Frank Galati and Jon Michael Hill/Photo: Michael Brosilow
Don’t let the bare stage fool you. Stripped down to the concrete blocks of the foundation, Tina Landau’s playing space for “The Tempest” (at the Steppenwolf) is more like a blank canvas painted with undulating video, eye-popping costumes and a sonic barrage of thunderclaps.
The visuals aren’t arresting so much as extravagant, and there is fun in that—to a degree. Too often the choices feel random and I found myself asking: why?
The disparate narratives of Shakespeare’s play—the marooned, scheming noblemen; the budding romance; a slave who plots his revenge; the existential pangs of an old man—exist in separate worlds. As for an overall theme? You got me. I’m still drowning in imagery that refuses to sort itself out. Landau’s vision is flashy, but it doesn’t reveal the essence within. It is the theatrical equivalent of a rave, where sensory-overload becomes the end rather than the means. I suspect many will disagree with this sentiment.
Though busier as a director than an actor these days, when Frank Galati takes the stage it makes an impact. His Prospero lords over this remote isle like a hippie with a god complex. “Be collected,” he tells his overexcited daughter, and to his servant: “How now, moody?” and it’s like the Dude has arrived, and all that’s missing is the White Russian.
It’s a performance that stands apart—in good ways and bad, for it has almost nothing to do with the rest of the show. Consider the dilemma of the slave Caliban (an excellent K. Todd Freeman), a would-be rapist who rises from a grate in the floor as if emerging from a ship’s hold, shackled like a dog—risible or merely intellectually honest? Perhaps both. Yasen Peyankov’s drunken butler Stephano is comic relief apropos of nothing, but I liked it all the same—he’s a South Jersey Italiano with an absurd toupee, naturally.
But again, how does it all fit together? This is a production overstuffed with spirits that perform aerial tricks on ropes (why?), a field of larger-than-life poppies that descend from the sky (why?) and a ridiculous array of pink and purple-hued suits (why?). More to the point, why is Steppenwolf doing this play? I’m afraid this production doesn’t even come close to answering that question. (Nina Metz)
At Steppenwolf Theatre, 1650 N. Halsted, ( 312)335-1650 or steppenwolf.org. Thu-Sat 8p. $20-$70. Through May 31.
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Ms. Nina
Why ask why? (Tempest) It’s fantasy girl. God I’m constantly amazed at your nastiness. So today I match it because I’m fed up with you and your critical ilk. I have no horse in this race but dammit I’m tired of your horse [email protected] Maybe you just hope to counter Hedy’s over-hyped take…i don’t know but I’ve listened to you gush on and on about pure drivel or worse, a particular actress and wondered, what am I missing?
You’re right, Nina. Why, in fact, did Shakespeare even bother to write this play? If he had something to say, why didn’t he say it plainly, instead of using a lot of strange adjectives and unusual grammatical formations? Why, come to think of it, can’t the entire world be a grid of straight lines with periodic blips to indicate people? Is there someone we can talk to about getting that done? Folks, don’t listen—this rendition of The Tempest is deep, strong and satisfying, with moments of high fantasy that propel it to another level. The story and, more vitally, the… Read more »
I was also at the opening performance and came away with a much more positive reaction than Nina. I offer this comment not as the rebuke that the other commenters have conveyed, but rather in the spirit of dialogue. Though I see far more theater than the average person, I’ve managed to avoid Shakespeare fairly successfully over the years, with a personal preference for new work and an aversion, probably unreasonable, to the risk of sitting through long boring performances that make the viewer work very hard to understand the language. The truth is, the handful of professional productions of… Read more »
I wanted to comment on this exchange by wondering if it’s possible not only to be taken in and impressed by this production, with its striking visuals, flawless technical theater, and perfect rhythm; but also to remain simultaneously ambivalent about how it stands up to scrutiny, as Nina has done far more thoughtfully than those who have attacked her criticism. I loved the show myself, which I found beautiful, exciting, and beautifully paced. However, I also couldn’t keep from wondering why, for example, Ariel is accessorized by a macbook and aviator shades, not to mention the football gear and other… Read more »
Why? That’s a pretty good question to ask about this production and for just about all of the contemporized Shakespearean production’s I’ve seen in Chicago. Why did Ariel have a laptop? Why does the music have to be rap and hip hop? Especially since the audience was populated with middle-aged white folks (myself included). Why was Lois Smith even in the cast? This production stinks. Period.
Tony, though I disagree with much of your criticism, I was, too, troubled with Lois Smith, but chalked it up to the oddity of gender-reversed casting. Could any woman have played Gonzalo without standing out? Or was it simply a flat performance that had no connection to gender? Ironically, this production is a banner-carrier for colorblind casting as well, with both Miranda and Antonio (the daughter and brother of old white man Prospero/Galati) cast as African-American. So too, the island “natives”, the slaves of Prospero: Caliban and Ariel. Is there subtext in all of this? The very act of noticing… Read more »
I am afraid I have to agree with the published review. I saw the play tonight, and, although I was thoroughly dazed by the elaborate Cirque du Soleil antics, I found myself underwhelmed by the play itself. The brutally loud sounds, the elaborate video projections, the spontaneous bursts of hip hop and dancing, the endless costumes, they all seemed to cover up the fundamental emptiness of the plot development. Clearly the team has invested a tremendous amount of effort into this show, however not enough attention was paid to the play itself – which is ultimately the reason we all… Read more »
I totally forgot about the oral sex scenes. They are without meaning. I’m sure the Bard never intended them. If the director intended to make a statement with them, what was that statement? This is just another example of why this production stinks. Why? It is senseless. This is why The Steppenwolf doesn’t do Shakespeare. It’s also why they shouldn’t do Shakespeare. As for my comments about Lois Smith, the woman is a fine actress, though I fear Saturday’s performance was not her best. But there is no more justification for casting her as Gonzalo than there is for casting… Read more »
I’ll admit that I’ve studied a fair amount of Shakespeare, so take this all with the heap of salt that should accompany all academia. There’s been a great deal of discussion as of late putting The Tempest in a colonial context, what with the settling of new islands and the presence of the native spirits. Racial issues were almost certainly relevant in the casting of black spirits under the power of a white sorcerer. Even if we remove the colonial context, how can you argue the racial disparity doesn’t make Prospero’s statement “Thy mother was a piece of virtue, and… Read more »