by Charlsie-Kern Kruger
Prospero (a woman in this production) is a powerful magician. Capable of conjuring worlds and ruling even the weather, she is approaching her final years and must learn whether she can master herself. Using her powers, she has magically enslaved the island’s inhabitants, Ariel and Caliban, to aid her in bringing enemies to heel. Years earlier, Prospero was the Duke of Milan, but her traitorous brother usurped her from the throne, and Prospero would have been executed had not her friend Gonzalo left her stranded on an island, along with her 3-year-old daughter, Miranda.
For comfort, Prospero has her library of magical texts, and spends years of exile becoming a master magician. Now, as her daughter is entering her teen years, Prospero raises a tempest to shipwreck her sea-faring brother, along with his court, on the island. The question at hand: Will Prospero use her powers to take vengeance upon her brother, easily accomplished, or will she seek reconciliation? And what will become of those she has enslaved, Ariel and Caliban? Prospero’s journey as she finds the strength to lay down her magical staff and return to the world of humanity is among Shakespeare’s most moving stories, full of song and magic, hilarious fun and deeply felt sorrow.
There is enough in this wonderful, perfectly constructed play to ensure that any production is likely to please audiences, but when a production achieves transcendence, as does this one presented by Marin Shakespeare Company, it has no equal in the entire canon of English theatre.
Many an actor has capped a career with Prospero. An unusually rich character, Prospero rewards any skillful actor who rises to the challenge with something more than a distinguished line in a resume. When Prospero is performed well, it changes the performer. Prospero is about spiritual attainment, about growth, about a sea change that occurs in every human life. To watch a great actor as Prospero is one of the richest experiences possible when attending to Shakespeare.
And, with this rich and strange production by Marin Shakespeare Company, we get exactly that. Stacy Ross is undoubtedly one of the leading actors in the Bay Area and has been so for years. One of the joys of Bay Area theatre is that there is (until recently, alas) enough professional work here that a fine actor can pursue a lifelong career without having to go to the Big Apple, the Windy City, or La La land. And audiences can follow actors of exceptional accomplishment over a long trajectory. And how fortunate we are that her career coincides with changes in theatrical practice, making it possible for a female actor to take on the usually male character of Prospero and make it her own. In this case Ross is not performing the character as male (although she has convincingly played male characters in the past). Prospero is presented as a woman and it works well.
Ross, not surprisingly, rises to the occasion. Her Prospero has depths like the sea, and as she is buffeted by storms both outside and within her own psyche, Ross is utterly transparent. We see this Prospero deep down to her very soul. This is a rare and remarkable performance.
While Ross is the beating heart of this show, she is supported by an exceptional cast, most notably Chris Steele as the strange and disturbing Caliban. Steele is another actor whose local career has astounded. They seem capable of playing anything, from Drag Queens to macho Dukes, to gossip reporters, to Tweedle Dum, and now Caliban. They are an actor of unusual power and resonance, and all of their skills are on display here. Their Caliban is monstrous and gentle, mad and wise, frightening and seductive, as wild and alive as myth. Caliban is the child of the witch Sycorax who ruled the island before the arrival of Prospero, who took over and thus deprived Caliban of his inheritance and made him a slave. An interesting plot point is that Prospero, who seeks vengeance on the brother that usurped her as the Duke of Milan, is herself a usurper. Old Will Shakespeare knew what he was about when it came to telling an interesting story!
Also on the island is the spirit Ariel, played with her usual enthusiasm and skill by Anna Ishida.
The rest of the cast are also outstanding. The shipwrecked courts of Alonso, King of Naples (John Eleby) and Antonio, Duke of Milan (DeAnna Driscoll)) are entirely convincing.
For comic relief, DeAnna Driscoll also appears as the tipsy Trinculo who plots with his drinking buddy Stefano (Stevie DeMot) to capture the island for themselves with the help of the gullible Caliban, whom they ply with booze.
The young lovers, Ferdinand and Miranda, are charmingly portrayed by Jordan Covington and Anna Takayo.
M. Graham Smith has adapted and directed “The Tempest” with admirable clarity. Nina Ball’s set design presents the cliffs of the island as if they were the sails of a ship and it is very magical. Bethany Deal Flores’ costume designs are fine, but one might wish she had stretched a bit more in costuming Ariel and Caliban, whose look is not otherworldly, as it should be. Puppetry by Peter Parrish is highly effective in a very magical sequence. Jon Tracy’s light design does the job well. Ray Archie’s sound design successfully manages the challenges presented by the Forrest Meadows Amphitheatre.
Even if you think Shakespeare is not for you, be not afraid to see this Tempest. It is full of sounds and sweet airs that give delight and hurt not.
Your attention will be well rewarded.
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Rating: ***** (For an explanation of TheatreStorm’s rating system, click here.)
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“The Tempest” by William Shakespeare, adapted and directed by M. Graham Smith. Set Design: Nina Ball. Light Design; Jon Tracy. Sound Design: Ray Archie. Costume Design: Bethany Deal Flores. Prop/Puppetry Artisan: Peter Parrish. Fight Direction: Dave Meir. Intimacy Direction: Jeunée Simon. Kaleidoscope Dramaturg: Philippa Kelly. Dramaturg Support: Aciay Antonius Mitchell and Nick Musleh.
Cast (in alphabetical order):
Ferdinand: Jordan Covington. Stephano: Stevie DeMot. Antonio/Trinculo: DeAnna Driscoll. Alonso: John Eleby. Ariel: Anna Ishida. Sebastian: Adam Mendez, Jr. Gonzalo: Kevin Rolston. Prospero: Stacy Ross. Caliban: Chris Steele. Miranda: Anna Takayo. Ensemble: Madelyn Garfinkel. Anthony Jefferson. Iahfari Maddo. Ivanu Olukotun.
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