Snoop's Theatre Thoughts

King Lear

by William Shakespeare

Directed by Milton Zoth

St. Louis Actor’s Studio, Gaslight Theatre

June 8th, 2013

The Fool (Bobby Miller) and King Lear (John Contini), photo by John Lamb

I love Shakespeare. I don’t think I can ever say that enough. As far as I’m concerned, he was the greatest playwright who ever lived, and his plays present themes that multiple generations can relate to. I was glad to find out that St. Louis Actor’s Studio would be presenting the classic tragedy King Lear.  Although I had read the play before and seen clips of filmed versions of it, I had never seen it live so I was particularly excited to see this production. I had also heard great things about the STLAS and hadn’t actually seen one of their shows, and this was an excellent introduction to the company and the play.

This is the classic tragedy of the ancient British king (John Contini) who in his vanity foolishly listens to and rewards the over-the-top flattery of his scheming older daughters Goneril and Regan (Meghan Maguire and Missy Heinemann) while rejecting his truly loyal and soft-spoken younger daughter Cordelia (Jessica Laney), bringing dire consequences on all involved.  The play covers universal themes such as parent-child relationships, love vs. flattery, sibling rivalry and more, and has been condensed and streamlined to focus on the play’s primary relationships.  Lear and his daughters and the Earl of Gloucester (William Roth) and his sons (Justin Ivan Brown as Edgar and Rusty Gunther as Edmund) take front and center in this production, which also features the relationships between Lear and his faithful retainers, the exiled but ever loyal Earl of Kent (Eric Dean White) and the ragged and enigmatic Fool (Bobby Miller).  Some of the other roles (most notably the daughters’ husbands) have been eliminated, further emphasizing the play’s most important characters and interactions.

The set, designed by Patrick Huber, is simple, suggesting a stone castle and staircases, with projections of Celtic-style symbols on the wall to represent various locations.  This set along with the excellent lighting effects (also designed by Huber), richly detailed traditional costumes (by Teresa Doggett) and use of evocative music sets the scene appropriately, effectively transporting the audience to the castles and wilderness of ancient Britain and setting the various moods of the play from regal and stately at the beginning, to the utter chaos and confusion of battle and everything in between. The performance space at the Gaslight Theatre is not very large, but this production made use of all the available space, including the aisles and audience area to emphasize the heightened emotions and overall intensity of this production.

As Lear, Contini  portrays a compelling journey from over-confidence and self-centeredness to incredulity and disappointment, to outright madness and abject grief.  It’s a compelling portrait of a disillusioned father, and his scenes with Laney as Cordelia are particularly touching, as well as his interactions with Bobby Miller’s magnificently realized Fool (who practically steals every scene he’s in), White as Kent and Brown as the disguised, madness-feigning Edgar.  When all four of these men are sharing a scene, the result is magic.  Gunther, as the treacherous Edmund, also effectively shows growth from the weaselly and unsure usurper to the swaggering and overconfident villain as the plot progresses.  Heinemann and Maguire are suitably petulant and conniving as the scheming older sisters, and Laney is earnest and noble as Cordelia.  I loved the use of vocal variation by both Miller as the Fool (his “prophecy” scene is a particular highlight) and Brown the dignified, well-spoken Edgar and  his alter-ego, the high-pitched, rambling “Poor Tom”.  This is a play of relationships, and all are richly portrayed by this remarkable cast.

This is an intense, concentrated production that highlights the sheer emotion of the play and the strength of all of the performances.  Making the cast smaller certainly didn’t reduce the impact of the piece.  On the contrary, this production a fully realized and powerful presentation that serves Shakespeare’s material remarkably well, and makes for a truly memorable theatrical experience.

The Fool (Bobby Miller), Edgar (Justin Ivan Brown), King Lear (John Contini), Kent (Eric White). Photo by John Lamb