Anne Boleyn - Upcoming Novel!

Following on from my last post, those of you who are also fascinated by Anne Boleyn may be interested to know that there is a novel coming out about her later this year.

See Le Temps Viendra: A Novel of Anne Boleyn for more information about the plot, or check out author Sarah Morris' facebook page for details of the extensive research she is carrying out to make her novel historically accurate.

I personally can't WAIT to read this!!

Toodles!
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Theatre Production Review: Anne Boleyn

My mum came to visit me in Edinburgh last weekend, so I treated her to tickets for the closing night of the play ‘Anne Boleyn’ at Edinburgh’s Festival Theatre.
You can imagine our delight when we arrived and the Upper Circle tickets I had booked got upgraded to Dress Circle ones free of charge!
The production was a joint collaboration by English Touring Theatre and Shakespeare’s Globe and written by Howard Brenton.

Anne Boleyn is one of those figures of English history that sparks a ton of different opinions. Some people love her, as the passionate, ill-done-by mother of one of our longest reigning Queens. Others judge her as a manipulative schemer.

I fall into the first category. I am entranced by the story of this woman who apparently resisted the advances of the King for up to 7 years, who suffered through the birth of an unwanted daughter followed by three miscarriages, only to finally be accused of witchcraft and incest leading to her death.

Synopsis.

The play surprised me, as it does not focus on those milestones of marriage, coronation, birth of Elizabeth I and Anne’s death, but concentrated more on her religious and political aspirations.

It starts with an introduction to King James I, who took over the reins of King of England following the death of Elizabeth I. He seeks advice from the dead Anne Boleyn with regards to combining the factions of the Church currently existing in England to put an end to the religious unrest.

The play then steps back in time and follows Anne through her meetings with the heretic, William Tyndale, her alliance with Thomas Cromwell, and the breaking of this alliance when she discovers he has been stealing money from the dissolved monasteries.

We then discover how quickly Cromwell put the case against Anne together, ultimately ending in her death.

 Programme Cover for 'Anne Boleyn'

I’d never seen this side of Anne Boleyn portrayed before and found it fascinating to watch, and actually caught myself holding my breath at some points!

There were also some excellent comical moments that I didn’t expect from a historical play – James I dancing with his supposed lover, George Villiers, and Henry VIII begging to be allowed, after 5 years, to move his hand past Anne’s knee!

However I did feel that there was, particularly in the second act, too heavy an emphasis on James I. Personally, as a fan of Anne Boleyn, I would have preferred to see a little more of her, such as the secret wedding, her relationship with Henry, her reaction to her miscarriages and her execution. This last was not shown at all, which surprised me, as I had anticipated that as the final scene, and was actually a little disappointed it wasn’t shown at all.

Jo Herbert, who played Anne Boleyn, didn't look how I expected an Anne Boleyn actress to look (although I guess I have been brainwashed by the BBC production with Natalie Dormer!), but I felt she captured the spirit of Anne brilliantly, and portrayed her as a gutsy woman who stood strong in her religious and ethical beliefs in what was essentially a man's world.

Overall, I would recommend this play to people who are fans of Anne Boleyn and Tudor history; I very much enjoyed the different take on her experience along with the laugh out loud moments, and would be happy to see it again.

Take Care!
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