The Duchess of Malfi, Old Vic, London

Not only did I get to see this superb production the other, but I was lucky enough to go on a night when the main cast members came on stage at the end to conduct a question-and-answer session with the audience. Only a handful of people stayed, so it was quite casual and intimate; quite a privilege. Eve Best (who was wonderful in the title role) said that that she found it harder to learn lines of this play than any other play she'd acted in. The other cast members concurred, suggesting that it was the irregularity of the verse, and its regular lapses into prose that made it difficult. Everyone agreed however, that 'The Duchess of Malfi' contains wonderful poetry. The irregularity of the verse may be because its a relatively late Jacobean work, written in the year of Shakespeare's death.