The Tempest
There
are many reviews for “The Tempest” playing at Paper Wing Fremont. All
of them talk about the controversial history of the play, it’s place in
Shakespeare’s works, and so on so forth. So I’m going to skip all of
that- because it’s not really all that important to my experience with
this production. If you’re interested, I advise you to read Shane M.
Dallmann’s review on his facebook page or look at the Monterey Arts
Weekly page, or even check out the Monterey County Herald. Suffice to
say that this is Shakespeare, it’s well read, and it’s been adapted a
number of times.
I
wasn’t going to write anything about the show, to be totally honest. I
didn’t feel there was anything I could possibly add to the voices that
were already praising the performances or the ability of the production
team to adapt the material. And after I saw the show a few weeks ago, I
simply didn’t see what I could write about that hadn’t already been
covered well enough to the point where I could just share someone else’s
words on my own feeds… but then I was sitting here and thinking about
the show a week and a half later I was still thinking about it. I was
thinking about how this play was so incredibly open to interpretation
and that the shows script completely changes with the application of a
director’s vision or an actor’s mannerism. “The Tempest” can be a
harrowing adventure, a thrilling romance, or it can play as absurdist
comedy. And I was thinking about how brilliantly Patrick Golden really
was to tackle the material and strip it down to such bare bones
minimalism and then deliver Shakespeare in a box.
It’s
become kind of kitschy to refer to the show as a “Tempest in a teapot”-
but the reality is that it’s got far more in common with a TARDIS than
it does with a teapot. Simply put, the small stage certainly gets much
bigger once we are in the show. And no one illustrates this point more
strongly than Beverly Van Pelt in her portrayal of Ariel. She flutters
around the stage throughout the show, appearing in doorways and peaking
over the shoulders of the blissfully unaware while gesturing frantically
from one spell to the next. The “island” seems far larger than it truly
is and Van Pelt manages to maintain a great amount of playful and
sometimes petulant energy throughout the show. And she becomes more than
just a servant to Prospero (Clark M. Brown), she’s a friend and a
confidant and, perhaps, even a companion.
All
of the performers are fantastic in their roles- and none brought to
life the vision I’d seen in my own head or what I’d previously seen in
other adaptations of the material. The show was entirely unique to the
experience and made it much more than “Another Shakespeare” performance.
Each actor brought a different spin to the characters, from the
scheming pair of villains to the bumbling pair of dullards, this is The
Tempest in a way I’ve never seen it before. Philip Livernois brings a
sense of casual conversation to the Olde English of Shakespeare’s
writing that I found not only enjoyable, but extremely accessible for a
younger audience. Cody Moore steps into the shoes of a handsome romantic
lead and gives it a slight twist that reminded me a little of Zeppo
Marx in his tenderness. And the casting of Alyca Tanner in the role of
Gonzala brought a maternal aspect to the compassion of a character
normally played by a man (The name is Gonzalo in most productions).
When
I caught the show, the role of the King was played by Jody Gilmore- his
was a last minute substitution when Jay Devine took ill, but he has
since stepped back into the role for the remaining shows. Gilmore was
fantastic, however. I always enjoy his presence on the stage when it
comes and this was a great role for him to step into.
The
Tempest closes this weekend and runs Friday and Saturday nights at 8 PM
with a final Sunday matinee at 3 PM at Paper Wing Fremont.
5 out of 5.
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