‘As You Like It’ misses the mark
Posted by Bill VarbleI didn’t buy the rationale for The Great Depression setting (something about the quest to find the self in a journey of renewal, uncertainty, challenges to the will, unclear threats) for the OSF’s new As You Like It, which opened last night, but it turns out it works just fine.
But — in the end it goes to show the relative importance of nice staging versus intelligent characterizations.
Because both Rosalind and Touchstone were off. Of the play’s three main roles, only the dour/philosophical Jaques, played by Robert Sicular, was on the money.
Miriam A. Laube played Rosalind as a giddy schoolgirl, which is odd since she orchestrates things. David Kelly played Touchstone as a lovable clown. Rosalind is the whole package of wit, wisdom and love, and she should not be played as a blushing adolescent.
When I hear audiences laugh and laugh at Touchstone, I’m always amazed. Of course, he can be quite funny if he’s played by an actor as good as Kelly — if you don’t listen too closely to what he says.
William Bloodgood’s set was spare and dominated by large, leafy flats that would glide in and out of place as the action moved to different parts of the Forest of Arden. John Tanner’s faux-30s tunes added to the ambiance.
There are some nice moments, but the real story is still somewhere out there in the forest with the lions and the snakes and the magic.
February 24th, 2007 at 7:24 pm
Well, I hate to disagree, but it seems we did not see the same play here. No, AYLI is not a very good play. I generally don’t like it and the productions I’ve seen in Ashland and elsewhere over the years have been often painful to watch. However, I found this production to be engaging and highly likable.
Just because this Rosalind was not some kind of conniving schemer, doesn’t make her wrong. It actually, in my mind, makes a far clearer story to have her the “blushing adolescent”. It was fun.
As for Touchstone, well perhaps every other one you’ve seen has simply missed the mark and David Kelly finally hit it on the head to make this a very funny and likable character. His portrayal allowed the words to come across as silly or in a sarcastic vein. I found him to be quite wonderful.
There were other moments of really great theatre, as well. The wrestling match early on is often dull and underdone. This one was, in many ways over the top in that “pro wrestling” kitschy kind of way but it worked. And the music in the forest was often a highlight. The scenery was very beautiful. Simple but wonderful in allowing the actors a canvas on which to work and to portray the bleakness of the Court or the “wonder” of Arden.
I guess art and theatre are often seen in widely different ways by different folks and my impressions of As You Like It left me feeling that it was exactly as I liked it!
February 24th, 2007 at 7:45 pm
I disagree. Touchstone was played superbly - he is a loveable clown. I was one of those laughing the loudest. And why not? The writing is hilarious, the cast’s timing was very good, and besides the “O Brother” music which I also liked, the set/staging added a funny, gangster-ish bravodo (or something like that) that worked beautifully. I agree with the Oxford School Shakespeare: the play is a comedy, possibly written “as a showpiece for the opening of the new Globe,” and “The plot is pretty, not profound.”
Bill Findley