Schaubuhne Berlin

Commanding centre stage in this full-throttle, raucous adaptation, Shakespeare’s antihero is portrayed as displaying a repugnant magnetism difficult to resist.

Resplendent in black tie, showered in glitter, the victorious Yorks celebrate. Damaged and disfigured, Richard finds no peace among this elite to whom he has never fully belonged. Murdering his way to the throne, exposing conflict and mistrust in his wake, the outsider makes us complicit, addressing us directly to reveal his manipulative plans.

One of Europe’s most distinctive directors, Thomas Ostermeier reinvents classic plays with confrontational, compact interpretations that draw audiences close to the stage action. Setting his gritty production in a clay-lined arena, where visceral materials congeal to suggest something in decay, he presents his Richard III as both a theatrical thriller and study in evil – a visit to one’s innermost abyss.

In the title role, popular German actor Lars Eidinger is part rock star, part stand-up comedian, his darkly charismatic take matched by a score of ferocious live drumming.

Richard III is performed in German with English surtitles.