"No Fear Shakespeare's Richard III" at the 4th Street Theatre
“No Fear Shakespeare’s Richard III” By William Shakespeare (Edited by John Crowther) Directed by Shannon Fillion Reviewed by David Roberts Theatre Reviews Limited
Barnes & Noble’s “No Fear Shakespeare” is a successful series of Shakespeare’s plays which provide not only the complete text of each original play but also “a line-by-line translation that puts Shakespeare into everyday language.” Countless middle school, high school, and college students have used the series for a thorough introduction and exposition of Shakespeare’s works. The “translation” is not meant to replace students’ grappling with the original text but a vehicle to approach the often difficult text of the original without fear and to make the text more accessible.
The question is whether the translation into everyday language is the stuff of performance and the answer is a resounding ‘yes’ as evidenced by the Facing Page Productions’ “No Fear Shakespeare’s Richard III” currently running at the 4th Street Theatre in Manhattan. Directed with precision by Shannon Fillion, the thirteen member ensemble cast effectively portrays Richard III’s Machiavellian meteoric ascent to the throne of England and his equally dramatic paranoia-driven fall from power.
Although it might be easier to read Shakespeare in everyday English, it is more difficult to perform Shakespeare in everyday modern English. Shakespeare’s vernacular is not 21st century American vernacular. Shakespeare wrote in iambic pentameter, the meter that most closely imitates natural speech: it is also the meter that matches the beat of the human heart. Unless actors can bring that authenticity and humanity to the “street language” of the 21st century, the passion of Shakespeare is lost and the conflicts of the characters fall flat and the action is without any persuasive power. In other words, it is completely up to the individual actor to bring the pathos and the ethos of the text to life through their understanding of and interpretation of their given lines.
Most successful at this daunting task is Luke Forbes who plays the title role with delicious and devilish authenticity. Mr. Forbes has discovered an effective way to portray Richard’s entire emotional vault: his pain, his anger, his jealousy, his deep emotional and physical malaise, his hate, his ambition, his love, his passion, his self-destructive core. Forbes has also settled on a physical persona which thoughtfully embraces Richard’s "rudely stamp'd", deformed, unfinish'd” body. Luke Forbes is brilliant as Richard III and his bravura performance lends a stamp of authenticity to the performances of the rest of the cast which vary broadly in successful execution.
Most effective in enlivening the contemporary English are Frank De Julio (Buckingham), Zak Kamin (Clarence), Ryan McCurdy (Tyrrel), Jeffrey Omura (Catesby), Becca Schneider (Anne), and Brian Sell (King Edward). The remainder of the cast was effective in their roles and stretched hard to make their characters real and believable.
Lux Haac’s costumes match the everyday language beautifully and revert back to Elizabethan elegance when appropriate to the specific character. Mode matches mood perfectly. Anshuman Bhatia’s scenic and lighting design create an effective setting and tone and Kortney Barber’s sound design brings in eerie strains of internal and external conflict. The entire cast and creative team of “No Fear Shakespeare’s Richard III” deserves acclaim for bringing this world premiere to the 4th Street Thetre stage.
Finally, Luke Forbes makes Richard’s realization that he is alone in the world counterpoint with our own national, global, and personal existential angst.
NO FEAR SHAKESPEARE’S RICHARD III
Presented by Facing Page Productions. Directed by Shannon Fillion. Scenic and Lighting Design by Anshuman Bhatia. Sound Design by Kortney Barber. Costume Design by Lux Haac.
WITH: Frank De Julio (Buckingham), Tod Engle (Stanley), Danielle Faitelson (Queen Elizabeth), Luke Forbes (Richard), Amy Hattemer (Princess Elizabeth), Jara Jones (Hastings), Zak Kamin (Clarence), Joshua Levine (Rivers), Ryan McCurdy (Tyrrel), Robyn Maitland (Queen Margaret), Jeffrey Omura (Catesby), Becca Schneider (Anne), and Brian Sell (King Edward).
“No Fear Shakespeare’s Richard III” plays at the 4th Street Theatre, 83 East 4th Street in New York, New York through November 3rd, 2012. For further information about the show, including performance schedule and ticket information, visit http://www.facingpageproductions.com/
Permalink | Posted by David Roberts on Saturday, October 27, 2012
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