Hudson
Valley Shakespeare Festival
By Ross Rice
As
if by cue, lightning streaks the sky to the Northeast, still several
miles and minutes off, but de€nitely coming in. Richard (Christopher
Edwards) enters with crab-like grace and stealth, pivoting around
his one-armed crutch, transmuting his apparent disability into a
twisted, almost bionic power. He sets the tone with the €rst of
many fourth-wall breaking asides to the audience, allowing them
a look inside the Machiavellian dealings, subterfuges, and outright
murders he is willing to wage on his closest con€dantes and family
members. And once again, it becomes clear the reason why the theatre
always comes back to the Bard: his themes and characters are universal
and thus always relevant to the times. Without even trying, I can
think of at least three people that have Richard-like qualities.
This is by no means a comforting thought.
But it all € ts well with the statement of purpose put forth by
the company: to produce the works of Shakespeare “with an
economy of style that focuses its energy and resources on script,
actors, and audience. We communicate the stories with energy, clarity
and invention, and we distill rather than embellish the language
and action. We challenge ourselves and our audiences to take a fresh
look at what is essential in (these) plays.” Unquestionably,
they succeed on all counts.
The Hudson Valley Shakespeare Festival got off to a modest start
in 1987 with a fundraiser produced by actor and recent upstate resident
Melissa Stern, on behalf of Manitoga, industrial designer Russell
Wright’s Garrison home....
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