Review: Twelfth Night
Pacific Shakespeare Company, Griffith Park, 818-782-6246
by Teresa Willis
It is some sort of rule—maybe a law of nature. Where there is massive urban sprawl, there will be performances of the best loved plays of all time. They must take place in some outdoor oasis and grateful audiences will be treated free of charge. If it is not so, there is a dangerous lack of balance. The food chain is interrupted. Somewhere in Bolivia, a certain species of flea goes extinct. Well, our Bolivian flea can sleep soundly tonight as there is free Shakespeare in Griffith Park (and there has been since 1991).
The Pacific Shakespeare Company is perhaps one of Los Angeles’ best kept secrets. They subsist fully on private donations and merchandising, so there’s not much left in the budget for advertising. But little by little, word is spreading.
Their latest production, Twelfth Night, opened on Saturday, September 17 and runs through October 17. This is one of Shakespeare’s best comedies, complete with love-struck royalty, mistaken identity, cross-dressing, practical jokes, and the token drunken buffoon. PSC offers a wonderful interpretation of this classic.
Drawing from the free talent pool in Los Angeles, producers do better here than in most cities. In the twenty-member cast, performance level varies, but the main characters drop few balls and deliver accomplished performances. The play is beautifully framed and accented with original music composed and performed by Burton Gregory and Preston Clarke of the folk/rock band St. Surreal.
Ed Gallagher’s direction is imaginative and resourceful. Of special note is his use of the Griffith Park landscape. Because of the openness of the space, you could see characters approaching in the background well before their entrance. This added depth and realism to the piece and kept the rhythm swift and clipped. The uncredited set was a simple combination of banner-like screens that didn’t interfere with the openness of the staging, but provided a convenient “exit” when the action required. Teresa Gibson’s costumes were beautiful. There was a sense of actual “design” that is rare within the confines of shoestring theatre (especially when it’s a period piece). And as the only lighting was natural, the lighting designer was beyond reproach.
There are some delightful performances in this production as well. As Viola/Cesario, Jane Longenecker charms with her boyish strut and wry manner. Jose Andrews III plays the lovable drunk, Sir Toby Belch, to perfection. Patricia Netzer is infinitely likable as the mischievous Maria. My personal favorite was Jan Johnson’s Feste. He struck a perfect balance between extreme silliness and honed shrewdness. His comedic timing was so good that I actually looked forward to his entrances. And though Executive Producer/Artistic Director Christopher Corey Smith seemingly cast himself, he delivers one of the play’s strongest performances as the irrepressible Malvolio. His interpretation of the character was colorful, classic, and inventive.
Christopher Corey Smith is a busy man. He co-founded PSC with Executive Director Aria Wilson in 1991. From just my short contact with the company, I saw him deal with press, act, and sell T-shirts. (Beautiful T-shirts at that. Buy them.) This is par for the course in such “labor of love” companies. Everyone does anything that needs to be done with no monetary recompense. And the Pacific Shakespeare Company does all this just because there must be free Shakespeare in the park—for the children, for the future, for the fleas in Bolivia. ♦