There's no need for me to talk about Midsummer Night's Dream; let me refer you to the excellent article by Robert Hurwitt in the Chronicle. While browsing the web I also discovered Shakespeare Santa Cruz's brand new flickr photostream (not on the SSC site yet) with beautiful shots of Midsummer Night's Dream by veteran photographers r.r. jones and Shmuel Thaler. Now, let's talk about Caesar. If you haven't seen Midsummer Night yet, I urge you to hold off! Start with Julius Caesar. Why? I will tell you why!
Local writer Christina Waters ends her Midsummer review on SantaCruz.com with an enthusiastic "And to think that all of these performers will transform themselves, yet again, into the cast of Julius Caesar!" Careful what you wish for! I also thought that Scott Wentworth delivered an outstanding performance as Nick Bottom. I was very much looking forward to his Brutus, but as brooding savior of the republic he seemed rather subdued, at least in the preview we attended. The even bigger surprise, though, was sweet Thisbe turned Mark Antony. Like Wentworth, Jonathan David Visser was perfect in his comedic role, absolutely hilarious as the maiden "mechanical," but meeting him again as Antony was somewhat... disturbing. Try as I may, I could not erase Thisbe's falsetto voice & ingenious fake breasts from my memory. A Mark Antony, who looks like Conan O'Brien, is about a decade and a half younger than he should be, with outrageously effective plunger cups strapped to his chest (in my impressionable mind), is an Antony I cannot take seriously, I am sorry! I love Antony's speech at Caesar's funeral. It could have been the highlight of the play, but with these images lodged in my brain I felt cheated out of it. Visser is a talented actor, no doubt, but not one who should play Mark Antony. To avoid the surreal experience I had I would suggest you see Julius Caesar first. (Unless you're into surreal experiences, then go for it!)
Now, why should you see Caesar? Let me tell you why!
The BBC production I mentioned yesterday left me with the memory of rather philosophical dialogues delivered by aging men wrapped in drab & limp bed sheets. Shakespeare Santa Cruz cured me instantly of the idea that the play should be colorless & abstract. It starts with a bang, and delivers more until the end. What was I thinking, of course! It has a bloody assassination at its heart! Fittingly, blood-red is the dominant color. Red on black, as our protagonists wear the black suits of politicians instead of togas. The only nod to Roman fashion are red scarves draped over the men's shoulders, held by epaulets. Caesar stands out in the pseudo-military uniform of a dictator, royal purple on tan to signify his singular power. (Costumes by B. Modern, wonderfully coherent, beautiful in their simplicity).I never thought much of green-with-envy Cassius before, but Chris Butler let me fall in love with him by delivering the most entertaining, most lively performance. Downright adorable! Butler played the schemer with so much gusto, he carried the play, he propelled the play, and swept us away in the process.
Very different from what I expected, Julius Caesar has much color, lots of energy, and plenty of fresh ideas to recommend it! (Photos: The cast of SSC's 2009 production of Julius Caesar by r.r. jones. Chris Butler from the SSC Company 2009 page.)
No comments:
Post a Comment