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ON STAGE: 'Merry Wives,' 'Richard III' Shine Under the StarsBy Leo Stutzin, Bee Arts Editor Modesto Bee, July 2, 2002 MURPHYS -- Take your pick: Shakespeare light or Shakespeare dark, well presented. They're just a short drive away, on alternate evenings in the forest-ringed amphitheater on the Stevenot Winery's grounds just north of here. The fine productions recently opened the Murphys Creek Theatre's seventh summer season, and its first to reach into the modern era as well as antiquity for material. The Shakespearean offerings will be followed by Tennessee Williams' "Night of the Iguana" in late August and September. The light stuff is being dispensed by "The Merry Wives of Windsor," which director Graham Scott Green has plunked into a modern-day trailer park to amazingly good effect. The weightier doings take place in "Richard III," which stars Equity actor Michael Janes as Richard, in the strongest individual performance in the theater's history. Green's choice of a decrepit trailer park to house "Merry Wives," and hillbilly drawls for lots of its characters could hardly be shrewder. Its principals -- the lecherous Falstaff and his boozy pals, the two women he tries to seduce, the insanely jealous husband of one of those women, plus various others -- fit perfectly into seedy surroundings. Ditto for their crude shenanigans, which include dumping Falstaff in a river after he takes refuge in a plastic laundry hamper, beating him after he adopts the guise of a detested old woman, and various silly ploys that surround the efforts of two fools to win the hand of a young woman who has her eyes on a third potential husband. In "Richard III," director Arturo Catricala added unnecessary complications to an already dense plot through misguided choices in costuming and characterization. Although the drama is set against the backdrop of a medieval castle, only Richard and his predecessor on the throne wear medieval garb. Everyone else is attired in a hodgepodge of 19th- and 20th-century fashions, evidently in an effort to suggest timelessness. All it suggests, however, is bad judgment, drawing attention to visual oddities and away from the lords, ladies, murderers and soldiers who surround Richard and company. Despite that element and the strange decision to present the oldest of the play's women -- ex-queen Margaret -- as youthful and vibrant, the riveting performance by Janes and strong support by many of the principals outweigh the directorial quirks. Janes is tall, lean and handsome, hardly a natural Richard. But he affects the monarch's obligatory limp, hunched back and unusable hand effectively while shaping a twisted personality that blends slyness, cruelty and charisma. Considering the relative dearth of female characters in Shakespeare, it's intriguing to note that aside from Janes' portrayal of evil incarnate, the most compelling performances in both plays come from women. Sheila Doyle has the choicest roles and makes the most of both: In "Merry Wives," she's a high-spirited and delightfully tawdry Mistress Ford, flaunting comic sexiness in ploys to humiliate the loud and lecherous Falstaff (Michael Mager); in "Richard" she is Margaret, seething with rage and prophecies of anguish and doom. At both ends of the dramatic spectrum, she's a knockout. Sarah Grimes shares the cheery spotlight in "Merry Wives," playing Mistress Page, the second of Falstaff's would-be conquests and Mistress Ford's partner in deflating the beer-swilling buffoon. In "Richard," she's a tottery duchess who has seen one son become king and then die, and a second son, Richard, murder his own brother, her third son. (Those complexities, which Shakespeare drew from history, offer a compelling reason for reading a thorough synopsis or the text before seeing the play. Shakespeare's audiences knew the facts and relationships; we don't.) And Tedi Joseph does an effervescent turn as a country parson in "Merry Wives," in a bit of cross-gender casting that reflects a shortage of males, then shifts into tragic mode as a queen whose two young sons are murdered in Richard's drive to seize the throne and then protect it from potential rivals. A fourth actress, Amy Chantel, has important roles in both plays, but is much more successful in the country-flavored comedy, playing a lass who has attracted three suitors. In the tragedy, she's a young widow whom Richard seduces into marriage after conniving to murder her husband. The role demands more depth than Chantel can provide. Among the men, the brightest in "Merry Wives" are Michael Mager as the boisterous Falstaff and Jeremy Forbing as Mistress Ford's green-eyed spouse, especially when he affects a disguise of low-slung shorts, dark glasses and punk mannerisms in dealing with Falstaff. In "Richard," David Abad, Graham Green and Brian Livingston contribute the most effective male support. Abad plays Richard's most ardent supporter, Buckingham; Green is Richard's naive brother and first victim, and later returns as a priest; and Livingston moves well between the roles of nobleman and murderer. Incidental notes: Seating is on a grassy, terraced slope; blankets and low-back beach chairs are invited, but Adirondack-type chairs can be rented for $2; picnics are also invited, but light meals, desserts and beverages are available. "The Merry Wives of Windsor" and "Richard III" run through Aug. 3 at the Stevenot Winery Amphitheater, two miles north of Murphys off Sheep Ranch Road. Performances start at 8 p.m. Thursdays through Saturdays. Tickets cost $13-$17. Call (877) 888-6282 (toll-free) or see www.murphyscreektheatre.org. |
 Murphys Creek TheatreP.O. Box 603, Murphys, CA 95247 (209) 728-8422 info@murphyscreektheatre.org |
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