Reviewed by Barry Lenny, Tuesday 18th November 2014
The State Theatre Company of South Australia is presenting a modern setting of
William Shakespeare's
Othello, directed by Nescha Jelk, to close their 2014 season. Although the Bard made the Venetian General, Othello, a Christian Moor, the racial disharmony is not, in truth, a major point of contention within the play. His Ensign, Iago, is primarily angered by the fact that Othello has promoted Cassio before him. Iago feels that, as an experienced soldier, it is he who should have been promoted, rather than the inexperienced Cassio. Othello has also secretly married Desdemona, half his age and the daughter of the Senator, Brabantio, which has angered Roderigo, who was also in love with her, but unsuccessful in attracting her love in return. Jelk has assembled a very strong cast for this production, including a few of Adelaide's favourites.
The racial difference inherent in the script simply adds a little extra weight to these conflicts and so, apart from references in the dialogue to "the Moor", it matters little that, in this production, the part of Othello is not played by a person of African descent or, worse, somebody in makeup. Palestinian born, Hazem Shammas, plays Othello and the set is a based on a large square of sand, referencing current Middle-Eastern conflicts and racial tensions, rather than Othello the Moor's defence of Cyprus in the face of attack from Turkey.
Hazem Shammas is a powerful presence as Othello, a hearty, outgoing, "hail fellow, well met" type of man who, apart from Iago, and the spurned suitor of Desdemona, Roderigo, is liked, admired, and respected by all. He does, however, have his weaknesses, which Iago exploits, and Shammas portrays Othello's descent into the madness that leads him to murder in a tumultuous emotional rollercoaster with no brakes. He shows all of Othello's anguish and bitterness, and his devastation when he realises the truth.
Renato Musolino is a marvellous Iago, bitter and brooding one moment, then radiating charm, being supportive and feigning friendship the next. There is menace in his eyes and daggers in his words then, as though suddenly flicking a switch, he is apparently the concerned friend, struggling to know what to do for the best. Musolino gets right inside the character if Iago, and it is not pretty.
Ashton Malcolm plays Desdemona in a very unusual portrayal, far from the virginal and simple young daughter of a man of wealth and power to, which we are accustomed. Presumably the idea was to show Desdemona as a self-assured, independent, modern young woman, but she came across as too far down that road. Instead of a dutiful daughter, under the constant gaze of a devoted father, she looks as though she would be more at home playing pool and drinking beer with friends in the front bar of the local pub.
Within those strange parameters, however, Malcolm gives a sterling performance, full of life, energy and inner strength, a self-willed woman who lives life on her own terms. She embraces the confusion that Desdemona suffers and shows not only this in her performance, but also a concern for Othello, whose suddenly changed attitude towards her makes no sense.
Try as I might, though, I really could not come to terms with this concept for Desdemona and, it seems, nor could many of the audience, judging by numerous comments that I overheard in the foyer. She was dressed in heavy black 'Docs' style ankle boots, very brief denim shorts, and either a decorated tee shirt, or a semi-transparent tank top, set off with unkempt hair, all of which caused me to espouse the thought that she looked like a 'bogan', to which my younger and more fashion aware guest suggested she looked more like a 'hipster'. The word heard too often in the foyer, though, was that she looked like she worked in the 'oldest profession' and this is not, I am sure, what was intended. This, in effect, renders the entire play rather ludicrous, as Iago is supposed to convince Othello that his pure, innocent, and devoted wife is misbehaving.
This conceptualisation leaves the audience, obviously, needing to be convinced, conversely, that she is not a libertine, but we are not convinced of this. From the peculiar start, disco dancing, Othello and Desdemona exhibit more lust than love. One cannot help but wonder why Othello would have married her instead of just living together. Modernising a play means including prevailing attitudes and conventions, not just the costuming and props. Similarly, a modern general would hardly be fighting on the front line, and his wife would surely not be in the camp, within reach of enemy artillery.
We are, of course, supposed to be moved by Desdemona's plight when Othello accuses her, baselessly, of infidelity, but we really don't care that much as we cannot possibly see her as an innocent as, apart from the skimpy outfits and the slouching around, sitting with legs often wide apart, she has also been making physical contact and playing up to a good many of the men right through the play, and it is not hard to believe that she might very well have been guilty as charged.
Our sympathy does go, however, to the prostitute, Bianca, a gentle, loving soul, who is devastated to find that she has simply been a plaything for Cassio, who had only been teasing her with promises of marriage. We also sympathise with Iagos's mistreated wife, Emilia, although our sympathy might have been stronger if she wasn't looking like a female Rambo and swilling vodka with Desdemona. Emilia is Desdemona's dedicated attendant, although that is not clear here. Both of these roles, as well as that of the very minor role of the Duke of Venice, were played by the versatile Elena Carapetis. She crams so much into the few brief appearances of Bianca, and tops that off with a wide ranging interpretation of Emilia, exploring her emotional highs and lows.
James Smith and Taylor Wiese play Roderigo and Cassio, two men manipulated by Iago's machinations, and ending up in physical combat after Iago gets Cassio drunk and then convinces Roderigo that Cassio is another rival for the affections of Desdemona. Both provide convincing performances, filled with complexities and thoroughly developed. The antagonism that develops into a violent fight, exceptionally well choreographed by Duncan Maxwell, is almost too real.
Chris Pitman plays Desdemona's father, Brabantio, and also Montano, governor of Cyprus before Othello took charge, and
Charles Mayer plays Lodovico, the messenger from Venice who arrives with papers to make Cassio governor, replacing Othello. Even in these minor roles there are fine performances that are worth watching for.
I also had problems with Shakespeare's great tragedy being reduced to a comedy-drama, with contrived laughs spread throughout the production. This continually interrupted the rise and fall of tension, weakening the narrative and preventing it reaching the heights that it should have done. The audience were also 'talked down to', with the meanings of lines continually being explained with gestures, in case we missed the double meanings.
Victoria Lamb's desert war set, a large sand box the size of the stage, with a movable platform, transforms to become all of the locations in the play, and Geoff Cobham's lighting, including a green wash in one scene to suggest the wearing of night vision goggles superbly covers day night and warfare. Composer, Jason Sweeney, provides the soundscape for the play, adding further to the authenticity of the background against which the play is set.
So there it is; some fine individual performances and believable character interactions, effective set, sound, and lighting, but a concept that, sadly, just did not convince. There were some very powerful moments but, often, the play was reduced to just "sound and fury, signifying nothing". The performances are so good, though, that it is worth a visit on that basis.
Photography by Shane Reid
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