Othello is missing the tragedy

Othello Is Missing the Tragedy

Tom Morris’s staging of Shakespeare’s Othello at the Theatre Royal Haymarket, featuring David Harewood as Othello and Toby Jones as Iago, mesmerizes with energy and precision. Yet beneath the surface brilliance, the essential darkness of the story feels weakened.

The Nature of Evil

Othello explores what happens to moral, upright individuals when confronted by absolute wickedness. The heart of the play lies in the tension between decency and manipulation. Morris’s version captures the spectacle but slightly loses the moral weight of this conflict.

Visuals and Atmosphere

Designer Ti Green constructs a visually arresting space with curving arches suspended above the stage and thin mesh screens projecting images that seem to reflect Othello’s troubled mind. These creative choices provide a stunning psychological backdrop.

Performance and Pacing

The production runs nearly three hours yet maintains remarkable fluidity. Its rhythm and polish make it feel light and effortless, an uncommon feat for a Shakespearean tragedy. In pure entertainment terms, it is dazzling.

Iago’s Charm

Toby Jones, known and beloved across Britain for roles such as the crusading sub-postmaster in Mr Bates vs The Post Office, brings wit and charisma to Iago. His interactions with the audience, exposing his malevolent schemes, are both magnetic and unnervingly engaging.

“His asides to the audience outlining his plan to ruin other people’s lives for the hell of it captivate and delight.”

Yet this same delightful evil blurs the tragic core. When the audience begins to side with the wrong man, the darkness essential to Shakespeare’s tragedy partially fades.

Author’s Summary

Morris’s Othello dazzles with execution and performance but softens the moral intensity that gives the tragedy its enduring power.

New Statesman — 2025-11-06