Shakespeare is perhaps the only playwright who could get away with opening a work by excusing the low budget set design. Most producers would plough on regardless and hope the critics don't notice. In Henry V, however, the Chrous asks our pardon: it is a question of looking at what's there and imagining the rest – a technique also advocated by Imogen Bond, the director of Orange Tree Productions.
The Orange Tree approach is to ‘imitate the action of a tiger’ and pounce right in; since it's a common misconception that Shakespeare cannot be understood by children. ‘I think the fear of it is huge and that comes from being told for years that it's not for you or it's old or boring or difficult in some way.’
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