Volpone

The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus, to give it its full title, by Christopher Marlowe, was first published in 1604, at least twelve years after its first performance, although the basic story of the play is much older. Having decided he has accumulated all he can of conventional knowledge, Doctor Faustus turns to magic in a quest for greater truths. Before long, he ends up selling his soul to the devil – the famous “Faustian pact” that has entered everyday language. Dr Faustus gradually realizes his terrible mistake. He apparently repents, but finally dies, the devil coming to collect his soul, and his friends the dismembered body.

Recorded live at the Greenwich Theatre, London. The Duchess of Malfi is a popular choice as a set text, despite (or perhaps because of) the violence and horror of its later scenes. Generally considered to be the masterpiece of Jacobean playwright John Webster, it was first produced in around 1613. It's a macabre tragedy, based on actual events, and tends to be loved or hated by critics while consistently captivating audiences across the centuries. Set in Italy in the early fifteenth century, it starts out as a love story, with the Duchess marrying beneath her class. However, her two brothers, one cool and corrupt, the other violent and warped, have other ideas. With incredible plot twists along the way, the play ends as an utter tragedy, as the brothers take revenge on her, destroying themselves in the process.

Elizabeth Freestone's production of Sheridan's classic is a long way from the lace wristbands and fussily flourished bows that used to be conventional for eighteenth-century revivals. Using the same permanent setting as the production of Doctor Faustus with which it plays in repertoire, plus a traverse curtain for front scenes and the addition of some piles of newspapers on top of its bookcases and some splayed pages down by the added footlights to remind us of contemporary scandal sheets, it moves along at a delightful canter, challenging its audience to keep up with its non-stop flow of wit.