Review: A New TWELFTH NIGHT Inaugurates the New Gamut Theatre

There's sometimes a bit of humor lost in Shakespeare's comedies these days, and it can't be helped. Do you realize that we have women playing women on stage? That removes the humor to be gained from boys playing women's roles, especially when the woman happens to be playing a man. Just as VICTOR/VICTORIA gained laughs from a woman pretending to be a man pretending to be a woman, TWELFTH NIGHT must have had the hard-drinking audiences at the Globe spewing beer at a man pretending to be a woman pretending to be a man. But you know, no matter what, some drag parts are still pretty funny. And TWELFTH NIGHT is still pretty funny, even without a man pretending to be a woman pretending to be a man being chased by a man pretending to be a woman. There are still enough gender issues in TWELFTH NIGHT to realize that some things never change and that they're really a bit silly when you get down to it.

TWELFTH NIGHT at Gamut/Harrisburg Shakespeare Company, at Gamut's mildly spectacular new digs (using the church's antique American chestnut carved wood findings throughout makes the theatre as visually appealing as its production), is still as comic as it gets without that original extra layer of gender bending. It also leaves you thinking that the country of Illyria is not where you want to spend your vacation week; with shipwrecks, people laying in wait for former enemies of the state, and knights like Sir Andrew Aguecheek easily lured into duels, this may not be the safest place in Europe for a fast visit.

There's also the biologically improbability of opposite-sex twins looking virtually like identical twins, so that when Viola, thinking her brother is dead after their shipwreck, dons men's garb, she looks exactly like brother Sebastian. (No doubt this worked best when Viola was played by a man.) But you know, when it comes to Shakespearian comedy, that's an audience member thinking too hard. While this play has much to analyze as a literary text and as a commentary on sexuality, most can't worry about that while watching, and it's sure that the original audience didn't, so we'll take it for granted that they're dead ringers, but that Viola is gorgeous in women's clothing and that Sebastian isn't wildly effeminate in men's dress. Amber Mann happens to look wonderful both in a dress and in breeches, which settles the problem easily, and she's a delightful Viola/Cesario, busily working her way up into the good graces of her employer, the Duke of Orsino (Sean Adams). Given that the Duke has the masculine virtues of good looks, intelligence, grace, a brooding disposition, and so on, Viola's a goner immediately for her boss, which doesn't make her job of courting the lady Olivia on his behalf the slightest bit easier.

Michelle Kay Smith is a charmingly officious Olivia, which makes the main love triangle of Viola/Cesario, Orsino, and Olivia wonderfully funny and ridiculous. It's always a bit hard to figure on why Orsino is so taken with a woman who plainly isn't the slightest bit interested -or why, since Orsino seems to be bitten by true love, that it's so easy for him to decide he loves Viola at the end -but hey, it's a crazy world out there, and Mann, Adams, and Smith roll with the comic insanity.

Also caught up in the insanity is Olivia's steward Malvolio, played by Tom Weaver with as deft a comic turn as ever. In a comic play, Weaver manages to make the slightly depressing Malvolio the center of the comedy at many points, even if he's really the victim in a Punch and Judy play.

Olivia's conniving uncle Sir Toby (a feisty, red-cheeked Dan Burke, living the part to the hilt) and his weak-willed friend Sir Andrew Aguecheek (an equally amusing Phillip Wheeler) keep the jokes rolling, Malvolio in hot water, and the plot moving at a nicely rapid pace. Sir Andrew's at his best in his ineffectual dueling, both against Cesario and her identical brother Sebastian (Andrew Nyberg).

But by far the most delightful performer in the entire production is Francesca Amendolia as the fool Feste. Feste is arguably not integral to the story, yet is the story's Greek chorus and narrator as well as both instigator/manipulator, and also a henchman in the Malvolio plot. Amendolia puts Feste front and center in the most wonderful way, as singer and musician, jester, and cunning plotter - as well as a skillful artist in separating greater fools from their money. Her performance is captivating. Her music is by local composer Louis Lynch, and is the same music used in Gamut's original production some years ago.

As director, Clark Nicholson has managed to keep the comedy moving, as well as the show as a whole - there's no way to claim that you think Shakespeare drags along during this production. He's also made some apparent key directorial choices in the gender and sex stakes in this production. Sebastian's seafaring friend Antonio (Ross Carmichael) seems to come down on the clearly gay side, frequently in close physical contact with Sebastian during his protestations of deep affection for his friend (Antonio's form of interest in Sebastian's an old debate), but Orsino doesn't seem as moved in his affections for the apparently male Cesario as some productions have him; that particular choice makes his easy and immediate capitulation for the unmasked Viola slightly more surprising than in some versions.

The costuming is notable in this production - it's stunning. Interestingly, no new costumes were designed for the show. Because of the work on the theatre building itself, the costumes are entirely a collection of ones used in prior Gamut shows, including Feste's jester's vest, which was part of the costume for Feste in the original Gamut production of Twelfth Night. Call it inspiration. Call it recycling. It works perfectly. Culling some of the best work of its prior costuming has given Gamut a visually striking production even with the most minimal of sets. Kudos for this work.

One notable flaw? The makeup. Outside of the stage lights, it's greenish, which is to compensate for the color of the lighting, but many of the players are often outside the stage lighting. Olivia notably appeared a bit peaked from the color matter; the only major character who never looked a bit pale or oddly colored was Sir Toby, ruddy and healthy in color regardless of where he stood. While it's not an insurmountable obstacle, it's distracting, and is a matter for the company learning their new stage and light placements.

At Gamut through November 29. Well worth the effort to find parking in downtown Harrisburg. Visit GamutTheatre.org for tickets and information. Note that the new theatre is ADA compliant; if you ever had issues with this at the theatre at Strawberry Square, it's not a reason to stay away now. There's no excuse not to see this striking production.

Photo Credit: Nora Peach

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