[NEohioPAL] Review of GLTF's "The Comedy of Errors"

[Bob Abelman]

No errors made with Shakespeare's Comedy

 

Bob Abelman

News-Herald, Chagrin Valley Times, Solon Times, Geauga Times Courier

Member, International Association of Theatre Critics 

 

This review appeared in the News-Herald 4/10/09

 

Anyone attending a modern-day production of a William Shakespeare comedy has to wonder what it was like to be in attendance when that play was originally staged and first encountered by audiences.   

 

For the raucous Renaissance crowd at the Globe Theater in 1590s London, the Elizabethan language that is so foreign to us was familiar to the ear, allowing all of Shakespeare's clever wordplay and brilliant poetry to be immediately accessible.  His storylines were fresh, their morals were relevant, and his characters were instantaneously recognizable.  Bright costumes and the infusion of then-contemporary music and dance made for a wildly spectacular and marvelously festive mid-afternoon's entertainment.   

 

 "Accessible," "fresh" and "wildly spectacular" also describe the Great Lakes Theater Festival's rendition of The Comedy of Errors, currently on stage at the Hanna Theatre.  

 

Believed to be one of Shakespeare's earliest plays, The Comedy of Errors is about twin brothers, both named Antipholus, and their twin servants, both named Dromios, who are separated by shipwreck at a very early age.  One brother and his servant end up in the city of Ephesus and the other pair end up in Syracuse.  Now adults, the brothers unite during a chance visit to Ephesus, but only after a series of hilarious mishaps ensue due to mistaken identity involving all four men. This is a very funny play, filled with wonderful verbal sparring and loads of physical comedy.

 

Under the superb direction of the GLTG's Charles Fee, all the humor is brought to the forefront by an extremely talented troupe.  The assembled cast speaks the Bard's dialogue with amazing ease and fluidity.  Its rhythm and meaning are beautifully replicated, rendering this play immediately comprehendible for even the most novice theater-goers.  It is a pleasure to hear for more discerning denizens.  

 

Fee, the master of manipulating contexts to house Shakespeare's works, has elected to transform the city of Ephesus into a sensuous, contemporary Rio de Janeiro in the midst of a Carnaval celebration.  Russell Metheny's seaside set design beautifully captures the party atmosphere and set pieces are brought into place by the ensemble, as was done during Shakespeare's time.

 

 Interestingly, the ensemble is comprised of seven dancers, led by the agile Terence Greene and Jens Lee, who enter and exit in salsa-saturated and samba-inspired perpetual motion courtesy of brilliant choreographer Martín Céspedes.  Infused with steamy Brazilian nightclub music, as well as creative costuming by Charlotte Yetman, this production is brimming with vitality from the opening moments to the play's conclusion.  

 

Until the very end of the play, the two sets of twins are never on stage at the same time. This allows for GLTF staple Andrew May to play both Antipholus brothers and GLTF neophyte Ian Gould to play both servants.  They play them brilliantly.  Mays' well-honed skills and celebrated showmanship are very much on display in this production.  He is interesting all the time and manages to milk every syllable and every scenario for all they are worth.  Likewise, Ian Gould is a remarkable fool in true Shakespearean fashion.  Watching him perform in this production is a treat.

 

There is no shortage of talented performers on this stage, including Lynn Allison as the wife of Antipholus of Ephesus and Gisela Chipe as her sister Luciana.  Both are marvelous and deliver contemporary takes on their characters without losing sight of what Shakespeare had intended.  Less featured but certainly not less luminous performances are turned in by GLTG regulars Aled Davies, David Anthony Smith, Laura Perrotta and Dudley Swetland.

 

It is hard to imagine a more entertaining performance of this play during Shakespeare's time.  In fact, given this cast and the variety that the stage-of-the-art Hanna stage provides, it is easy to imagine that this is the kind of production that Shakespeare would have done.  

 

The Comedy of Errors continues in repertory with Chekhov's The Seagull through May 3 at PlayhouseSquare's Hanna Theatre.  For tickets, which range from $13 to $67, call 216-241-6000 or visit www.greatlakestheater.org
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