited version, the actors check their watches to find that twelve minutes have passed. They need to speed up if they are to get through all plays before their time runs out. The imminent threat of the next act (an adult puppet show) waiting backstage adds to the drama.
R&J is followed by Titus Andronicus (presented as a daytime cookery show), all Shakespeare’s comedies mixed into one, a football game between the kings of the History plays, and Troilus and Cressida presented as interpretive dance. The play finishes with a particularly hilarious version of Hamlet, which sees Ophelia drown herself by throwing a glass of water over her head.
“Three Witty Fools” is comprised of three 16 year olds (Barnaby, Henry and Sam), who raised money via a crowd funder to bring “The Complete Works” (a play written by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield) to the Fringe. The comedy is incredibly over the top and may not be to everyone’s taste, and a basic knowledge of Shakespeare is a pre-requisite, but this is an enjoyable hour that will leave you needing to catch your breath at the end.
Tom Morley, August 2024
“The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)” has now ended its run at Surgeons Hall.
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