Bawdy, outrageous, laugh-out-loud fun—they’re not words usually associated with Shakespearean classics, which unfortunately have a reputation for staid drama and linguistic gymnastics that feel too cerebral for a summer night. But not the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival’s current production of Twelfth Night—it’s a silly farce of mistaken identity with sparkling wit, visionary direction, and captivating actors who so entertainingly bring the Bard’s words to life that you’ll have zero trouble following, and laughing, along.
LTSF’s new Producing Artistic Director Sara Bruner kicks off her first full season with the organization as this show’s director, and she’s a triumph. From the play’s first moments, you can tell this isn’t stereotypical Shakespeare. There are no Elizabethan costumes—no sentries in pantaloons, no powdered wigs. This production is bursting with color, light and sound. A jester in clownish attire stands atop waves that appear carved into the stage, looking ahead at the foolishness to come.
Then, a windswept maiden, washed ashore after a shipwreck, appears to our right, atop a Tahoe boulder. Bruner takes advantage of the Sand Harbor amphitheater’s dimensions, introducing our main character, Viola (played by Grayson Heyl), so that she hails, both literally and figuratively, from an unexpected place. Viola has landed on the island of Illyria, stepping onto its shores in the middle of the audience. She meanders her way through the crowd, encountering a sea captain (M.A. Taylor) and explaining that she has lost her twin brother and is utterly alone. The captain advises her that for her safety, as a woman alone on a strange island, she should disguise herself as a man to make her way in this new world.
Viola takes his advice. Dressed in a pencil-thin mustache and white suit with powder-blue trim reminiscent of an early 1900s bathing costume, Viola pretends she is a man named Cesario and becomes a page and confidant to Duke Orsino (Jeremy Gallardo). Orsino shares with Cesario that he is desperately in love with Countess Olivia (Angela Utrera), but he faces a dilemma: Olivia is mourning her recently deceased brother and has sworn not to marry for seven years until she has finished mourning. Orsino isn’t willing to wait. Could Cesario plead his case to her, on Orsino’s behalf? Viola, meanwhile, is developing a crush on Orsino and can’t act on it. All she can do is earn his admiration by following through on the request.
Then things get weird. Olivia couldn’t be less interested in Orsino… but this Cesario fellow sure is attractive. Now we have a love triangle: Orsino wants Olivia, Olivia wants Cesario/Viola, and Viola wants Orsino. And what about Viola’s lost brother?
As if that weren’t tricky enough, Olivia’s household is a mess — and the source of the secondary plot. First, there’s her uncle, Sir Toby Belch (Dar’Jon Marquise Bentley), a ridiculous drunk who spends entirely too much time merrily imbibing with the frilly footsoldier Sir Andrew Aguecheek (James Alexander Rankin). Olivia’s lady in waiting, Maria (Christiana Clark), enjoys their merriment and poking fun at her lady’s priggish steward, Malvolio (Joe Wegner). When Malvolio gets a little too big for his britches, Maria, Toby, and Andrew cook up a plot to expose him as a fool … with the help of Olivia’s actual fool, Feste (Theo Allyn).
It sounds like a lot because it is. It’s why Shakespeare’s work often feels inaccessible, as if you need a dictionary and credentials to be qualified to follow it. Let me assure you now: You won’t.
Bruner’s magic in the realm of set design and costuming — which seems to take inspiration from Venetian carnival, Victorian steampunk and even Edward Gorey illustrations, giving it a timeless and occasionally contemporary vibe — also extends to her work evoking brilliance from a host of remarkably talented actors. At times, their lines are delivered with urban inflections and body language that accurately points to their meaning, even when, at times, the Bard’s actual words may be lost on you. At times, they break into song and break the fourth wall with the audience to help convey meaning.
Allyn’s portrayal of the spry, clever fool will captivate you and have you in stitches, as will Bentley’s Sir Toby, the merry, mischievous uncle I wish were mine. Trust me when I say I was on the edge of my seat as Viola struggled to maintain her secret identity while absurdity reigned all around her.
Add to that my feeling of escaping the weekly grind for fun in the cool, pine-scented Tahoe air, with a delicious dinner and bottle of bubbly, and it was the perfect summer Friday night.
Lake Tahoe Shakespeare festival presents Twelfth Night several nights a week through Aug. 23, along with Peter and the Starcatcher through Aug. 24. The festival also features Monday night performances by groups such as Sierra Nevada Ballet, Reno Jazz Orchestra and the Reno Philharmonic. All events will take place at Sand Harbor State Park, 2005 Highway 28, in
Incline Village. For tickets and information, visit laketahoeshakespeare.com.
We have always enjoyed Shakespeare at Sand Harbor. Last nights performance was particularly disturbing with continued jabs at Christians and the mocking of God. We noticed several people left during the break. Wished we had too! For the amount money we spent, it’s too bad we left with such sadness and disappointment. I hope the director will think about the audience when adding hurtful context. GOD WILL NOT BE MOCKED.