This is a Royal Court audience, so it’s likely that a significant proportion of them are aware of and convinced that climate change is a real threat to the planet. Those in the audience who aren’t are not going to be converted by an inert and dull 65 minute lecture. So what exactly is the point?
I’m sure Professor Chris Rapley is a thoroughly knowledgable expert on the subject. He spends the 65 minutes in a chair sharing some of it with us. The B&W projections behind him don’t add, illustrate or illuminate, they’re just moving wallpaper. Though the issues are dramatic, the telling is anything but. His delivery is slow, dispassionate and dry. It would reach more people as a pamphlet or newspaper article. Putting it on stage just annoys the converts like me who feel cheated and risks turning off the unconverted. In an ironic twist, the Royal Court contributes to climate change by setting the temperature in the theatre too high, which also results in outbreaks of dozing. There’s more than a whiff of Katie Mitchell self-indulgence about it all.
This is the 3rd disappointment in a row and the 4th this year at the Royal Court. Methinks there may be quality control issues…..
Gareth's Culture and Travel Blog 