<i>King Lear</i> (review)

Abstract

Reviewed by: King Lear Melissa Croteau King Lear Presented by The Old Globe at the Lowell Davies Festival Theatre, San Diego, California. June 12–September 23, 2010. Directed by Adrian Noble. Set by Ralph Funicello. Costumes by Deirdre Clancy. Lighting by Alan Burrett. Sound by Christopher R. Walker. With Robert Foxworth (King Lear), Emily Swallow (Goneril), Aubrey Saverino (Regan), Catherine Gowl (Cordelia), Charles Janasz (Earl of Gloucester), Joseph Marcell (Earl of Kent), Jay Whittaker (Edgar), Jonno Roberts (Edmund), Bruce Turk (Fool), Donald Carrier (Duke of Albany), Michael Stewart Allen (Duke of Cornwall), Andrew Dahl (Oswald), Ben Diskant (King of France), Christian Durso (Duke of Burgundy), and others. Early in King Lear, the Earl of Gloucester prophesies the coming apocalyptic disintegration of families, friendships, and the kingdom itself. … Love cools, friendship falls off, brothers divide: … We have seen the best of our time. Machinations, hollowness, treachery, and all ruinous disorders follow us disquietly to our graves. The famous nihilism of this play can be heard in the constant repetition of "nothing" throughout. Adrian Noble's production of King Lear for the Old Globe's 2010 Shakespeare Festival strove to capture that sense of a civilization slouching toward its destruction by several vivid and effective [End Page 228] means. Nevertheless, at the "promised end," Noble retreated from the darkness. The Artistic Director of the Royal Shakespeare Company from 1990 to 2003, Noble was visiting Artistic Director of the Old Globe's 2010 Shakespeare Festival, and he brought with him a few distinct characteristics and goals. In a symposium he convened to introduce himself to the Old Globe community and audience, Noble emphasized that he aimed to make Shakespeare heard—that is, to put the focus back on the language. This would entail simplifying sets and working with actors—both the apprentice actors at the Old Globe and the seasoned professionals—to make sure every word rang out clearly. In addition, Noble stressed that he does not ever read scholarly criticism of Shakespeare's work because he believes that to be irrelevant to the more important work of training actors and communicating with audiences. While I can comprehend why he might feel this way, as a scholar who has written on King Lear and has found my research on the play quite illuminating, I was disappointed to hear his hackneyed and divisive approach. Surely, if the aspiration is to connect new audiences to the beauty and insight of Shakespeare's work, everyone—actors, directors, audiences, scholars, students, etc.—should have a seat at the table and be welcomed into the dialogue. As I watched Noble's production of Lear, once with a group of my graduate students and once with another veteran theatre-goer, I was reminded that it is the protean and fecund quality of Shakespeare's plays which perpetuates the ongoing dialogue. Welcome or not, scholars are always already involved in theatrical productions. One of the most effective elements in Noble's King Lear production was the set, which reflected his desire for simplicity. The floor of the stage was composed of dark, weathered-looking wooden planks, and in the center of the stage was a long platform about five feet wide and raised approximately three feet from the stage. This platform extended from the furthest reaches of the upstage to within about four feet from the front edge of the stage. This platform, along with the elevated walk-ways on the diagonally-angled left and right walls of the stage, gave the actors levels on which to perform—which, in a play about hierarchies and power-plays, was quite effective. All of this was made of the same dark, weathered wood, giving the whole stage a somber, worn feeling. Thick layers of autumnal yellow and orange leaves lay on the floor of the stage, suggesting that wintry death and destruction were imminent. In the first few acts of the play, the costumes on both men and women were inspired by court clothing of the eighteenth century, but they were [End Page 229] all in fall earth tones of dark brown, tan, black, and grey. There was one notable exception: Cordelia, in the famed "love trial" scene in which she is...