The Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester is currently staging a production of Shakespeare’s *King Lear*, directed by Matthew Dunster, running through November 15. The latest interpretation arrives amid heightened interest in the play, with notable performances featuring Ian McDiarmid recently in Sheffield and an upcoming adaptation starring Ian McKellen at London’s Yard Theatre.

Dunster’s production centers on the theme of division, both familial and political, visually underscored by Anna Fleischle’s design. Chainmail curtains descend and ascend throughout the stage, fragmenting the space and isolating characters into separate columns. This spatial division serves as a symbolic reflection of Lear’s momentous act of dividing his kingdom among his three daughters, an event that sets the tragedy in motion. The recurring imagery of separation parallels the fractured relationships at the play’s core.

A notable directorial choice is the treatment of the Fool as a manifestation of Lear’s internal psyche, effectively blending the two into a single conflicted character. While this interpretation emphasizes Lear’s mental deterioration, it departs from the original arc, where the Fool’s presence diminishes as Lear descends into madness. The production leaves unanswered questions about this conceptual shift, especially regarding the Fool’s disappearance.

The portrayal of Gloucester’s illegitimate son, Edmund, by Paddy Stafford stands out for its vocal distinctiveness. Stafford adopts a rhythm that unsettles the court’s formal tone, transitioning from structured verse to a more casual, prose-like delivery that conveys his corrupt and calculating nature. Conversely, the motivations of Regan and Goneril lack clarity, with the production offering little insight into how Lear’s unruly knights provoke the daughters’ violent reactions.

David Threlfall’s Lear delivers a subdued, low-energy performance that some may find contrasts with the powerful emotional turmoil typically associated with the role. In the storm scene, his presence is overshadowed by the overwhelming forces of nature rather than dominating them, which diminishes the intensity of Lear’s grief. The staging concludes with Lear slumped on the fissured floor, gazing at the cracks that symbolically represent the divisions and betrayals central to the narrative.

While the production is visually compelling and conceptually coherent, it stops short of offering new psychological revelations or emotional depth. Instead, it presents *King Lear* as a study of division, loss, and isolation, with an emphasis on the tragic fissures that are embedded from the play’s opening.