We went to see Richard III performed at the Folger Shakespeare Library/Theatre this evening. I had read that it was an amazing little gothic theatre that regularly did Shakespeare and was largely run by dedicated enthusiasts and volunteers (much like the Bard on the Beach in Vancouver) but when I looked it up at home, the production was set to finish on March 9th, just before our arrival. Fortunately for us it was enormously popular and was extended, so we were able to get tickets.
Richard III is probably my favourite of the History Plays. Richard is a quintessential psychopath, wheedling and pleasing where he must, and showing his detached Machiavellian side primarily only to the audience. Richard in this performance was played by Drew Cortese and he was as menacing, two-faced and evil as only Richard III can be. I dare say he is far more handsome a Richard than most are used to, but he did well to convey the complexities of the character who charms the audience with his pure wickedness before encouraging us to delight in his downfall. Awesome Richard in my book.
Here he is depicted wooing the Lady Anne, after having openly admitted responsibility for the deaths of her husband and her father, and then he skilfully turns to the audience and revels in his conquest ‘was ever a woman in this humour/mood wooed’ (sorry the exact line escapes me). She falls far too easily for my liking, but she always did!
The costuming for the play is a unique blend of leather and Goth, feathers and Steampunk, kevlar and jackbooted military, and uptight Edwardian! Quite the eclectic mixture of aesthetics, but it worked quite well bringing each character to life in a renew visual context.
I really loved the interesting stage assembly. Apparently the Folger theatre is usually set out in a traditional setting, stage at the front, seating in the stalls below the stage, but for this production, a specially designed raised stage had been installed for to create an inn yard feel and was played in the round. It had a very supernatural feel, and was part David Copperfield with smoke, lights and misdirection, and characters being killed off and falling into their graves in the stage making the intimate audience complicit in their murders, only to see these figures rise ghost-like later as they taunted Richard for his misdeeds.
It was a very enjoyable rendition, and beautifully executed. I would thoroughly recommend anyone to go see it, but for the fact that its season has now closed. No doubt, other performances held at the Folger are equally creative and worth checking out.