Disappointing THE WINTER'S TALE at Great Lakes Theater
Shakespeare’s THE WINTER’S TALE, now on stage at
Great Lakes Theater, centers on jealousy, a false accusation, deaths,
banishment and reuniting. The
plot, was taken from Robert Greene’s pastoral romance, PANDOSTO. The Bard made some minor changes,
mainly giving the script a happy-ever-after conclusion.
The story, which takes place in Sicilia and Bohemia,
finds King Leontes accusing his wife, Hermione, and his friend, Polixenes, the
visiting King of Bohemia, of having an affair. The pregnant queen, shortly after giving birth to a girl, “dies”
(the quote marks, as you will be aware if you see the production, are
important). The baby (Perdita) is
sent into exile. Shortly after,
the young prince (Mamillius), dies of grief, leaving Leontes without an heir to
the throne. Through a series of
mythical instances, a statue of Hermione comes to life, Perdita, who has been
saved and raised by a dim-witted Bohemian shepherd, returns with Florizel,
Leontes’ son, and the friendship of Polixenes and Leontes is reinstated.
The title of the play comes from a speech when
Mamillius, the royal heir warns, “a sad tale’s best for winter.” This idea is re-enforced when we are alerted
to pay attention to the words of children.
THE WINTER’S TALE is most commonly identified as a
romance. However some modern
literary experts consider it to be a problem play because, as originally
written, the first three acts have strong overtones of psychological issues,
while the last two acts are comedic and concludes with a happy ending. (Be aware that the Great Lakes
production is compressed into two acts.)
It is this difficulty in clearly deciding on
whether the play should and needs to stress the message, or should be played as
farce/comedy, that may be behind the inconsistency of the GLT production. Director Jess Berger, in spite of his
impressive credentials as a leading Shakespearean director, doesn’t seem to have
clearly decided which way to go.
The necessity to build the emotional aspects of the
ideas, making sure that the lines have clear meaning, or stressing farcical
double takes and broad exaggeration, seems to have gotten lost. The development of the first and second
acts are a total disconnect, leaving the audience to wonder whether they have
just seen two separate one-act plays.
David Anthony Smith, as Leontes, starts out
screaming and then has no place to go in developing what should be an
increasingly maniacal march toward unbridled jealous rage, and destruction of
his family. His portrayal lacks the necessary nuance. His point of dénouement, a
plot requirement, never becomes clear.
Juan Rivera Lebron as the Old Shepherd who finds
the abandoned Perdita and his son, Clown (Juan Rivera Lebron), don’t texture
their performances, playing exaggerated buffoons, much to the delight of the
audience, but not the benefit of the plot.
Lovely Kimbre Lancaster’s Perdita, is a clearly
etched role. Handsome Miles Gaston Villanueva is excellent as Florizel. They both exude the joys of youthful
love.
Laurie Birmingham steals the show as Paulina, a
member of the court, who plays an important role in the plot development. This is a well conceived and developed
portrayal, as is Lynn Robert Berg’s Polixenes.
Tom Ford has some delightful moments as Autolycus,
the light fingered rogue. Young
Ryan Vincent nicely handles the role of Mamillius.
David Barber’s art moderne set design, complete
with its astrological implications, works well. However, Sara Jean Tosetti’s costumes, much like the
production, are confusing. They
are a blend of many styles, not helping in character clarity or idea
development.
Capsule judgement: GLT’s THE WINTER’ TALE is a
disappointment. This is a difficult script to produce due to the many emotional
and psychological levels which require a clear staging philosophy. Due to the lack of focused directing by
Jesse Berger, the production never sets a clear course and leaves so much of
Shakespeare’s brilliance untapped.
