Theatre: The Court Must Have a Queen

The Court Must Have a Queen

by Ade Solanke

Spora Stories and Hampton Court Palace

I definitely need to know more about the Black Tudors. 

Henry VIII (Siôn Tudor Owen) steals the show in this thoughtful play that takes place in the Great Hall at Hampton Court Palace. There is something so playfully exciting about seeing a real-life Henry, in his very own home! And there is a brilliant Cromwell too (Royce Cronin). He oozes a lawyer’s pragmatism and good sense, it contrasts with Henry’s larger than life presence and behaviour that becomes more erratic as the play proceeds. 

I was touched by the diplomat Henry Olisleger, the German diplomat representing Anne of Cleves. Like a child needing approval, he demanded he be honoured with a feast. Olisleger was played with great charm by Wesley Charles in the performance that I saw.

But it is two other characters that intrigue me. The Black trumpeter, John Blanke (Jack Benjamin) and his mother Maria, played beautifully by Marcia Lecky. Her declaration of faith and her conviction that Aragon, not England, is the place for people like them is a powerful moment. Although these are minor, perhaps hidden characters from history, the narrative of the Spanish Empire and the later British Empire emerges from their personal anxieties about faith and belonging. And these are legacies that we grapple with today. 

The Court Must Have a Queen runs from the 29 June to 02 September 2018, Thursday to Monday at Hampton Court Palace. Performances take place in the Great Hall at 11:30, 12:30 and 15:30 and last approximately 30 minutes.