This production of
Henry V finally came together at the dress rehearsal. Six weeks of intense rehearsal had culminated in the Technical Rehearsal where, for the first time, the actors got to grips with the requirements of costume and staging including handling a military jeep on stage. The dress rehearsal was the moment to bring every aspect of performance together. Then began the previews, the first outing for the new production before a paying audience, albeit a more indulgent and forgiving one than the cast would face on Press Night. The
Rehearsal Diary describes how, after a slightly shaky start, the performances grew in confidence and complexity during the
dress rehearsal and preview process.
The part of King Henry, played by Adrian Lester, is the defining role of the play. He must convince, as he establishes himself as a leader first of his country and then in battle. Follow how he approaches the different stages of the full arc of Henry’s journey within the production. First we see him, calm and authoritative, as a civilian leader in the
Prime Ministerial video – a broadcast designed to set the country on a war footing. We catch a glimpse of the wayward youth Henry has put firmly behind him in the
home video shot in the pub. We encounter a very different face of Henry, designed to intimidate the French with the threat of atrocities, as he warns the citizens of the
besieged Harfleur of the consequences of defying him. Then we see him at his inspirational best, rousing his demoralised and depleted army to return to battle with the speech "
Once more unto the breach ." Finally we witness Henry himself pay the price of war when he learns from his Uncle the Duke of Exeter, played by Peter Blythe, of the
deaths of two of his closest friends.