Through Sun 11/1
Yes! The king — King Lear in this case — is back. The crazy, passionate old man looks better than ever in this fine and frightening Great Lakes Theatre interpretation, now onstage at Playhouse Square’s Hanna Theatre. If you’ve avoided this bitter play because it’s tragic, then consider going: as directed by Joseph Hanreddy, this Lear blazes through Shakespeare’s tale of delusion and deceit with little dashes of comedy that make it bearable.
On opening night Fri 10/2, Shakespeare’s tragic take on power, love, truth, trust, aging and ambition seemed fresh, in part due to the striking modern costumes and the set. But the largest part of praise and credit must go to the remarkable cast’s bringing to life the stylish and savage royals as they lust, love, betray, battle each other and, in the process, tear Lear’s kingdom apart.
The story suggests it’s not a good idea to give children their inheritance too soon (i.e., before you die) if you are a king. As the play opens, King Lear wants to retire and plans to give his kingdom to his three “loving” daughters. Lear (in a nuanced portrayal by Aled Davies) blusters, storms and acts simultaneously as both bully and pitiful, delusional old man. Davies’ fine portrayal evokes sympathy for Lear without ignoring the old man’s worsening mental health.
Lear’s fool (Tom Ford) offers a dark duplicate of the King. He’s another man unafraid to speak the truth and he’s protected by Lear (who likely feels on some level that he needs to hear what the Fool tells him). Ford does a terrific job; he makes the bawdy jokes clear and evokes real laughs, giving a needed smile as the story grows grimmer and grimmer.
Lear’s eldest daughter Goneril (a business-like Laura Perrotta) and her sister Regan (Robyn Cohen as a hiply garbed sophisticate a la Kim Kardashian) pledge their undying love to daddy Lear when he promises lavish benefits to the child who loves him most. When youngest sister Cordelia (Cassandra Bissell) answers without flattery (she loves him as a daughter should love a father, but he’s not everything in life to her), Lear rages, gives her nothing and marries her off to the King of France (Neil Brookshire). Bissell’s Cordelia seems too tied to analytical responses, but perhaps that was actually Cordelia’s fault. It makes her end seem less sad, however, than it might if she were more likeable.
The Duke of Albany (Stephen Mitchell Brown) conspires with wife Goneril as does Regan’s husband the Duke of Cornwall (Dustin Tucker), but the ladies run the show. Dougfred Miller plays the unlucky Earl of Kent and Ben Kemper is the Duke of Burgundy.
There’s also the subplot and parallel story of fathers and sons tied to the Earl of Gloucester (an earnest David Anthony Smith); Edgar, his legitimate son (a dutiful J. Todd Adams), and his illegitimate child Edmund (dashing Jonathan Dyrud, who offers up Shakespeare’s delicious rant about bastards).
The stunning and simple set designed by Linda Buchanan proves marvelously effective, creating both background and surprises as the story continues. Martha Hally’s costumes also contribute to the play, especially the clothes worn by the bad sisters Goneril and Regan.
The ensemble cast moves unobtrusively around, changing the set as needed. There’s a comic use of the “front yard” as they clear the set from scene to scene. Kentucky Fried Chicken even plays a pivotal role as does as an eyeball (or two) as they are tossed into the yard.
Last word: All-in-all a highly recommended roller-coaster ride of tragedy (with a few laughs) placed in 2015 so effectively that one hardly notices that it runs almost three hours and that the language is more beautiful than that we hear on the street or in our workplace.
For tickets go to greatlakestheater.org/ or call Playhouse Square at 216-241-6000. King Lear continues through Sun 11/1.
[Written by Laura Kennelly] [Photo by Roger Mastroianni]Cleveland, OH 44115