'LION IN WINTER' LIGHTS UP SUMMER STAGE
                    SC Shakespeare in Modern Mode  
                                              By Georgia Rowe
        artssf.com, the independent observer of San Francisco Bay Area theater, music and dance 
                                                                 Week of Aug. 23-31, 2010
                                                                  Vol. 13, No. 4
        SANTA CRUZ, CA---Shakespeare Santa Cruz (SSC) always offers a haven for theater lovers visiting this California coastal town best known for its boardwalk and beaches.  In addition to two plays - “Othello” and “Love’s Labors Lost” – by its namesake, the 29th season of the annual summer festival is offering two revivals of 20th century works: James Goldman’s “The Lion in Winter” and Arthur Schnitzler’s “La Ronde.”
            The main event is Goldman’s 1966 play, which was adapted in a 1968 film starring Peter O’Toole and Katharine Hepburn and is presented here as SSC’s mainstage (indoor) show. Director Richard E.T. White, who staged “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” for the festival last season, makes a strong case for this tart tongue-in-cheek drama, set over a cold Christmas in the court of Henry Plantagenet (also known as Henry II.)  The play’s principal argument concerns succession: there were no laws of primogeniture in 12th century England, and Henry, aged 50 as the play begins, has yet to name an heir.  He’s leaning toward his wastrel son John, while his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine, argues for her favorite, Richard (no one favors the third son, Geoffrey, an icy schemer.)  There’s also the problem of France: King Philip’s in the house, and Henry’s sleeping with his sister, the French princess Alais, while Eleanor languishes, kept under constant lockdown under Henry’s orders. 
            Goldman’s no Shakespeare, but his play – an odd marriage of history, family drama and brittle domestic comedy – is paced for maximum tension.  As the characters exchange threats, insults and hostilities, White’s 2-1/2 hour staging is agreeably brisk, and the cast, with Marco Barricelli and Kandis Chappell in the leads, is excellent.  Barricelli, SSC’s artistic director and a veteran actor whose credits include the American Conservatory Theatre and Oregon Shakespeare Festival, gives a suitably outsized performance as Henry, growling out his lines and bellowing with flair.  Chappell’s Eleanor is his match and then some: brilliantly incisive when she needs to be, with a soft center that offers a glimpse of the indignities she’s had to endure to survive.  Along with fine performances by Dylan Saunders (John), John Pasha (Richard) and Aaron Blakely (Geoffrey), the principals give this “Lion” its requisite bite. 
            Still, this year’s top honors go to “Othello,” presented outdoors in the Festival Glen.  Shakespeare’s tragedy, staged with considerable insight and nuance by Pam MacKinnon, features a first-rate performance by Corey Jones in the title role; making his SSC debut, Jones has the physical presence, the poetic sensibility and the command of Shakespeare’s language for the role of the doomed Moor.  He delivers it all with breathtaking command, and the rest of the cast, including Victor Talmadge’s insinuating Iago and Dana Green’s touching Desdemona, give him superb support.  “Love’s Labors Lost,” meanwhile, isn’t one of Shakespeare’s best comedies, but it gets a lively workout – complete with hippies and skateboard dudes, very Santa Cruz - in Scott Wentworth’s production.  Completing the lineup is “La Ronde,” directed by Kirsten Brandt and presented in two performances as this year’s Fringe Show.  Schnitzler’s play, which depicts sexual mores in 1890s Vienna, was declared pornographic after its first performance in 1920.  Today, despite committed performances by the festival’s apprentice actors, it feels like Much Ado about Not Very Much.
            The 29th annual Shakespeare Santa Cruz continues through August 29 on the campus of the University of California, Santa Cruz.   “La Ronde” has its final performance on Aug. 24; “The Lion in Winter,” “Othello” and “Love’s Labors Lost” play in repertory through Aug. 29.  Call 831-459-2159, or visit www.shakespearesantacruz.org.  
        ©Georgia Rowe 2010
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            Georgia Rowe is a Bay Area arts writer. Her work has appeared in Opera News, the San Francisco Examiner, the San Jose Mercury News, and the Contra Costa Times in addition to artssf.com.     These critiques appearing several times weekly focus on dance and new musical creativity in performance, with forays into books (by authors of the region), theater and recordings by local artists as well.
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