One of the last plays by Shakespeare, The Tempest is about the shipwreck of a royal crew on an island during a storm created by the magical Prospero, an exiled duke wishing to seek revenge on his usurpers. But unlike Romeo and Juliet, Othello, or Hamlet, not everyone dies at the end. There aren’t even any crazy suicides. In fact, the play features a happy and perfect marriage, and forgiveness seems to be an infectious disease. Methinks Shakespeare was just getting old.
In Trinity College’s production, the actors were able to make the tricky language of Shakespeare enjoyable. Caliban (Alex Champlin) was particularly entertaining, spraying spit everywhere with every fifth word, gasping at times like he had some respiratory disease, and cackling devilishly like he was insane. It was amazing to see him become borderline psychotically violent, and then retreat into a deformed, tortured creature in the face of any danger. Prospero (Matt McGeachy) looked rather like actor Edward Norton, and even commanded the stage like Norton did in the film American History X. Scary.
The simple props were also to be commended, but although vegetable peelers are dangerous weapons, they hardly suited a royal party. One really thought they were brandishing kitchen utensils. On the other hand, the set design was nicely thought out and practical (if not all that beautiful)-the action remained in clear view throughout the production. The strips of curtains hanging in the background were effective in providing places for actors to disappear (and for masking the cumbersome smoke machine), and fit well with the overall look of the set. The lighting was flawless, such as the truly creative light ring around the book throne. Changes in colour and music worked well to alter the mood during key scenes such as the wedding.
All the characters were outfitted in costumes that were quite believable, though I was a bit shocked and displeased in the first few minutes of the play when the sailors appeared in modern-looking uniforms (I was also rather confused by the one he-fairy).
Trinity’s Tempest was so enjoyable that I hardly noticed an hour and half had gone by when they turned on the lights to signal the intermission. Just one small caveat: If I had directed the play, I would have staged more fighting and at least one kiss.
