All Is But Fantasy - Royal Shakespeare Company Review

Review by Mark

Tickets were gifted in return for an honest review

Whitney White's engrossing exploration of four of Shakespeare's iconic characters is an electrically charged powerhouse of text and music.

Photo by Mark Brenner

All Is But Fantasy is played across two parts, with each character getting one act to put them under the microscope. The first part focuses on Lady Macbeth and Emilia, and the second on Juliet and Richard III. You can see one part, both, or even better, both in one day. There's no introduction at the top of the second part and there are occasional references back.

The performance blends a play-within-the-play element as the actors interact together, although at times it can be a little lost if it's supposed to be the real voices, the actor's voices, or the character voices who are speaking. Whitney White plays Woman and Daniel Krikler plays Man; they both assume the lead roles in each part.

Part gig, part musical theatre and part lecture, the show combines music and text. You switch from big soulful numbers to sequences from the Bard's work.

White opens with a monologue about her own love for Shakespeare before delving into her own exploration of these roles and the limitations on the female voice and race within the text and the wider landscape. 

Each part has its own stylised theme. Lady Macbeth has a pop feel as leather-clad White enters with her trio of backing singers (Renée Lamb, Georgina Onuorah and Timmika Ramsay) as the Witches. This part explores the voice of Lady Macbeth and how her ambition, drive and simply her voice are lost once Macbeth takes the throne. 

Whitney White as Juliet. Photo by Marc Brenner.

Emilia switches to more of a blues sound as it explores the role of Iago's wife, her relationship with Desdemona and ultimately the representation of black voices. The scenes between White as Emilia and Juliette Crosbie as Desdemona are arguably the strongest of the entire piece.

Juliet has a more youthful 90s feel with tracksuits and an indie sound. White doesn't initially want to take on the role but there is some compelling work between her and Krikler as Romeo. White powerfully explores how Juliet is often played by a white performer, whilst looking at how young Black girls are treated in society. There's real power to White here and this feels exhilarating to hear on such a prominent stage like the RSC. 

Richard III feels the least developed of the parts as White gender swaps to assume the titular role as the King. Whilst it's compelling to watch both White and Krikler's takes on the roles, it does feel a little lost compared to the previous parts. The more soulful sound continues to help drive things forward.

Whitney White is simply a powerhouse throughout. She is so compelling to watch, and her text work is cleverly written. As soon as she enters the stage, you feel like you are in the presence of greatness. Her thrilling soundtrack (let's pray they record a soundtrack) is electric to hear in The Other Place; the sound fills the space as the four musicians bring to life the score.

Renée Lamb, Georgina Onuorah and Timmika Ramsay are rarely off stage and aid excellently to scenes. They have a mystical quality and their voices are simply heavenly. The solos or harmonies are never not perfect. Each a star in their own right. 

Timmika Ramsay, Renée Lamb and Georgina Onuorah. Photo by Marc Brenner.

Daniel Krikler and Juliette Crosbie are effective in their performances. Krikler assumes multiple male parts and comes into his own as Iago and when he switches the female roles in Richard III. Crosbie is a heartfelt Desdemona whilst offering superb background support.

Visually, the piece is impressive with Soutra Gilmour's fairly blank stage becoming a platform for the gig theatre to explode onto. Ryan Day's gorgeous lighting carries emotion and beautifully embosses wht performances. Thrilling is Juliet's final demise sequence. 

This feels like a vital piece of theatre. It explores the female voice and how underrated this can be; it especially shines a light on black female voices and how marginalised black voices can be on the whole. It never feels like this show is preachy; it simply constantly feels right that the Royal Shakespeare Company are staging such an important part of theatre. You leave with a mind alive with thoughts about this text you may be so familiar with. With a little more development here or there, this could be a real masterpiece of theatre. 

⭐⭐⭐⭐

All Is But Fantasy plays at The Other Place in Stratford-Upon-Avon until Saturday 21st February 2026. Tickets are available from https://www.rsc.org.uk/

Daniel Krikler, Juliette Crosbie and Whitney White. Photo by Marc Brenner.