Siege Theatre are rounding off this year’s Oxford Shakespeare Festival with a production of Shakespeare’s tragic tale of succession and betrayal, King Lear. This may seem an odd choice to take in in the open air on a fine summer’s evening, as you would naturally expect a comedy to be more fitting, but in Siege’s safe hands the production was pacey, fun, twisty and captivating.

I went along intrigued by the prospect of revisiting a familiar tale (I studied the play at school) while ensconced in the surroundings of a medieval castle, and Oxford Castle’s courtyard proved the perfect place to stage this performance. With the dramatic castle wall forming the backdrop, there was no need for any additional set. Director Michael Speight’s use of the space was a treat to witness: prisoners were literally marched off into a real tower and Lear’s travels through the wilderness incorporated climbing a real hill (the Castle’s mound).

The creative interaction with the surroundings was complemented by an ingenious use of costumes and props. The arcane language of the Bard can often feel inaccessible and hard to follow, but in this production was a rich seam of visually appealing performance art to bring the story to life. A flung piece of fruit here, a choice piece of fur there, added layers of engaging realism to what was written in the script.

The cast were more than up to the task of keeping a diverse audience (including a large school group) entertained by a traditional tale. Excellent characterisation, particularly of Angus Fraser’s complex Lear, David Guthrie’s bawdy-then-humbled Gloucester, Beth Burns’ scheming Goneril and Kelly Stewart’s innocent-then-disillusioned Edgar, were highly effective in drawing out the human drama of the story. But it feels unfair to single out these performances, since all of the actors ably conveyed how deeply they understood their characters’ motivations and personal tragedies, and communicated these clearly in a way that my English teacher never managed.

At times it felt like the cast were having too much fun, with fight scenes eliciting lots of laughter from the young crowd, and the pathos in the old man’s descent to senility risked being lost in the humour of his ranting and raving. But given their other merits as mentioned above, I could hardly begrudge the cast for enjoying the performance as much as the audience did! And in spite of this there were undeniably moving moments, such as when Lear and Cordelia are reconciled, and it can be argued that exaggerating the humour creates a contrast with the characters’ downfalls that makes the tragedy more impactful.

Despite having studied this play at school, I never felt I actually understood it until last night. All credit for that goes to the highly accomplished Siege Theatre Company, for highlighting the many subtle ways in which modern dramas whose appeal comes from irresistibly scheming villains owe so much to Shakespeare. If you are studying the play, do not miss this show. If you like Game of Thrones, Succession or any drama filled with plotting, treachery, epic battles or complex family dynamics, and the occasional deliciously dirty joke, you will love this rollicking production. And if you are teaching Shakespeare, Siege Theatre co offer a masterclass in bringing the Bard to life.