Craig moves Chess pieces into place
Aug 28 2010 by Vicky Robson, The Journal
AN iron curtain was raised on Tyneside last night as stars of a world-famous musical set during the Cold War took to the stage in Newcastle.
The preview of a new production of Chess took place at Newcastle’s Theatre Royal yesterday following five weeks of intensive rehearsals.
The show has been directed by Craig Revel Horwood, best known as a judge from the BBC’s popular Saturday night show Strictly Come Dancing, who described his new role as a “huge challenge”.
He said: “It’s almost entirely sung throughout and the actors are the musicians as well, which makes it doubly difficult fitting the amount of people we have into the space and then moving them around with their instruments.
“But it’s extremely exciting because it’s never been seen before in this way.”
The story of Chess centres on the love affair between two champions chess players, one Russian and one American.
Set in the late 1940s, it is an allegory of the Cold War struggle between the United States and the Soviet Union, played out as a love triangle between the two players and a woman called Florence.
Mr Revel Harwood added: “At the heart of any story there is love and war and I’ve tried to really bring out the story between James’ character, chess and his love interest. Florence is left devastated and that is how I have ended the play because it reflects life.
“However, it’s also uplifting because people have to make choices, tough choices, so the game of chess that is being played in the human life is very interesting.
“And I love being in Newcastle. The audiences are always so responsive and we have some amazing music, songs everyone will know, so it’s fantastic.”
The lyrics for Chess were written by Tim Rice with music by Abba’s Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus. Its best known song is the Elaine Paige and Barbara Dickson hit I Know Him So Well. Chess first appeared as a stage show in the West End in 1986 after it was written by Rice. An American version premiered on Broadway in 1988.
Playing the American chess champion, James Fox, a former hopeful on TV talent contest Fame Academy, said: “People don’t want to come and watch two hours of chess. Craig has really concentrated on the love triangle. So it’s east meets west really and Craig has played on that.”
Chess will be the Theatre Royal until September 11. The show previews until August 30, before officially opening on September 1.
