On the stark side of England, some grave matters

The Yale School of Drama's Class of 2000 has been acting a bit too cutthroat lately, systematically lopping off each other's heads in the Yale Repertory Theatre's production of Shakespeare's Richard III. To lay the grounds for this mass slaughter, Scott Pask designed the bowels of the Earth with two giant hunks of land painted in dreary grays, browns, and black, which illustrate England's sickly state. An opening in the stage floor represents a grave. This gaping hole in the ground creates a real sense of discomfort throughout the play, foreboding death.

Pask embellished the grave set by removing the curtains, which usually serve to soften a set with wings to which the actors can escape and to provide a fourth wall by means of which the audience can distance itself from the action; the poor Repertory Theatre now stands naked, stripped down to pipes and light switches. This stark stage evokes England's foul mood, but also causes a bit of languor when it is mixed with drab costumes and grim lighting once Richard takes the throne.

COURTESY YALE REPERTORY THEATRE Everybody in Shakespeare! I'm just mad about Richard III.

Brennan Brown, DRA '00, certainly does not take his role, Richard III, in stride, as he drags himself all over the stage with his fabled hunchback, uneven limbs, and shrunken arm. Although he plays a man responsible for overcrowding the underground, Brown gives the play its vibrancy. He exudes so much charisma that he manages not only to woo Lady Ann, whose husband Edward he killed in order to marry her, and Queen Elizabeth, whose numerous kin he slaughtered in order to persuade her daughter to marry him, but also to force a stubborn midweek audience to bend to his will and pity the "intelligentsia of hell." Although color drains out of the stage when the pastel lights fade during his soliloquies, it all seems to seep into Brown's character.

Staging Richard III on and around two hunks of land allows for intriguing blocking. These hunks, however, do not serve Lady Margaret so well, as they appear to weaken her curse on the kingdom. Although she should stand above the crowd to cast the curse, here Lady Margaret stands so far above us that her delivery loses its power. The fault for this loss of energy definitely lies on the shoulders of the two hunks, since Lady Ann commands the stage when she descends from the top of this land.

Hope does manage to struggle through this setback, however; the actors and backstage forces gradually dismantle the outcropping set so that its parts splay across the stage like a smashed coconut, its white, hopeful innards bared to the audience. This tropical set then conjures up a storm, the battle between Richard and Richmond (Robert L. Devaney, DRA '00). While Richmond eagerly expresses his readiness for battle, the resulting sword fight proves anticlimactic; one can sense the softened punches and the dull swords. Where's the fencing team when you need them?

Katherine Roth's costumes blend with the drab set, which is mostly designed in neutral colors. Like the set, these costumes both fit the looming atmosphere of the play and detract from the intensity of the fact that many lives are at stake. By watching so many characters dressed in gray, one begins to feel apathetic to Richard's purges. The audience responds to these executions as if they are fight scenes in an action film in which the villains all wear matching sweater sets so that no one bemoans the loss of any one of the lot. Roth does add some ironic color to the mourning garbs of the women; this touch further disconnects the audience from sympathetic feeling, as life is recreated in the women's lamentations of their lost loved ones. However, Richard's costume, a tight leather coat that emphasizes his mangled features, fits him well and makes him a seductive emcee.

Theater

Richard III Written by William Shakespeare Directed by Stan Wojewodski Jr. Fri., Mar. 24, 8 p.m.; Sat., Mar. 25, 2 and 8 p.m. Yale Repertory Theatre $26 to $34

The women who lose their men to Richard and then fall victim to his charms perform strongly, thriving on their complex struggles between love and hate. Amy Morse, DRA '00, makes an interesting choice in her portrayal of the Duchess of York, Richard's mother. Despite her age, the Duchess walks upright, does not stammer, and holds a cane as if it were a mere accessory. At first I thought, "Maybe it's Maybeline," but then I realized that her attitude is something more; it is a contrast to Richard's monstrous form and evidence of her struggle as both a mother and a victim of his rage.

Though the graduating class of the Drama School might not have anywhere to place their caps, they thrive as an ensemble, working off of each other's skills. Their strengths give life to a barren set and shine through drab wear. From the bowels of the Earth, they have nowhere to go but up...unless they get stuck in soap operas, from which Richmond Devaney, a.k.a Fratboy #603 on One Life To Live, has already emerged.

Back to A&E...