Seattle Shakespeare Company’s Twelfth Night, directed by Stephanie Shine, was a rollicking good time. The promotional materials made much about the holiday theme of the play, but being totally disconnected from the Elizabethan tradition of Twelfth Night revels, I never saw much in the play that was particularly seasonal; I was looking forward to seeing what SSC would come up with here. Setting the piece in Dickens’s London, with Victorian costumes (complete with bowler derbies and some rather shady facial hair), and imitation gaslights festooned with Christmas greenery immediately recalled that other seasonal play, The Christmas Carol. But more delightful than all that was the cast invading the lobby before the show to kick the party off with games and carols (lyrics provided).

The officious Malvolio kept the play on schedule, but once in our seats, the games and singing continued, long enough for us all to learn the round “Hold thy peace, thou knave” so that later in the play we could all join Sirs Toby and Andrew in their carousing. A brilliant device: my personal Ghost of Shakespeare Past reminds me of several painful audience participation moments, that awkward ‘do I say it? will anyone else say it? maybe I should just move my lips’ and so you just kind of whisper the first few words to see who else is with you, only gaining confidence in numbers, so that what really comes out is “mumble mumble Richard mumble royal KING!” I always wondered what would happen if some of the audience would just boldly own the line from the first word, and gave it a go, loud and clear, in Act 1 of a recent Titus Andronicus, “Long live our Emperor Saturnine!” And there I was, falling off the cliff, but none of the lemmings followed.

After the show, the lobby party continued with tables full of Dickensian delicacies such as mincemeat tarts, roasted chestnuts, and other more exotic edibles. I enjoy exploring cuisines from different cultures and historical periods and have put together Elizabethan menus for Shakespeare movie nights, so to me this was a perfect treat and much appreciated.

The play itself was a fine representation of the strong ensemble work I’ve come to expect from the Seattle Shakespeare Company. I’ve seen many a pretty Olivia, but Brenda Joyner was the first Olivia I’ve actually liked - played with both warmth and comedic timing, she’s not some cold, heartless creature, but a woman who knows what she wants and, unfortunately for Orsino, does not want. Carol Roscoe’s Maria had moments of ‘authenticity’ that seemed to transcend mere acting. When she rushes onstage to draw a crowd to witness Malvolio’s downfall, she’s not an actress pretending to be having difficulty breathing. Chris Ensweiler’s Feste the Jester, played as a gypsy troubadour, combined saucy wit and musical talent (more on that later) with just a bit of vulnerability that comes from relying on the goodwill of others for one’s bread. John Bogar seemed so perfectly cast as the self-important Malvolio that I was having a hard time picturing him playing any other role. I was startled when I read in his bio that John had played Marc Antony in a show I saw just a year ago. The transformation was so complete that I still feel the need to check if there wasn’t an understudy on for him the night I was at the Harlequin. I know transformation is what actors do, but I’m still impressed when it takes me in completely.

This production took a bold risk with José A. Rufino’s Duke Orsino: all the absurd heights of romantic infatuation were played out to a clownish level, with the Count alternately writhing in agony/ecstasy to his minstrel’s music to literally leaping through the air like a gazelle imitating out the line “That instant was I turn’d into a hart”. This interpretation was both fresh and funny, as I’m more used to the role being played with somber dignity, but I think it also gave Viola very little to fall so deeply in love with, and the buffoonery denied Orsino and Viola-as-Cesario many moments of tension and chemistry that would add satisfaction to the conclusion. Susannah Millonzi’s Viola had enough passion for both of them, perhaps.

It’s always a bit distracting when Shakespearean look-alike twins look nothing alike, but I’m sure this is the first time I’ve seen Sebastian/Viola so well paired as to take half the audience by surprise.

Music director Sean Patrick Taylor, who also appeared onstage as the guitar-wielding Curio, along with fellow minstrel Carter Rodriquez and Feste deserve a special nod for wrapping the whole play in a great live soundtrack that ranged from dueling Spanish guitars to gypsy/flamenco dances. It seems particularly fitting for a play that begins (at least typically) with ‘If music be the food of love, play on’ to have music and dance so well incorporated into the vision of the play.

Seattle Shakespeare Company’s Twelfth Night is playing through Dec. 27th at the Center House Theatre at Seattle Center. Tickets are cheaper than your cable bill.

[Photos by Erik Stuhaug. Carol Roscoe as Maria, Darragh Kennan as Sir Andrew, and Ray Gonzalez as Sir Toby. John Bogar as Malvolio, Darragh Kennan as Sir Andrew, Frank Lawler as Fabian, and Ray Gonzalez as Sir Toby. José A. Rufino as Duke Orsino and Chris Ensweiler as Feste.]

Dec 6, 2009 | permalink