Doctor Faustus

London's reconstructed Globe Theatre departs from its usual Shakespeare menu with this 2011 production of Christopher Marlowe's famed play about the fabled necromancer who sells his soul to the devil in return for 24 years of a life full of knowledge and power. Matthew Dunster's production opts for the shorter 1604 text, and—like Globe mountings of the Bard—goes for big laughs in the knockabout comic interludes, including a coarse sight gag involving urination. The staging also features the puppetry that the Globe designers favor, as well as extravagant costumes, masks, and some cheesy visual effects, such as a book that bursts into flames when opened (viewers will also witness plenty of bloodletting during a torture scene at the papal court). But none of the razzmatazz can conceal the fact that this is a somewhat flat rendition of the play, with Paul Hilton an undernourished Faustus and Arthur Darvill an even blander Mephistopheles. Neither gives Marlowe's finest lines the charismatic delivery they deserve, and although the supporting cast is enthusiastic, they also often go too far (as in their personification of the seven deadly sins). But even if the performance isn't top-notch, this is an important play by the Elizabethan dramatist second only to Shakespeare in importance, and therefore well worth acquiring. Recommended, overall. Aud: C, P. (F. Swietek)