Alabama Shakespeare Festival's The War of the Roses

Abstract

Reviewed by: Alabama Shakespeare Festival's The Wars of the Roses Henry VI, Part A, and: Henry VI, Part B, and: Richard III James N. Ortego II Alabama Shakespeare Festival's The Wars of the Roses Henry VI, Part A Presented by the Alabama Shakespeare Festival at the Octagon Stage, Montgomery, Alabama. February 23-May 17, 2007. Directed by Diana Van Fossen, Composed by James Conely, and Orchestrated by Thom Jenkins. Scene Designs by Paul Wonsek. Costumes by Beth Novak. Lighting by Paul Wonsek. Sound Design by Brett Rominger. Fight Scenes by Scot Mann and Jason Armit. With Ray Chambers (John Duke of Bedford), Anthony Reimer (Charles the Dauphin), Michael Gatto (Reignier King of Naples), Patrick McElwee (The Duke of Alencon), Paul Hopper (Humphrey Duke of Gloucester), Will Pailen (Thomas Beaufort Duke of Exeter), Jeffrey Brick (Richard Plantagenet), Gardner Reed (Joan la Pucelle), Marcus Kyd (William Earl of Suffolk), James Beaman (Lord Talbot), Lisa Bruneau (Margaret), and others. Henry VI, Part B Presented by the Alabama Shakespeare Festival at the Octagon Stage, Montgomery, Alabama. March 16-June 8, 2007. Directed by Geoffrey Sherman, Composed by James Conely, and Orchestrated by Thom Jenkins. Scenes designed by Paul Wonsek. Costumes by Beth Novak. Lighting by Paul Wonsek. Sound Design by Brett Rominger. Fight Scenes by Scot Mann and Jason Armit. Stage Manager Kimberly First. With Nick Cordileone (King Henry the Sixth), Lise Bruneau (Margaret, Queen to King Henry), Patrick McElwee (Edward Prince of Wales), Will Pailen (Duke of Exeter), Jeffrey Brick (Richard Plantagenet Duke of York), Adam Richman (Edward later King Edward IV), John-Michael Marrs (Richard Duke of Gloucester), Hollis McCarthy (Lady Elizabeth Grey), Mark Allen Jeter (Duke of Somerset), and others. Richard III Presented by the Alabama Shakespeare Festival at the Octagon Stage, Montgomery, Alabama. April 13-June 10, 2007. Directed by Susan Willis, Composed by James Conely, and Orchestrated by Thom Jenkins. Scene and lighting by Paul Wonsek. Costumes by Elizabeth Novak. Sound by Brett Rominger. Voice and Dialect Coach Sarah Felder. Fight Scenes by Scot Mann and Jason Armit. With Adam Richman (King Edward IV), Holis McCarthy (Elizabeth Grey, Queen to Edward IV), Dana Benningfield (Prince Edward later Edward V), Mark Robinson (Lord Grey), Ray Chambers (Richard Duke of Gloucester), Celeste Burnum (The Duchess of York), Marcus Kyd (George Duke of Clarence), James Beaman (Lord Hastings), Mark Allan Jeter (Anthony Woodville Earl of Rivers) Jeffrey Brick (Duke of Buckingham), Will Pailen (Henry Tudor Earl of Richmond later King Henry VII), and others. At 2:00 pm sharp on April 28, 2007, director Diana Van Fossen appeared to a capacity crowd surrounding the Octagon Stage at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival (ASF) and urged all spectators to silence their electronic devices. Her comments marked the last reference to twenty-first-century life that spectators would hear during a three-hour journey that dramatized English political upheaval and turmoil during the fifteenth century. The ASF's lively rendition of Henry VI, Part A remained true to Shakespeare's text in plot, characterization, and costume, but much like Shakespeare's audience, modern spectators had to rely on a lively imagination to supplement the dramatization on stage. Two large doors located at back center stage opened to a hard-wood floor about thirty feet long and twenty feet wide; two stairways on opposite ends of the center doors enabled the actors to ascend onto a smaller balcony (and spectators to upper-row seating) that served as the second story of a castle; a few props such as swords and fifteenth-century costumes completed the stage design for the play. Anything lacking in the scenic design, however, was quickly forgotten by spectators once the talented troupe began their energetic performance; [End Page 114] but this dramatization of Henry VI, which aspired to reproduce Shakespeare's play as his audience might have experienced it, included occasionally overly vociferous delivery of dialogue, which at times dampened the spirit of his play. The sparse scenic designs and boisterous emoting aside, the ASF managed to overcome the challenges faced by any modern acting company that undertakes to dramatize Shakespeare and remain faithful to the Elizabethan dramatic spirit, and few spectators, if any, were disappointed in the final product...