Henry V

Abstract

Reviewed by: Henry V Matthew M. Davis Henry V Presented by the American Shakespeare Center at the Blackfriars Playhouse, in Staunton, VA. 17 June–27 November 2021. Technical direction by Rhi Sanders. Fight choreography by Jeremy L. West. With Brandon Carter (Henry V), Zoe Speas (Chorus/Hostess/Williams), Chris Johnston (Pistol/Ely), John Harrell (Fluellen/Canterbury), Meg Rodgers (Dauphin/Katherine), Jeremy West (Exeter/Erpingham), Meme García (Nym/Alice), Abygail Merlino (Bardolph), Nic Sanchez (French King/Gower), J Molière (Scroop/Montjoy), Elleon Dobias (Boy/Burgundy), and Sam Saint Ours (Bates/Constable of France) After a break necessitated by the COVID-19 virus, the actors of the American Shakespeare Center (ASC) returned to the stage to present the 2021 “Actors’ Renaissance” season, featuring productions of Macbeth, All’s Well that Ends Well, and Henry V. The ASC has passed through a difficult time recently. The virus forced an extended closure, and artistic director Ethan McSweeny left, amidst controversy and complaints, in [End Page 167] February 2020. The ASC announced it would move forward under a new artistic/directorial model, with four veteran actors (Brandon Carter, John Harrell, Chris Johnston, and Zoe Speas) serving as actor-managers. The actor-manager scheme is new, but it grows out of the company’s staging practices during previous Actors’ Renaissance seasons. Subsequent to this season, Brandon Carter was confirmed as the theater’s new Artistic Director. During an Actors’ Renaissance season, ASC actors work without a director, as the actors in Shakespeare’s day did. The actors learn their parts from “sides” and rehearse the play scene-by-scene, working out blocking with the other actors in the scene. The company’s vision of the play is thus built up from scores of “local” decisions made by the individual actors, rather than handed down from above by a director who has an overarching vision of the play. This democratic approach has resulted in some marvelous bits of theater over the years, but it is also risky. A show with no director—or, if you prefer, a show with fifteen directors—may end up seeming a bit disjointed; it may seem to lack a cohesive vision. Also, if a particular actor falls in love with an unfortunate idea, there is no director on hand to put the kibosh on it. The actor’s darling idea will be retired only if other actors in the troupe are willing to question it and the actor who embraced it is willing to drop it. On the whole, however, the Actors’ Renaissance approach worked quite well for this production of Henry V. The show was lively, entertaining, and fast-paced. The actors managed to make even hard-to-understand bits, such as the exchanges between Pistol and Fluellen, not just understandable but entertaining. The spectators I spoke with after an August performance told me they enjoyed the show a great deal. As Henry V, Brandon Carter was impressive, compelling, and likeable. Carter highlighted the king’s exceptional rhetorical skills. When he spoke as king, he delivered his pentameter lines with force and confidence, making his hearers eager to return to the deadly breach. By contrast, when he put on Erpingham’s cloak and went undercover the night before the Battle of Agincourt in 4.1, he spoke more haltingly—fluttering and stuttering like Hugh Grant in a moment of peak embarrassment. Clearly the king was using his linguistic skills to pursue his ends, and yet he remained a very likeable king. Actually, likeable is not quite strong enough. Carter’s Henry V was positively charming. When he proposed to Katherine in 5.2, he dropped to his knees and pulled out a ring pop, which he unwrapped and offered to her. “Awwwwwwww!” said the female audience members near me. For a second, I thought I was watching The Bachelor. [End Page 168] Click for larger view View full resolution The Chorus (Zoe Speas) in Henry V, American Shakespeare Center, 2021. Photo by Lindsey Walters, courtesy of the American Shakespeare Center. Chris Johnston was entertaining as the swaggering braggart Pistol, and, now that I think about it, he was also entertaining as Parolles in this season’s production of All...