NEW YORK—Manhattan theater audiences are receiving a holiday treat with the London’s Shakespeare’s Globe offering two of the Bard’s plays in repertory at Broadway’s Belasco Theatre: King Richard the Third and Twelfe Night. The all-male casts are headed by the remarkably gifted Mark Rylance under the direction of Tim Carroll.
The productions’ enticing uniqueness, aimed at 17th century authenticity, includes two wooden stands built stage left and right to accommodate a number of audience folk, who are invited occasionally to participate with the actors.
Thus, we get a sense of intimacy and audience connection sorely missing in most Shakespearean productions. The groundlings of Shakespeare’s day are here present!
What makes these productions also unique is the authenticity of Elizabethan costumes and music. Musical instruments include the lute, pipe, and tabor, to name but a few (courtesy music specialist Claire van Kampen); musicians in Elizabethan dress are perched above the stage in a narrow balcony.
Costume fabrics are as close to authentic as possible (courtesy designer Jenny Tiramani); costumes are not only hand sewn but are placed on the actors in full view of the audience about a half-hour prior to performances. One can virtually witness the actors transform into their characters as they are being dressed.
King Richard the Third
Mark Rylance’s unusual Richard throws us off the mark. At first we see not the typical malevolent villain but rather an innocuous buffoon who is surely not too harmful. But as the incidents mount, we’re left with a creature that is completely amoral.
He murders his own brother, Clarence (a moving performance by Liam Brennan, who also acquits himself well as Orsino in Twelfe Night), then his nephews, the two young princes. He then moves to Henry VI and follows up with Edward Prince of Wales.
Then he woos Edward’s widow, Lady Anne (Joseph Timms), who becomes his wife, later eliminating her too via poison, so he can marry another more suitable politically to his cause.
If Richard has human concerns at all, they involve only himself and his self-pity for his deformed body, which he blames for his ruthless behavior toward those who have loved him.
His betrayal of his former best friend Buckingham (richly performed by Angus Wright, who plays a witty Sir Andrew Aguecheek in Twelfe Night) seals Richard’s fate.
When Richard, in the heat of battle, at last cries, “My kingdom for a horse!” it comes full circle that only a four-legged beast can satisfy his needs. But it is too late.
Twelfe Night
The company’s “Twelfe Night” is not only a delightful romp, but a very clear and accurate one. (A friend of mine refused to attend because, she cried, “It’s Shakespeare!” and therefore beyond her ken. Not so.) The company is so skilled in communication that even a child could grasp the meanings.
Viola (Samuel Barnett, who played a remarkable Queen Elizabeth in King Richard the Third) must disguise herself as a boy, Cesario, as young women did not go about alone.
Mark Rylance’s vivid portrayal of Olivia is crystal clear. He plays a noblewoman who knows her own mind as she sets her cap first for Viola (not realizing that the disguised boy is a female) and later for Viola’s twin brother, Sebastian (Joseph Timms, the poignant Lady Anne of King Richard the Third).
Standouts in this play also include Paul Chahidi (a strong performance also in King Richard the Third as assassin Tyrrell), here Olivia’s somewhat arrogant servant woman, Maria; and Stephen Fry in his one assignment of the evening as the foolish cross-gartered Malvolio. Peter Hamilton Dyer makes a tuneful Feste.
This presentation marks one of those rare opportunities when one can witness a marvelous display of Shakespeare, or indeed of any kind of play, that is so remarkably produced, both in terms of performance and technical support. Both plays are exquisite examples of theater craft.
King Richard the Third and Twelfe Night
Shakespeare’s Globe Productions
Belasco Theatre
111 West 44th Street
Tickets: 212-239-6200 or visit Telecharge.com
Running Time: King Richard the Third—2 hours, 45 minutes
Closes: Feb. 1, 2014
Running Time: Twelfe Night—2 hours, 50 minutes
Closes: Feb. 2, 2014
Diana Barth publishes New Millennium, an arts publication. For information: [email protected].
