Hudson
Valley Shakespeare Festival
By Ross Rice
CONTINUE...
Tonight,
however, the open sky is about to open up for real. As the rst
act builds with tension, so does the storm, punctuating the dialogue
with ash and rumble. During a particularly intense murder scene,
the rain and thunder hit hard, offering celestial enhancement, and
it’s downpour time. A cast member appears, and an impromptu
intermission is called to wait out the deluge, which has made much
of the dialogue inaudible. This proves to be short, and the play
picks up where it left off only 5 or 10 minutes later.
What
really sets these performances apart from most summer Shakespeare
fare is the full use of the eld. The famous pre-battle dream sequence
near the end of Act Two utilizes it to full effect, with blazing
green light illuminating cast members draped in white, moving in
slow-motion. These vignettes utilize the depth of eld, giving these
scenes an almost cinematic effect. With the expertly staged blocking
and timing, and extraordinary lighting design, the show moves briskly
along, and the cast has a great handle on the language, keeping
it easy to maintain the complex threads of the story.
The
weather nally settles down—now just a cool moist breeze blowing
through the big top. The play nishes to standing ovations from
an appreciative house. All in all, the Hudson Valley Shakespeare
Festival lives up to its considerable reputation, offering a quality
experience as good as any in the City. Factor in the picnic option,
and it’s a summer no-brainer. Like Mozart and Rembrandt, you
just can’t go wrong with the man from Stratford-on-Avon. Plus,
that view....
CONTINUE...
|
