Lakewood Theatre Company
July 15, 2006; closes August 20, 2006
Worthy experiment, unexpected results. All ingredients were there but still chemistry — the play’s very essence — yielded base mixture of playful hippie concept and largely old-pro cast, rather than potent solution of sex appeal, love, mischief. Sobering to observe was contemporary audiences’, artists’ evaporating patience with language, speeches compounded with shtick.
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I think the audience's lack of patience with the language was due to the actors "play it for the laughs" approach. Instead of headstrong, impassioned lovers going beyond the extremes of love (which would have been funny, and let the language fluff its feathers a bit) you had a succession of shtick, bits, gags and smirking. When anyone truly connected with the text, and thus with the emotion, it worked. Leave the audience room to laugh -- don't force us into it! Sort of sad that they didn't trust Shakespeare to be funny...
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