Richard
III
Directed
by Casey Biggs
Odyssey
Theatre
by
Diane M. Taylor
I
remember going to see this play with a great deal of anticipation.
In fact, so much anticipation, I ended up creating a small underlying
fear that I may have been setting myself up for eventual dissappointment...could
the production possibly live up to the excitement I had built up in
my own mind? The first scene pretty much usurped any trepidation I
may have had. The stand out cast, were engaging and clear and the
world that was created with simple scenery and video montages was
creative and visceral. I. Loved. This. Play!
With
all due respect to the rest of the cast, it's difficult not to focus
in on Stehlin's Richard. Understandably so, the villainous Duke is
front and center for the lion's share of the play. Finer points that
stood out to me were when he goes through the difficult process' of
securing his mates (first wooing Lady Anne over the grave of her husband
that he killed, and then later when he manipulates Queen Elizabeth
to allow him to marry her daughter) he has a snake's smooth guile
and charm, but he wasn't afraid of revealing the lasciviosness of
the scenes. I did have one very idle nit-pick regarding the wooing
of Lady Anne; when Stehlin goes into the "Was ever a woman in
this humor wooed?..." speech, he lets loose with an incredulous
(and maniacle) laugh, as if he really surprised himself that he had
succeeded. To me, the character of Richard seems far too cock-sure
to be so "surprised". I would have expected a reaction more
along the lines of a smug satisfaction than shock. As I stated, this
is such a trivial matter compared to most of Stehlin's performance.
I enjoyed his larger-than-life Richard. He could deliver the wit and
irony of Richard with a wink to the audience but is still eerily troubled
when his own treachary came to haunt him.
Joel
Polis had the (often thankless) role of Richard's brother Clarence.
Although we already know Richard has had others in his way disposed
of, it is with Clarence that we first witness his truly double sided
nature. Polis did not shy away from the blind trust Clarence has in
his brother. In some ways I believe that could stand in the
way for an audience to empathize for him, because we see that Richard
is the villain, wouldn't he? However, when Clarence does realize
his brother's treachary, feel for him we do. Polis reacted to this
revelation with such honesty and poise. I witnessed a imprisoned brother,
who has been hanging on to the last hope that Richard would prove
to be his savior, only to watch that belief crumble right before his
eyes. Another scene Polis handled splendidly was when he was telling
the prison guard about his troubling (and prophetic) nightmare. It's
a long and complicated speech Shakespeare wrote, but he delivered
this piece in a fine, clear, and heart-wrenching form.
Alfred
Molina played Richard's Buckingham. It seems to me, Buckingham views
himself as Richard's partner in crime, skillfully doing his master's
will, with his own ambitions firmly in mind. Too late, he realizes,
that he is just another one of Richard's pawns. Concerning Molina's
performance, he had the most amazing way of making the Elizabethan
dialogue sound completely natural and conversational. But more than
that, at every turn you could see inner wheels turning of Buckingham's
ambitions, especially during the scene when he falls out of Richard's
grace. Richard calls on Buckingham to murder the 2 young princes that
could become a wedge between him and the throne. Watching Molina's
face, in one split instant, I saw a complicated character who can
justify and partake in almost any evil, to get what he wants, until,
it means he has to get the blood of innocents on his own hands.
In
an attempt to paraphrase the many other fine things this production
had to offer: Mr. Biggs cast veteran actor Neil Vipond in the role
of Queen Margaret. At first I wasn't sure what to make of that choice,
but Vipond was wonderful to watch. He played it fairly simple, I never
got the impression he was trying to be "female", he just
let the character come alive. A tribute to the belief that an audience
can accept the idea of just another actor, playing just another role,
regardless of gender. Eric Pierpoint as the dying King Edward, was
a treat. He played Edward's desperation very well, as a man trying
to tie the fragmented family together before he dies, knowing full
well that if he fails in this final task, all that he has won, will
be lost. I got the distinct impression that he knew his actions were
impotent, even though he could not see the reasons why. Strawn Bovee
as the Duchess of York has the distinction of comndemning her son
in one of the most vehmenent speeches Shakespeare ever penned...and
Ms. Bovee imbued that speech with all the vile venom one could possibly
muster.
Finally,
a moment to highlight the behind the scenes artists. Jaret Sacrey's
sets combined with the lighting and video montages by Tom Kiley were
truly dynamic. "Richard III" is set in expansive and varied
locales, to nail them down in such an intimate space took some ingenuity.
Three coffin like boxes, looking firery or wound-like depending on
the context of the scene, were creatively choregraphed to alternate
as columns, entrance-ways, steps and thrones. The video montages,
most visible during scene changes, were undulating distortions of
disasters, which served abstractly as underlying portents of doom.
Of course, all of this came to be, under Casey Biggs' skillful direction.
He had a very clear vision of what the world of this play was to him,
and some wonderful artists to help him carry that vision forward.
For example; while Richard, and his arch rival for the throne (the
Duke of Richmond), sleep, the ghosts of Richard's victims visit both
men in their dreams. Instead of having each "ghost" come
onstage, the speeches were video projections on the backdrop. The
haunting images and creepier music truly lent itself to the other-worldliness
of the visitations. Another particularly skillful staging Biggs managed
was final battle scene. Trying to present vast armies, in armed conflict,
on a tiny stage is no mean feat. However, with only a few men, and
strobe lighting to stagger the effects, the momentous battle did ensue
in this tiny space.
I
went in expecting a great deal from this play, and it ended up superceding
the expectations I had. It was creatively produced, using an abstract
space which allowed for the audience to stretch it's imagination,
but never in a way that would serve as a distraction from the power
of Shakespeare's storytelling. |
