“Puzel hath bravely played her part”: National Sensibilities in English and Canadian Adaptations of Shakespeareæs HENRY VI in 2002
 

This paper will discuss two separate adaptations of 1-3 HENRY VI, one a Propeller Production, performed at the Theatre Royal Haymarket in London with an all-male cast, the other by the Stratford Festival, Canada with mixed cast. The framework for the productions was similar - three parts reduced to two with extensive cuts.  What was most interesting about the two productions was what exactly was cut.  In the London production, the focus was on internecine strife that engulfed the English monarchy and nobility.  In the Stratford production, part One dealt mainly with the cross-Channel expeditions of Henry VI’s forces, part Two with the collapse of Henryæs monarchy. The most obvious textual difference between the two productions was the elimination of Joan La Pucelle from the London production.  French influence on England was seen through the machinations of Queen Margaret.  In the Stratford Canada production, Joan played a large role in Part One: Revenge in France. Visually, the productions were also very different.  The Propeller Production was set in an abbatoir and costuming was twentieth century.  The Stratford production was more traditional, using an extended thrust stage, but having a second upper stage composed of scaffolding running two thirds of the length of the thrust.  Costuming was of a more period look. The choices that were made by each separate production indicate a larger issue.  Do national sensibilities inform production choices? What issues become evident when two diverse productions, using the same base material, create radically different products? This paper will discuss the intersection of national sensibility and dramatic production as evidenced in these two diverse interpretations of HENRY VI.