A COLOURFUL, imaginative realisation of Shakespeare's most magical play was conjured up at Malvern Theatres on Monday night.

The Tempest, brought to Malvern by Theatre Royal Plymouth and Thelma Holt, was well received by a large audience in the Festival Theatre.

Casting Ben Silverstone as the spirit Ariel was an excellent decision, as his light frame and lilting voice lent him an ephemeral quality that brought the part to life. Rory Kinnear was also first-rate as the ape-like, villainous Caliban, especially in scenes with entertaining drunken clowns Stephano (Stephen Casey) and Trinculo (Darren Tunstall).

Their cavorting and capering round the stage threw the authority and power of Richard Briers' Prospero into sharp relief. A despotic disposition that appeared in the play's early stages, characterised by his character's peremptory treatment of Ariel, whom he had enslaved after releasing him from imprisonment in a tree, was successfully married with warm compassion that emerged as the play progressed. This was achieved without detracting from either emotion or making the character seem disjointed.

Madeleine Worrall and Orlando Wells performed admirably in the rather two-dimensional but important characters of Miranda and Ferdinand respectively, Wells in particular giving the impression he could have filled a more complex role with ease.

The production resisted the temptation to use elaborate sets to illustrate the huge variety of scenery, preferring instead to use one well-designed but non-illustrative set throughout the whole performance. This allowed scene changes to take place instantaneously but required great acting to fill in the gaps, which for the most part worked well. The show's Malvern run ends tomorrow (Saturday).

Jon di Paolo