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Done deal with the devil
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In league with Lucifer: Jocelyn Jee Esien as Dr Faustus Pic: Marc Brenner
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Doctor Faustus
Sam Wanamaker Playhouse, London
THE ATMOSPHERICALLY candle-lit Sam Wanamaker Playhouse is just about the perfect setting for Doctor Faustus and director Paulette Randall has ensured that her interpretation of Christopher Marlowe's cautionary tale makes great use of the venue's claustrophobic attributes.
On a dark, wood-panelled and vaguely masonic set, with three minstrels scratching eerie sound effects in the balcony above, Faustus's deal with the devil unfurls in shadowy fashion as Marlowe's polymathic lead, played with great elan by Jocelyn Jee Esien, opts to put short-term gain ahead of long-term pain.
It's a story that's especially apposite in these times, as is Marlowe's suggestion that hell is as easily found on earth as anywhere down below.
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