Play by William Shakespeare
Propeller Theatre Company
At The Huntington Theatre Company
Boston University Theatre
Boston, MA
Directed by Edward Hall
Designed by Micahel Pavelka
May 18 – June 19, 2011
With Richard Clotheir (The Duke of Ephesus), John Dougall (Aegeon), Dugald Bruce-Lockhart (Antipholus of Syracuse), Sam Swainsbury (Antipholus of Ephesus), Richard Frame (Dromio of Syracuse), Jon Trenchard (Dromio of Ephesus), Robert Hands (Adriana), David Newman (Luciana), Wayne Cater (Balthasar), Thomas Padden (Angelo), Dominic Tighe (Officer), Kelsey Brookfield (Courtesan), Tony Bell (Pinch), Chris Myles (Aemilia).
This is the Shakespeare confused identity play par excellence. There are other plays in which mistaken twins play a role – Twelfth Night, for example – but here the theme is central to the plot. Two sets of twins are involved – Antipholus of Syracuse and Antipholus of Ephesus, brothers separated in a shipwreck – and their matching servants, both named Dromio. It is, of course, completely unbelievable, but one gives it a lot of leeway because it’s Shakespeare and it’s pretty funny. The antics involve the twins showing up in the same place and confusing everyone, incliuding a wife and a necklace merchant. But, of course, it all sorts out in the end, and, as with most Shakespearean comedies, this results in multiple couples living happily ever after and a few lives being saved.
Propeller Theatre Company is all male, as was the case with theatre companies in the days of Shakespeare. Men play women’s roles, and here they do a fine job of it.
The production starts with a bunch of actors in Mexican hats ambling onto the stage with musical instruments and working their way into some pretty good tunes. The guitar and violin playing were excellent and set the tone for the high level of musicality that was matched throughout the performance. In addition to the instrumental and choral music during the show, they sang a number of rollicking melodies in the lobby during intermission to collect for Save The Children. It was beautiful, energetic, and a great time.
Propeller’s constancy of gags and unremitting energy is striking. They leave very few blanks in time or space and, in the end, one feels completely entertained. Even their gags about turning off cell phones are well done.
Robert Hands was an hysterical – in both senses of the term – Adriana – wife of Antipholus of Ephesus, and David Newman as Luciana, equally compelling in a female role, had the challenge of being less histrionic and a bit more heartfelt.
The two Dromios were a scream. Jon Trenchard, as Dromio of Ephesus, delivered one of his orations with fantastic speed and pizzazz.
It’s a real challenge to make Shakespeare’s very dense words rise up and stand out clearly. Propeller, at some points, managed to do just this. At other points, the words seemed to get swept into the general energy and swirl of the production. It is great, of course, to have an energetic production; but, if, as time goes on, Propeller figures out how to make that rising up of the words possible even more than they do, it would turn their very good, energetic and wonderfully entertaining productions into transcendent ones.
I once saw a documentary about Shakespeare and Company’s (Lenox, MA) training program and seeing Tina Packer (its founder and artistic director) and veteran Dennis Krausnick work with actors to help transform, clarify and project Shakespearean language. The results of their work were truly astonishing.
Propeller has done a great job of making this early, silly, and fun comedy, a Shakespearean classic, a great night on the town. With a bit more of the kind of transformative verbal magic Packer and Krausnick demonstrated in that documentary, Propeller could rise up even higher into the atmosphere of great Shakespearean companies.
– BADMan
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