Othello and The Wire.

I was lucky enough recently to obtain 2 tickets to see the latest production of Othello. So last Tuesday, after a busy day in the operating theatre (excuse the pun) , my wife and I trotted off to the Crucible Theatre in Sheffield to see Dominic West and Clarke Peters play Iago and Othello in William Shakespeare's Othello. These two actors have worked together for years in the hit HBO series The Wire. I have to confess that I have never seen an episode of the Wire. I understand it has a cult following and that South Yorkshire born Dominic West is pretty good in it. I was therefore looking forward to the evening. I was not disappointed. Dominic West was fantastic as Iago. - very convincing in being both cheeky and devious.  He spoke in a local Sheffield accent and this worked really well. Shakespearean dialogue sounds really good in a Yorkshire accent - I suppose as it is closer to the English language of the 17th century, I should not be surprised.
Clarke Peters acting seemed stodgy in the first half - he sounded like a tired Nelson Mandela. In the second half he was much much better. His portrayal of Othello's burning jealousy, the murder of Desdemona and subsequent grief was jaw dropping. 
I really should go to the theatre more often!