I HATE PEOPLE; OR TIMON OF ATHENS

By Diana Simmonds

June 14 2025

I HATE PEOPLE; OR TIMON OF ATHENS, Sport for Jove at the York Theatre, Seymour Centre, 12-15 June 2025. Photography by Robert Catto; above - the Athenians party; below Deborah Galanos; Damien Ryan

Those who missed the first season of Margaret Thanos’s production at Leura Everglades have been kicking themselves ever since. Seated in front of the thrust stage of the York, savouring the wit and spectacle of Rose Montgomery’s set of scattered, dilapidated marble columns, builders’ scaffolding and tarps; with Saint Clair’s atmospheric, ever-changing lighting, it’s possible to imagine how magical it would have been in Leura – because it’s pretty damn magical in that cavernous, characterless auditorium.

And as the two and a half hours, including 20-minute interval, unfold, the visual sorcery and ensemble action are consistently marvellous. Broadway may have Julie Taymor, but we have Margaret Thanos, and they are from the same tribe of visionary stage sorcerers. The director said recently that working on the virtually unknown William Shakespeare/Thomas Middleton play was a gift, as she had no past productions hanging over her. It also means there’s nothing to obscure her imaginative chutzpah, and it’s thrilling.

Timon of Athens (rhymes with Simon) is a simple enough premise: he’s a prosperous philanthropist – Damien Ryan sweetly avuncular and in a smart suit. His friends love his generosity, his parties, and the Athenian good life he funds (Aloma Barnes Siraswar’s costumes do some witty hard lifting in dramatising the spectacle). Timon entertains poets, senators, a hilariously sycophantic artist, and so on.

Timon’s true friend, Apemantus (Mike Booth) warns him against the bludgers, but he pays no heed. His only other companion is devoted steward Flavia (Deborah Galanos), and she is powerless to curb his spendthrift ways. He is pushed to the brink of bankruptcy, and when he asks those friends for help, they turn their backs.

Before Timon leaves the city, he throws one final banquet and serves the ancient Athenian equivalent of a shit sandwich. As well as disgusting it’s also horribly funny.

Not humorous, however, is Timon’s descent into rage and bitterness as he ekes out a lonely, close to crazed existence in a barren wilderness. He forages for edible roots and, would you believe it, discovers a huge cache of gold. What will he do with it? What happens when those former friends hear of the windfall? Apemantus is staunch, Flavia remains heartrendingly loyal, but will it be enough? Will there be a happy ending?

The main reason for describing the plot in detail is that the play is largely unknown. The other is that the company has not overcome the notoriously difficult York acoustics. Some of the younger actors have little understanding of voice projection and clear diction. A trained voice is important in Shakespeare, where a fashionable mumble doesn’t cut it, and is especially important in the York. There’s also the problem of the thrust stage, with speech being delivered to one side or the other or the front, leaving half the audience wondering whether they need hearing tests. One visually splendid scene has the company facing the rear of the stage, and they might as well be talking Klingon. Galanos, Booth, and Ryan are the only consistently audible cast members, and that means a lot of puzzlement. Body mics would fix it. So would old-fashioned voice classes.

Nevertheless, one of the highlights of this night of highlights and dodgy audio is the almost constant soundtrack by composer AJ Evans. It’s multi-faceted, multi-sourced and acts to underline emotions and situations without overwhelming the human element. It’s exceptional. Also exceptional are Galanos and Ryan; together and separately, they are electrifying.

Despite the struggle to hear what so many on the stage were saying, you can give up and go with the flow, as action and consequences are readable – this Timon of Athens is one of the most thrilling productions of the year. On a par with Marion Potts’ wonderful Henry V.

Madly short season for Timon, so go to shakespeare.org.uk and bone up on the plot, then sit back and enjoy a glorious night in the theatre.