I have long been aware of the plays of 17th century French playwright Jean Racine, but his plays are so seldom produced in these parts, that I had not had the occasion to witness a performance of one of them until this past weekend. The Actors' Shakespeare Project has chosen to end their 2014 season by giving Boston area audience a rare glimpse at the mastery of this writer, with an English translation of his play "Phedre," based on an ancient Greek myth of a spectacularly dysfunctional royal family. Is there any other kind?
One of the characteristics of Racine's plays is his liberal use of a poetic device known as an "Alexandrine: a line of poetic meter comprising 12 syllables." In the majestic English translation by English Poet Laureate Ted Hughes, the translator has beautifully captured many of the rhythms of Racine's original French script, often using English equivalent Alexandrines to give the actors lines that flow as a pleasing combination of poetry and prose. These linguistic and rhythmic challenges ere handled brilliantly by a very fine cast. They are:
Steven Barkimer as Theramenes
Sarah Elizabeth Bedard as Ismene
Jason Bowen as Hippolytus
Paula Plum as Phedre
Mara Sidmore as Aricia
Bobbie Steinbach as Oenone
Robert Walsh as Theseus
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| Jason Bowen as Hippolytus Mara Sidmore as Aricia "Phedre" Presented by The Actors' Shakespeare Project Through Dewcember 7 Photo by Stratton McCrady Photography |
The story of Queen Phedre, grand-daughter of Zeus, and her lust for her stepson Hippolytus has its roots in Europides' play, "Hippolytus." Racine wrote his play/poem version of the tragic tale in 1677, during the reign of Louis XIV. Mr. Hughes was commissioned to write this translation in 1998.
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| Jason Bowen as Hippolytus Paula Plum as Phedre "Phedre" Presented by The Actors' Shakespeare Project Through Dewcember 7 Photo by Stratton McCrady Photography |
The creative team have done a terrific job of transforming the sanctuary of First Church of Boston into a three level performance space for this play. Cristina Todesco has chosen a very simple, but effective, set comprised primarily of lengths of chain suggestive of the various types of bondage from which the characters in the story suffer. Lighting by Annie Wiegand, Costumes by Mary Lauve and Sound Design and Composition by Arshan Gailus all serve to bring the audience back to the ancient Greek setting where the action of the play unfolds.
In the title role, Paula Plum is mesmerizing as the queen who is wasting away before our eyes, consumed in body and spirit by the lust she harbors in her heart for the young warrior son of her husband, King Theseus. She handles the challenging language and emotional pendulum of Phedre with the same professionalism and nuanced delivery that Boston audiences have come to expect from this consummate actor. As her servant and conscience, Oenone, Bobbie Steinbach is just as impressive, doing whatever it takes to try to save her Queen from self-destruction and humiliation. She pays the ultimate price for her loyalty. Jason Bowen seems to have been born to play this role, preserving princely dignity in the face of Phedre's shocking declaration of love, his own passion for the imprisoned Aricia, and the false accusations hurled at him by his father the King. As his love interest, Aricia, Mara Sidmore creates a believable and pitiable rival for the throne of Athens who has been imprisoned by the long absent Theseus. Steven Barkhimer portrays Hippolytus' faithful servant Theramenes. One of the most memorable scenes in this production is the scene near the end of the play when Barkimer's character describes in heart-rending detail the death of Hippolytus as a result of a curse that Theseus had blurted out to Neptune in a fit of misbegotten rage.
Theseus had been away from home for a protracted period, and had been reported as dead. He returns unexpectedly, having been released from his sojourn to the Under World. Robert Walsh, as Theseus, comes striding on stage, looking very regal and magisterial, even bedecked in the rags and besmeared with soot from his visit to Hell. Throughout the rest of the play, he is very kingly. I do have one quibble with his performance. The sanctuary that is the performance space for this play is an intimate space, with audience members seated no more than three rows from the actors. In this small and enclosed space, Mr. Walsh used a stentorian voice that sounded as if he were trying to project to the back rows of an outdoor amphitheater in Greece trying to out shout the rush hour traffic of horse-drawn chariots. He seemed to have no sense of where he was, which is surprising for an actor of his depth of experience and skill. It is my hope that in subsequent performances, Director M. Bevin O'Gara will reign him in and save the audience from an aural assault of too many decibels,
With that one exception, I found this to be a thoroughly entrancing and engaging production. I was accompanied by a friend from France, who knew of Racine's work in the original French transcription. He was very pleased with this interpretation of an author who is revered in his native France. This is a rare opportunity to experience a bejeweled masterpiece of the stage. Performances will continue through December 7.
Actors Shakespeare Project Website
Enjoy!
Al
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