Festival Pulls Off "Caesar" With A Twist
Passion takes precedence to violence and betrayal in modern interpretation
of Shakespeare tragedy.
by Chiffon Staebler
Akron Beacon Journal
June 26, 2003
No togas, no tunics and no tights.
Imagine having enough faith in Shakespeare's words to do Julius Caesar with minimal scenery, in modern clothes and with women playing key roles.
Now imagine offering it to the public for free.
The Cleveland Shakespeare Festival, started by those besotted with the Bard, does just that. The troupe is offering Julius Caesar and Twelfth Night as a gift to the public. Donations, however, are very appreciated. You may think Julius Caesar is about friendship and betrayal, honor and patriotism but in the Cleveland Shakespeare Festival's presentation, the strongest theme is passion.
Julius Caesar, the staple of high school English classes, is the classic coup story. Your classic dictator wannabe in power is killed by political jackals and his best friend, Brutus. Civil war ensues. The two factions divide into factions of dictator wannabes. According to the unwritten code of tragedy, most of the really interesting characters die after really insightful speeches.
Only in this version, the instigator, Cassius of the lean and hungry look, is a woman. That layers the whole conspiracy thing into a kind of subtle sexual tension.
Alison Hernan is delightful as the sleek, brittle Cassius. Her scenes with Brutus are wickedly awkward, dripping with sexual undertones from her and slight discomfort from the honorably married Brutus.
As Brutus, Kevin Brewer is extremely likable and low-key. He's the kind of guy you wouldn't mind as a neighbor, except for that whole murder-your-best-friend thing.
As the briefly appearing Julius Caesar, Mark Cipra captures the essence of the pompous, arrogant, petty bureaucrat.
The absolute scene stealer, though, is Leilani Barrett as a dignified, almost understated Marc Antony. Indeed, in what might be the most cliche role in the entire play, Barrett manages to take the many speeches that have become cultural cliches and give them an understated intensity.
With modern costuming, the use of swords and quarterstaffs is a bit jarring. The fighting scenes are heavily stylized, but to modern audiences used to Hong Kong action flicks, it looks awkward. Many actors also hesitate just before delivering death blows.
Onstage deaths are very creative, with red ribbons standing in for blood.
I especially liked the use of cue cards to encourage the audience to become part of the crowd scene.
If you take children, explain the story beforehand and expect to explain it during the play. The action is fast, the dialogue faster and the language is, well, Shakespeare.
Copyright (c) 2003 Akron Beacon Journal.