English Kings Killing Foreigners. Soho Theatre.

In their intriguing comic two-hander, English Kings Killing Foreigners, Nina Bowers and Philip Arditti see Shakespeare’s Henry V as a bloody, jingoistic celebration of English nationalism, and an ideological ancestor of the xenophobic attitudes that would eventually underpin Britain’s savage colonialism. So, what attitude can, or should, ethnic minority actors whose heritage has been shaped by colonialism, and who fear mindless English flag-waving, take to the play and their roles in it? “We’re English, but we’re not ‘English’,” one of the characters reminds us. The debate is sharply drawn, and the comedy neatly riffs on the compromises involved in finding an endurable ‘take’ on an old classic.

Renowned Shakespeare director Martin is putting together a new production of Henry V set in a grimy urban kebab shop, bestrewn with St George’s flags. Decadent France has been taken over by Alt-Right fascists, and the plucky English plan to liberate them. Cast in minor roles in the production are Nina (Bowers and Arditti play stylised versions of themselves) and Turkish-Jewish Bard fanatic Philip. Events spiral when the actor playing Henry dies. Philip, who trained at RADA and has “played a lot of paramedics, doctors and terrorists”, thinks he is in the frame as the replacement. However, Martin likes the idea of casting an unknown queer, female, mixed-race actor in the role, and Nina, who is panicky and reluctant, gets the gig instead.

Philip is not a fan of Nina’s acting style (“you don’t have the emphases; that’s the plural of emphasis”, he tells her), so valiantly offers to help the woman rehearse. As the duo delves deeper into the text, they start to wonder if there is a version of England in the play that they can stomach. Swap ‘England’ for ‘Israel’ in the St Crispin’s Day speech, muses Nina, and what does it tell us about genocidal colonialism?

The performers lace English Kings Killing Foreigners with endearing comic clowning (involving a chainsaw and tennis balls, among other things) and fourth-wall-breaking meta-theatrics. Arditti pauses the narrative periodically to solicit feedback from the audience on his performance. “More range”, someone bravely suggests on press night. Anticipate audience interaction throughout.

Bowers and Arditti deliver a thought-provoking deliberation on their characters’ emotional responses to the ‘microaggressions’ they perceive in Shakespeare’s text, and their challenge in finding (or not finding) an acceptable accommodation with Englishness. Bowers’ final speech, in which she channels her enslaved and queer ancestry into her role, has power. It is just a shame the writers’ reading of Henry V is not broader, though. Yes, you can interpret the piece as bloodthirsty English proto-fascism, but you can also read it as a satirical critique of war, kingship, and national myth-making. Shakespeare, like Englishness, lends itself to endless reinventions.

Writers and Directors: Nina Bowers and Philip Arditti