Botanic Gardens, Glasgow
Four stars
Blood is very much thicker than water in John Webster’s 17th century Jacobean revenge tragedy, in which a merry widow Duchess marries beneath her station in the form of her steward, Antonio. This is much to the chagrin of her brothers, with her twin Ferdinand and their Cardinal elder using their respective power bases to keep an eye on their sister’s most intimate exchanges through the eyes of their spy, Bosola. As the Duchess and Antonio’s cross class love story evolves into a domestic bliss that should be for life, Webster dismisses any prospect of a happy ending by killing off pretty much everyone in sight.
This is brought home in scintillating close up in Jennifer Dick’s five-actor version for Bard in the Botanics’ silver jubilee season. With assorted pairs of boots laid out at the altars that mark out the space in the Kibble Palace Glasshouse, Dick’s own production sees the Duchess’ passion for Manasa Tagica’s Antonio brought to life by Rebecca Robin before they become the victims of the brothers’ jealous inter family conspiracy.
Stephen Arden and Adam Donaldson make for a manic and malevolent double act as the Cardinal and Ferdinand respectively. Over the production’s stately and interval free hour and forty minutes, however, it is Claire Macallister’s Bosola who makes for the most fascinating character here. As her loyalties swither, and with hints of dalliances of her own, the complexities of both her betrayal and bumping off the wrong guy sees her attempt to absolve herself by way of the only option she has left. The carnage that results make for a series of death scenes delivered on a grand scale in the bloodiest of conclusions to this year’s Bard in the Botanics season.
The Herald, July 20th 2026
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