Antaeus Theatre Company presents The Tempest. Written by William Shakespeare. Directed by Nike Doukas.
Nike Doukas‘ staging of The Tempest brings forward the romance and the musicality of what is thought to be the last play Shakespeare wrote alone. The cadence of the Bard of Avon’s writing is exalted in this production through the music numbers, some energetic, some balladic, just like an iambic pentameter.
Themes of witchcraft, colonialism, romance, and forgiveness come together to explore past, present, and future in a story that relates the tragedies and candidness of human relationships. By the time The Tempest was written, the Europeans were expanding the colonization of different parts of the world. Prospero (Peter Van Norden), Ariel (Elinor Gunn), Caliban (JD Cullum), and to some extend Sycorax, seem to symbolize the relationship between the European settlers and the natives of the lands being colonized.
Caliban’s mother, Sycorax, is presented as a powerful witch from Algiers. She was brought to the island and abandoned by a group of sailors when she was pregnant with Caliban. Analyzing the figures and symbols in The Tempest, the fact that she is a silent character, only referenced indirectly, might be an indication that Shakespeare tried to represent her as the figure of silenced and enslaved native women. As for Caliban, he is portrayed as a symbol of incivility. In this production, he has a hippie and disheveled appearance. The mutual dislike between Caliban and Prospero seems like a faithful representation of the tense relationship between natives and their European colonizers.
But Shakespeare goes beyond a simple caricature of these figures. If Prospero represents the colonizers, he is also a contradictory character. He dislikes Sycorax for being a witch using her supernatural powers for negative purposes, like enslaving the native inhabitants of the island, and yet, Prospero also enslaves Ariel and Caliban and uses them for his revengeful plan against his brother Antonio (Bernard K. Addison), effectively displaying a mirror image of Sycorax.
Prospero’s plan to regain his dukedom includes using his magical powers to cause a tempest when his brother is navigating the island’s waters, trapping Antonio and his entourage in the island. Eventually, however, the pure love experienced by Prospero’s daughter Miranda (Anja Racić) and Alonso’s (Adrian LaTourelle) son Ferdinand (Peter Mendoza) opens up Prospero’s eyes. It allows him to see beyond his own anger and revengeful frame of mind to give way to forgiveness. The romantic relationship between Miranda and Fernando implies Prospero’s idealistic hope in future generations, specially in view of his own demise. Prospero’s renouncing his magic might also be a hint of Shakespeare’s farewell to the theatre. The final release of Ariel could represent different things that are open to discussion. Is it a symbol of European regrets? Is it Shakespeare’s intrinsic sense of justice? Would it be that Shakespeare was foreseeing the future independence of European colonies?
Doukas highlights romance and forgiveness, two of the main topics in the play. Her approach offers magical landscapes of live music and sound effects that bring the island’s sweet airs to the stage, creating a rhythmic and delightful theatrical production with irresistible performances by the talented cast.
The Tempest
Kiki & David Gindler Performing Arts Center
110 East Broadway
Glendale, CA 91205
(between N. Brand Blvd. and Artsakh Ave.)
June 30 – July 30:
• Fridays at 8 p.m.: June 30, July 7, July 14, July 21, July 28
• Saturdays at 2 p.m & 8 p.m.: July 8, July 15, July 22, July 29 (no matinees on July 1, July 29)
• Sundays at 2 p.m.: July 9, July 16, July 23, July 30
• Mondays at 8 p.m.: July 10, July 17, July 24
Tickets: antaeus.org
Written by William Shakespeare. Directed Nike Doukas. Starring Bernard K. Addison, John Allee, JD Cullum, Elinor Gunn, John Harvey, Adrian LaTourelle, Saundra McClain, Peter Mendoza, Erin Pineda, Anja Racić, and Peter Van Norden. Musicians: John Allee on piano, JD Cullum on guitar, and John Harvey on percussion. Presented by Antaeus Theatre Company. Creative team: Original music composed by John Ballinger. Sound and Foley effects designed by Jeff Gardner. Scenic designer Angela Balogh Calin, costume designer Julie Keen-Leavenworth, lighting designer Vickie Scott and properties designer Shen Heckel.
