A History of the RSC in 50 Objects (Online)

COSTUME WORN BY ANTONY SHER

Richard III, 1984

Director: Bill Alexander
Designer: William Dudley

In this production Antony Sher played King Richard III. The costume design was inspired by a line from the play. In Act I, scene 3 Queen Margaret describes Richard III as a 'bottled spider'. The trailing sleeves and crutches that form part of this costume create the appearance of many legs.

Sher scuttled and swooped across the stage as if the crutches had become part of his body. This way of moving fascinated the critics and was mentioned in almost all of the newspaper reviews.

This production was the first Shakespeare play that Bill Alexander had directed on the main stage at the RSC. He had been directing for the company for seven years but had concentrated mainly on new work.