It's not often you get to watch NT shows in a tent by the river so don't miss this opportunity to see this interpretation of Wagner's epic opera The Ring before it ends on Saturday. Read what this one Entry Pass reviewer though of this show....:

The Threepenny Ring Cycle

French theatrical brass band Les Grooms make The Threepenny Ring Cycle an interesting and rejuvenated take on one of the most monumental peices of music; The Ring by Richard Wagner.

Here's the scenario: a tent outside the National Theatre, you're ushered into said tent by a performer telling you a bit of backstory and then at once seated on the floor either side of the "River Rhine". I really didn't know what to expect from Wagner's sixteen hours of music reduced to 79 minutes, but when the story started, music and special effects drew me in to the weird and magical world of gold, evil dwarves, giants, dragons and gods. Although Wagner's epic is thought to be a complex story, I never lost my way purely because of Les Grooms ability of performing dialogue directly to the audience as explanations.

Its clever staging and mix of opera, orchestral music and dry humour makes it the most unique and eclectic piece of theatre I've seen this year. Long may the NT continue bringing theatre like this to the South Bank.

Jade Hunter