Titus Andronicus

For me, the most memorable line from Titus Andronicus is the one that sets the horrific events in motion, hissed by Tamora, Queen of the Goths, in Act I:

I'll find a day to massacre them all
And raze their faction and their family,
The cruel father and his traitorous sons,
To whom I sued for my dear son's life,
And make them know what 'tis to let a queen
Kneel in the streets and beg for grace in vain.




Picture from the NYT review, here.

The Public Theater’s current production of Titus Andronicus takes an almost playful spin on the massacre that follows.  More than anything else, it seemed like the sort of visual spin Tim Burton would have put on the gory play—gothic, visually riveting and disgusting, a bit campy, and overall playful.  So, by the time Tamora tries her meatpie (with her own sons cooked in), most of the audience was ready to laugh (cathartically, one hopes).  Which isn't to say that there aren't many moments of collective gasps.