I have seen Eddie Izzard once before in a one-person comedy act. I’ve also seen her on the TV show, The Riches and have been a big fan from afar as she completed 27 marathons in 27 days in honor of Nelson Mandela. Then last year, she ran 32 marathons in 31 days.
But her recent work at the Greenwich House Theatre in the West Village in Manhattan has got to be one of her finest. She stars in Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations, a novel published in 1861.
Eddie Izzard in Great Expectations
Izzard plays Pip the leading character in Great Expectations. Pip is an orphan who was raised by his sister.
Eddie Izzard not only plays Pip but also plays all the characters in the show. She talks from Pip’s point of view and then plays some other part in a totally different voice and mannerisms. You feel as if there are dozens of people on the stage.
The story is complex and is about convicts, mystery, friendship, rivalry, unrequited love, revenge, and redemption.
According to Izzard, “I recorded an audiobook of Great Expectations. Then I decided I should do a solo performance of the classic, to accompany it. In my comedy, I often have multiple characters talking to each other. I learned I could use this technique in drama as well. Thus our show was born.”
Show of Endurance
Eddie Izzard is an endurance athlete and in this performance, she is an endurance actor. This play, which lasted for two and a half hours with an intermission, was a true performance of endurance.
Could you imagine playing 21 different characters?
Eddie Izzard is simply brilliant and the show shows how talented she really is.
The show was supposed to end on January 22 but it got extended for another two weeks. If you have the opportunity, definitely buy tickets and check it out. Eddie Izzard is worth seeing!
