THEATRE REVIEW: THE TEMPEST
28 Jun'10

'Tempest' downgraded

JOHN COULBOURN - QMI Agency
Rating: 3.5 out of 5

STRATFORD -- In a part of Southern Ontario where inclement nature regularly carves swaths both wide and deep across the land, there is little about the storm that swept across the stage of the Festival Theatre Friday that is remarkable.

It is, of course, not just any storm - but rather the storm with which William Shakespeare launches one of his most famous works, fittingly titled THE TEMPEST -- and not surprisingly, it is a major plot device. In fact, without it, the ship carrying the King of Naples and his court, en route home after a wedding in Ethiopia, would not founder, washing all aboard up on the shore of a strange island, thus -- however circuitously -- restoring the dispossessed wizard Prospero, who rules there, to all that is rightfully his.

So, as storms go, it should be a memorable one -- particularly if you're about to introduce your audience to a Prospero played by the legendary Christopher Plummer. But sadly, most of what director Des McAnuff and his design team serve up is simply visual bombast mixed with a bit of inclement weather -- a combination that, while it gets everyone where they need to be for Shakespeare's purposes, does little in the end to set the tone for the production that follows. Which in its way serves as fair comment on this production, for as the ever-charming and affable Plummer leads us through this familiar tale of love, magic and revenge, one senses his director struggling to find a through line that will tie everything together in what should be a deeply complex tale.

First off, of course, there is that web of intrigue surrounding the shipwrecked King of Naples, played by Peter Hutt. With a court that includes Prospero's brother, pretender to his Dukedom of Milan (John Vickery), as well as the king's own too-ambitious brother (Timothy D. Stickney), it's a dangerous place, particularly when the king is distracted, mourning the apparent death of his son and heir.

Then there is the love story that springs up when Ferdinand, that selfsame son and heir, played by Gareth Potter, falls instantly in love with Prospero's only child, Miranda, played with more than just a jarring touch of Dogpatch hayseed by Trish Lindstrom.

And finally, there is the conspiracy between Prospero's slave, the monstrous Caliban (a strong turn by Dion Johnstone), and two of the shipwrecked Neopolitans - the jester Trinculo, played by Bruce Dow, having a gay old time channeling Dame Edna, and the drunken butler Stephano, overplayed by Geraint Wyn Davies. Together, this trio of miscreants plans to murder the old wizard and rule over his island kingdom in his place. All of this, of course, is not news to Plummer's Prospero, who through the use of his magical powers and with the aid of his servant spirit, Ariel (Julyana Soelistyo showing us what would happen if one of sculptor Ron Mueck's works came to life and mated with a randy Teletubby) is manipulating all of them to his own ends with affable charm.

In McAnuff's production, however, these diverse stories all seem to play out as slight comedy, with the darker threads of revenge, greed and forgiveness that Shakespeare wove so carefully through the tale all but ignored. Despite assists from a top-notch creative team, including designers Robert Brill (sets), Paul Tazewell (costumes), Michael Walton (lighting) and a gaggle of coaches, assistants and the like, McAnuff becomes so entangled in witty sleight-of-hand that he fails to notice his whole production is perilously short on the requisite depth and real magic to make it truly memorable.

Happily, there is still Plummer -- and while his Prospero will no doubt be remembered for his easy charm, his sense of humour, and the ease with which he handles the text, one can't help but feel his is a Prospero who never got THE TEMPEST he deserves.