Entertainment reporter
Manuel HarlanFrom playing Anthony in Bridgerton to Fiyero in Wicked, Jonathan Bailey has nailed the art of portraying regal characters.
The trend continues as he now takes on the role of Shakespeare’s Richard II at the Bridge Theatre in London.
He tells the BBC that his portrayal of the authoritarian king who ruled in the 1300s was inspired by HBO’s Succession, which explores the power struggle between the children of media mogul Logan Roy.
“I channelled many Roys,” Bailey explains, adding that Richard II “explores inherited power in a very similar way to Succession but also expands on it and takes it to a new level”.
The first of Shakespeare’s history plays, Richard II sees the unlikeable and corrupt king be usurped by his cousin Henry Bolingbroke who goes on to become Henry IV.
Directed by Nicholas Hytner, the modern-dress production sees Bailey as a cocaine-snorting and camp king.
The 36-year-old said he chose to take on the role of Richard II as there was “so much to explore with his character”.
“It’s a feast of a play and really speaks to our times – it’s fascinating to explore a king who has a cast iron right to rule.”
‘Commands the stage’
Bailey’s performance has been positively received by most critics.
The Guardian’s three star review said his “words glitter with feeling” and added that he “singularly shines, his luminosity putting the others slightly in the shade”.
The Evening Standard’s review added that Bailey “commands the stage and even allows a little camp to seep into the character” while the Independent said, in a four-star review, that Bailey has “an infectious spirit of camp naughtiness, he hugs his crown like a teddy bear, aims wry put-downs at dull courtiers, and bosses his court around like they’re actors in a play”.
However, in a three-star review, Dominic Cavendish from the Telegraph suggestedthat Bailey “doesn’t attain the greatness of Ben Whishaw and David Tennant”.
There was also praise for some of the other actors, notably Michael Simkins. The Times said his Duke of York is “stateliness personified”, but also awarded three stars overall.
The New York Times also commended Simkins: “His finger-wagging exasperation, verging at times on slapstick, gives an audience-friendly commentary on the unfolding intrigue.”
Manuel HarlanNewer fans of Bailey may not realise that he is first and foremost a theatre actor.
In 2013, he played Cassio in Hytner’s Othello at the National Theatre and has also performed alongside Ian McKellen in King Lear.
Productions of Shakespeare’s plays rarely have a large audience of young women, but Bailey’s appeal among that demographic seems to have inspired them to visit the theatre.
“It makes me so happy to inspire a new generation of young people coming to the theatre,” he says.
“If 10 people per show come and see Shakespeare for the first time then I’m doing something right.”
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