RSC's Middlemarch at Stratford: strong cast and staging, but Eliot onstage divides reviewers

Two parts at the Swan

The Royal Shakespeare Company is staging a two-part adaptation of George Eliot's novel Middlemarch at the Swan Theatre in Stratford-upon-Avon, and reviews of the production were published on 29 October 2026. The Guardian gives the total running time as almost six hours including intervals, while the Financial Times describes two plays of about three hours each. Jeremy Herrin directs the production, and the Independent and the Financial Times credit Nina Raine with the adaptation. The Independent dates the novel to 1871, and reviewers put its length between 800 and about 900 pages. The story spans roughly three years in a fictional Midlands town and follows many interlocking storylines.

A lean staging that compresses the plot

Grace Smart's set uses a vaulted ceiling and a back window with ecclesiastical touches, and candles light much of the stage, according to the Guardian. The Independent calls the production lean and clean and says it fits the Swan well, while acknowledging that things are inevitably missing from the condensed text. The Financial Times says Raine and Herrin cut through the vast novel with skill and economy, reshaping plot lines for clarity. The Guardian finds that the opening trades character study for plot and pace, leaving little room for philosophical reflection before the next scene. It does add that the show hits the beats of a pleasing costume drama and has an understated visual beauty suited to the town.

Performances and casting

Nia Towle plays Dorothea, and both the Guardian and the Financial Times single out the performance. The Financial Times says Towle shows Dorothea's flaws while making the audience warm to her. Ian Drysdale plays Casaubon, whom the Financial Times describes as desiccated and marvellously flinty. The Guardian names Gunnar Cauthery as Sir James Chettam, a role it calls featureless, while the Financial Times credits Cauthery as Reverend Farebrother. Rory Alexander plays Will Ladislaw, Andrew Richardson plays Tertius Lydgate and Emma McDonald plays Rosamond Vincy, all per the Financial Times. The Telegraph describes an energetic ensemble with plenty of stamina and star quality, though the Guardian says Celia, played by Lizzie Annis, is also underdeveloped.

George Eliot as a character

Amanda Root plays Eliot herself, who lights the candle at the opening and then moves among the characters as commentator and confidante. The Independent says Root wears a contemporary silk blouse that sets her apart from the corseted women and links her to the present. The same reviewer notes that Root also plays the comic Mrs Cadwallader. The Financial Times describes Eliot as hovering at the edge of the world she created, engineering meetings and watching over her characters. The Telegraph argues that this author-as-narrator device is the production's fatal flaw, because it drains vitality from the characters themselves.

Where the verdicts diverge

The four reviews agree that the cast is strong and that the staging is clean and suited to the Swan. They split on whether the Eliot device enriches or weakens the drama. The Financial Times sees it as a way of preserving the author's dry wit and wise asides, and as a celebration of her genius. The Guardian's main complaint is the thin response to the opening, and the Independent calls the achievement a strong one despite what the adaptation loses.