PROBLEMATIC PAIRING

As well as playing Isabella and Angelo in Measure for Measure, Emma Fielding and Daniel Evans also played Imogen and Posthumus in Dominic Cooke's production of Cymbeline. In the following audio interview, Emma Fielding and Daniel Evans look back on their roles in the RSC’s Cymbeline and Measure for Measure during the 2003 season at Stratford-upon-Avon:

EMMA FIELDING AND DANIEL EVANS ON SHAKESPEARE (Actors and Performers, Shakespeare and Renaissance Drama, 9 September 2003, theatrevoice.com website).

BARE WALL AND BARBED WIRE: ANTHONY LAMBLE'S DESIGNS

Designer Anthony Lamble was reunited with director Sean Holmes, both having worked previously on the RSC's production of Massinger's The Roman Actor. Lamble's sets were "vestigial - a bare brick wall here, a few strands of barbed wire for the prison" Charles Spencer, Daily Telegraph, 6 May 2003. There was no attempt to suggest Viennese decadence but rather a stark realism, complemented by Tim Mitchell's evocative lighting design which brilliantly suggested the different exterior and interior scenes. Strategically placed props included a freestanding door leading to Angelo's office and a guillotine in the prison, used for an onstage execution. The costume designs reflected the 1940s setting and, significantly, Isabella (Emma Fielding) wore secular dress rather a nun's habit, reflecting the anti-romantic approach to the play.