Updated Othello-Review Toby Jones plays Iago like a cantankerous middle manager

one of ShakespeareThe most notorious villain loses most of his malevolence in this star-studded reimagining othelloHere, the Machiavellian Iago is played by a well-known screen actor toby jonesWhich gives him all the imminent danger of the irritable middle manager leaving a passing EGG note on the work fridge. When Iago makes racist jokes david harwoodLike the politician Othello, the audience laughs loudly – ​​uncomfortably, unsure whose side they are on. Still, when the laughter subsides, war Horse co-director Tom Morris’ production revels in its horrorCreating a deeply disgusting tale of murder and manipulation.

Morris’s setting here is like modern Italy: a world of contrasts, where indoor spaces of lavish gilding and conclave-esque scarlet-cloaked officials give way to outdoor landscapes of beaches where wealthy women stroll in stylish resortwear. First, the Moorish general Othello must justify his secret marriage to Desdemona before the authorities of this oppressive city, in scenes that feel cramped and mundane on a small stage filled with gilded picture frames. Then a storm comes which shakes everything. Ty Greene’s ingenious set design lifts the pieces of this world into the air and jingles together like the wind-tossed boats of terrified Turkish invaders, before disappearing and leaving Othello on a sun-drenched stage to celebrate both his marriage and his military victory.

Harewood exudes warmth and dignity in these triumphant scenes. He has a long history with the role, as the first black actor to play Othello at the National Theater in 1997. As a more experienced actor reprises the role, he’s got a self-contained, confident energy rather than feeling like a warrior desperate to bring Iago to an end. This production’s Desdemona also finds a new maturity, with the American-accented Caitlin Fitzgerald playing her as a woman with a past – a fellow outsider, Othello’s equal in every way. Morris has chopped up her lines here, removed her most unpleasant moments and fired back at her increasingly suspicious husband’s accusations.

Still, there’s a certain chemistry missing in their interactions – it doesn’t feel like this quiet Desdemona is so sexually charmed by Othello that she can’t run away from him, even if her life is at stake. Morris is good at moments of physical violence here – the entire audience laughs in unison as we hear a blow as sharp as celery in the spine. Moments of psychological violence, less. As Iago, Jones is utterly convincing without channeling the inner darkness you’d expect from this destructive force. Instead, an excellent Vinette Robinson becomes the emotional heart of the play as Desdemona’s maid Emilia. Before plunging into her pursuit of justice, she bitterly says, “Men are stomachs: they eat us, then burp us up.”

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A notable highlight of the play is the unsettling moment when two heartbroken women sing “The Willow Song”, the play’s tragic folk song given a haunting setting by the play’s composer, PJ Harvey. This staging could do with more moments of lyricism and menace, to capture the deadly nature of the evil that comes through. Instead, it feels like an entertaining but ultimately inspiring take on Shakespeare’s tale of a fanatical manipulator.

At the Theater Royal Haymarket until January 17; tickets here