Kevin Spacey receives standing ovation following first performance since trial
Kevin Spacey received a standing ovation on Monday night following his first performance since he was cleared of sexual assault.
The House of Cards actor appeared during a lecture on cancel culture at the Sheldonian Theatre in Oxford, England and performed a five-minute scene from William Shakespeare's Timon of Athens.
In the play, Timon is a wealthy man in Athens who showers his fair-weather friends with gifts, but they do not help him when his money runs out.
Spacey, 64, appeared alongside conservative columnist Douglas Murray, who delivered the lecture, titled The Life and Legacy of Sir Roger Scruton.
Murray told The Times that Timon of Athens was about what "happens when a society drops a person for no reason".
He added, "It's something that has been on Kevin's mind, as it was on Roger Scruton's mind, so I said I want him to be back on stage in the UK."
The lecture was held in memory of the late philosopher Roger Scruton, who was fired as a government adviser in April 2019 after he was misquoted by the New Statesman. He was reinstated a few months later after the magazine apologised.
Spacey is currently trying to rebuild his career after being faced with multiple allegations of sexual offences since late 2017. In July, he was cleared of multiple counts of sexual assault following a trial in London. He had denied all the allegations.
His performance in Oxford comes days after owners of the Prince Charles Cinema in London cancelled the premiere of the movie Control after realising Spacey had a voice role in it. The premiere will be held at the Genesis Cinema on 14 November instead.
