As promised, here’s a glance at the rest of the plays that opened recently at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival. The review of “The Music Man” was posted yesterday.

On March 25, the festival opens Carlo Goldoni’s “The Servant of Two Masters,” and on April 15, it opens Bill Cain’s “Equivocation,” starring Anthony Heald (”Boston Legal,” “Boston Public”).

The review on “Macbeth” is by writer/photographer/musician Jim Gilmore, whose Jefferson Agrarian blog covers cultural events in Siskiyou County and beyond.

“Macbeth” (review by Jim Gilmore)

“Is this a dagger which I see before me…?” Macbeth (Peter Macon) sees a ghostly apparition. Photo by Jenny Graham.

If one is seeking diversions from the headlines of war and unrest in today’s world, OSF’s 2009 staging of William Shakespeare’s tragedy “Macbeth” may not be your cup of tea. But if your love of theater resides in its undeniable imitation of life, then this riotous and upsetting production will most certainly resonate.

Shakespeare’s famous tragedy has been performed in film and theater by some of the world’s most famous actors since he wrote the play (probably between 1603-1607). OSF’s cast for this staging is definitely up to the challenge. Many of us unfamiliar with the ways of theater don’t realize that many believe the play “Macbeth” is cursed and will not mention its name aloud. It is thus often referred to as “The Scottish Play.”

Gale Edward’s direction is nothing short of wonderful. Lead actor Peter Macon anchors the show with his embodiment of the title role, and from his first uttered lines (“so foul and fair a day I have not seen”) he fascinates us with his intensity as he crosses the line into tyranny and madness. As Lady Macbeth, Robin Goodrin Nordli delivers a riveting performance of a wife driving her husband toward greatness, only to break down mentally and physically as she recognizes the barbarian her husband morphs into.

The supporting players also fascinate, especially Rex Young’s rendering of the martyred Banquo. His ghostly and bloody reappearance, which becomes the main impetus for Macbeth’s descent into madness, is quite memorable. The Three Witches (Robynn Rodriguez, Perri Gaffney and K.T. Vogt) are anything but comical as frightening spectres and prophesiers of doom.

The only comic relief (and welcome it is) comes offered by the Porter, ably played by Josiah Phillips, who appears a bit drunk as he enters to open the gate to the castle and utters, “Here’s a knocking indeed! If a man were porter of hell-gate, he should have old turning the key.” Then, rather than turning the key and opening the gate, he laughingly describes certain people he might welcome into hell.

As usual, OSF’s set designers create an environment that appears simple but delivers as each scene changes. The lighting was perfect and on cue, as was the sound. The choice of costumes, especially in the Act I scenes around Duncan, were a bit distracting in their subtle and unnecessary references to Nazi SS officers. My preference would have been for a more benign representation, but the distraction was minor as the powerful acting held sway.

“Macbeth” is one of Shakespeare’s shortest plays, and this performance runs about two hours and ten minutes, with an intermission. While I wouldn’t recommend it for families with small children, it is certainly no more bloody and violent than most cinematic and television offerings.

If I were introducing a teenager to Shakespeare, this would be the perfect performance to do so. I bought tickets the day of the performance via their handy online service, and many good seats were still available. This could be due to our economic woes, or could be typical for OSF this early in the season.

“Macbeth” is performed in the Angus Bowmer Theatre, designed by Richard L. Hay, for whom the 2009 season is dedicated. The Bowmer really doesn’t have a bad seat in the house. The performance runs at OSF from Feb. 13 through Nov. 1.

“Death and the King’s Horseman” (review by Jim Dyar)

Elesin (Derrick Lee Weeden) and the woman of the marketplace dance to prepare for Elesin’s impending death. Photo by Jenny Graham.

This is the second in OSF’s ongoing series of classics from around the world (last year was “The Clay Cart” from India). Since most theatergoers won’t be familiar with the story, a perusal of the playbill synopsis is a good idea before viewing the play.

The story by Nigerian Nobel Prize-winner Wole Soyinka is set in Oyo, a Nigerian city, in 1943. It centers around Elesin (Derrick Lee Weeden), the king’s horseman, who is required by Yoruba tribal duty to commit suicide a month after the king has died. The horseman, according to the tradition, escorts the king into the afterlife.

The story is based on a real-life incident in which British colonials attempted to stop the ritual and failed bitterly.

From the start, the language of the play is beautiful, but complex. A Praise-Singer (G. Valmont Thomas) speaks in poetic riddles, and then Elesin tells a story of the Not-I bird, which is a premonition of death.

If you’re somewhat lost as an audience member at this point, don’t fret, an early scene between a British officer Simon Pilkings (Rex Young) and his wife, Jane (Emily Sophia Knapp), puts the whole situation in context in more plain English.

From the onset, the energy and power of the play rides on Weeden with his booming voice and raw physical presence on stage. A scene where Weeden’s character gets hypnotized by Thomas’ chanting and a trio of drummers is completely mesmerizing. One of the drummers, by the way, is Adebisi Adeleke, a native of Nigeria and a master of the African talking drum.

The play examines the contrasting morality of two cultures. The British view the ritual suicide practice as abhorrent. Yet, Olunde (Ryan Anderson), a character who understands both cultures, delivers a brilliant speech questioning the “mass suicide” of World War II, unfolding at the time.

It’s not the only theme Soyinka blends in, so there’s a lot to chew on during the two-and-a-half hour show. It’s all staged with a tapestry of gorgeous, colorful robes; columns of native statues that rise to the roof; a giant crinkled backdrop that looks solid, but becomes transparent; and spirited African dancing and drumming.

“Dead Man’s Cell Phone” (review by Jim Dyar)

A discussion about applying lipstick in public with the mistress (Miriam A. Laube), right, persuades Jean (Sarah Agnew) to give it a try. Photo by Jenny Graham.

American playwright Sarah Ruhl is something of a sensation — she’s young and already known for outstanding work such as “Eurydice,” “Passion Play” and “The Clean House.”

Her terrific grasp of language and love of surreal imagery is apparent in “Dead Man’s Cell Phone,” a play that contains some wickedly funny moments, but ironically, left me feeling disconnected by the end.

In an Edward Hopper-esque looking cafe (nicely done in OSF’s New Theatre), Jean (Sarah Agnew) picks up the ringing cell phone of a stranger, Gordon (Jeffrey King), who has just died in his chair. Jean feels strangely bonded to Gordon and decides to keep the phone. She even lies to Gordon’s surviving family members, writing herself into the backstory of his life.

It’s a great hook by Ruhl, because we’re all wondering what in the world it was that Gordon did in life. We’re even more curious after meeting his mother, Mrs. Gottlieb (Catherine E. Coulson); his wife, Hermia (Terri McMahon); his mistress (Miriam A. Laube); and his brother, Dwight (Brent Hinkley).

All four are brilliantly bizarre in their own way. Coulson is a complete riot as the gothic maternal figure who likes to eat lots of rare red meat. McMahon’s Hermia gets big laughs in a scene where she’s drunk and full of overshares. Laube’s mistress struts like some kind of sexy super spy. Hinkley’s Dwight seems smarmy at first but settles into being likeably awkward.

Agnew’s cheerful, clumsy and lovable Jean contrasts well with Gordon’s odd bunch. But it also makes it hard to believe she’s so isolated as a 40-year-old woman.

From heaven (or wherever he is) at the start of the second act, King’s Gordon gives a great speech reflecting on his life and death (and revealing what it is he did for a living). A bit later, however, it’s hard to believe his emotional breakdown upon hearing from Jean that his mother really did love him. We were led to believe that Dwight was the brother who was always second in his mother’s eyes.

When Jean and a business associate of Gordon’s (also played by Laube) duel it out by the baggage claim in an African airport midway through the second act, I’d pretty much been bucked off the ride. The farcical adventure no longer made sense to me. By contrast, in “Eurydice” (directed recently by Robert Soffian at Shasta College), the stranger things got, the more I liked them.

The play addresses the disconnect many of us feel in modern society with our addiction (or obligation) to technology like cell phones. There’s also a theme of how love makes us whole.
But those elements seem to be told to us by the script, not shown to us through the story.

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