[NEohioPAL] Berko review: THE WINTER'S TALE @ Great Lakes Theatre

[Roy Berko]

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*Disappointing THE WINTER’S TALE at Great Lakes Theatre*



Roy Berko

(Member, American Theatre Critics Association and Cleveland Critics Circle)



Shakespeare’s THE WINTER’S TALE, now on stage at Great Lakes Theatre,
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.  *

An excellent Teacher Preparation Guide has been prepared by Daniel Hahn and
Kelly Schaffer Florian to aid teachers in leading discussions about the
play.  For information or copy send an email to *Dhahn at greatlakestheater.org
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*Roy Berko's blog, which contains theatre and dance reviews from 2001
through 2012, can be found at www.royberko.info. His reviews and commentary
can also be found on www.coolcleveland.com and www.NeOHIOpal,
Broadwaynews.com and ArtsAmerica.org.*


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