King Lear

By William Shakespeare

Stratford Festival – Canada

Festival Theatre

Run: May 1^st to October 28^th, 2007

Director/King Lear: Brian Bedford

5 Stars

Reviewed by: Kindah Mardam Bey

‘You have to grow into the part of Lear,’ that’s what everyone says. Not just any man in his thirties can don a white wig and beard and be Lear. No, no, no, it takes a lifetime’s worth of experience to be Lear, and that is why you have to grow into the part. Brian Bedford, known in theatre circles widely, but perhaps best known to the masses as the voice of Robin Hood in the Walt Disney animated film, was beyond quality and essence; he was simply transcendent as Lear. Mind you, I’ve always found that a director on-stage, performing along his fellow actors, truly creates the greatest production. So true was Bedford’s turn as director, he seemed to cohesively unite his cast, the play’s themes, and a traditionalists’ vision into a three hour event.

In brief, for those who are wanton to learn more about King Lear and have not had the chance to be informed until now; King Lear is the story of an elderly King who has three daughters. He seeks to divide his country up into three portions; professing love of their Father will assure the size of square footage for each sister. Goneril and Regan, the two eldest, eloquently and gushing grandly explain the love they have for their father, while Cordelia, the youngest and to be married to the King of France, confesses love but without the flowery detailing. Her father, Lear is outraged and banishes her from his sight, what follows is a journey of understanding for Lear about love, loyalty and commitment to family. What the audience is welcomed to is themes of family, loyalty, aging, love, and a pithy death scene at the end (it’s a tragedy for goodness sake; I’m not giving anything away here!).

Despite Bedford’s natural understanding of King Lear, I was struck by the quality of the Stratford Festival of Canada’s production overall. Deciding to make King Lear authentic to the time it was performed, in the reign of James I, the costumes had to be part of the pomp and galore of that time, and so too it was. The three sisters were elegantly dressed in Act I, Scene 1 and were, for the best part, in illuminating finery against the grain of their inner ugliness. The costumes for the men, when they were in their prime successes looked dashing and again, that level of quality. The stage was sparsely decorated, but is of no real significance, as it is probably preferred with such an intense performance.

Speaking of which, King Lear is not the only role that actors must sink their teeth into; many roles in King Lear can be demanding and must be eloquently presented. The two eldest sisters, played by Wenna Shaw and Wendy Robie, were a little over the top, bordering on Disney type caricatures, particularly at the beginning, but soon delved into the roles with more authenticity. Cordelia, performed by Sara Topham, made a very small role a significant presence of importance, and seemed rather illuminescent at times, even with the generally even-keeled personality traits the role requires.

However, some of the strongest performances, and most required to be strong performances, were the roles of the Fool (Bernard Hopkins), Edgar (Gareth Potter) and Edmund (Dion Johnstone), who fulfilled all obligations and more besides. Bernard Hopkins was great in the role of The Fool, and had a clear grasp of what the character added to the play. Gareth Potter as Edgar was insane when necessary and a leader when necessary; and he seemed to switch back and forth effortlessly. A nice turn was done by Peter Donaldson, who is also playing Atticus Finch in this year’s To Kill A Mockingbird at the Stratford Festival. If someone ‘stole the stage’ from Bedford it would have been Dion Johnstone as Edmund, so it is with great foresight that Shakespeare never had the two characters interact directly with each other. Johnstone played the role with malice and manipulation masked in seduction, when Edmund kissed Goneril, the women in the audience audibly swooned!

Even though new ideas and different ways of expressing Shakespeare’s plays can be inventive and interesting, sometimes a traditional production done well can be much more gratifying. Brian Bedford at the helm as both King Lear and the Director did just that, he seems to have added his touch to Shakespeare’s play by committing to the production, lock, stock and barrel. A definite must see if you are heading to the Stratford Festival this year.

Artistic credits
Director / BRIAN BEDFORD

Costume Designer / ANN CURTIS
Set Consultant / DESMOND HEELEY
Lighting Designer / MICHAEL J. WHITFIELD
Composer / DON HORSBURGH
Fight Director / JOHN STEAD
Sound Designer / JIM NEIL
Movement / SHONA MORRIS The cast
Curan / SEAN ARBUCKLE
King Lear / BRIAN BEDFORD
Duke of Cornwall / WAYNE BEST
Cordelia’s Gentleman / KEITH DINICOL
Earl of Kent / PETER DONALDSON
Duke of Albany / GRAHAM HARLEY
Fool / BERNARD HOPKINS
Old Man / JOHN INNES
Edmund / DION JOHNSTONE
Oswald / RON KENNELL
King of France / TIM MacDONALD
Edgar / GARETH POTTER
Regan / WENDY ROBIE
Goneril / WENNA SHAW
Cordelia / SARA TOPHAM
Earl of Gloucester / SCOTT WENTWORTH

Also Appearing:
PAUL AMOS, JONATHAN ELLUL, MICHELLE GIROUX (Understudy), KIM HORSMAN, JACOB JAMES, SOPHIA KOLINAS, BRIAN McKAY, JAMIE McKNIGHT, PAUL NOLAN, JAMIE ROBINSON, ROGER SHANK, SEVERN THOMPSON (Understudy)

Stage Manager / MICHAEL HART
Assistant Stage Managers / RENATE HANSON, ZEPH WILLIAMS
Apprentice Stage Manager / CRYSTAL SKINNER
Production Assistant / KRISTOPHER WEBER
Production Stage Manager / MAGGIE PALMER