THE TEMPEST Comes to Smoking Mirror Theatre Company Next Month

Smoking Mirror Theatre Company, an emerging Shakespeare troupe, will present "The Tempest" from August 30 to September 15 at Gural Theatre at A.R.T/New York Theatres, 502 West 53rd Street.  Director John Gordon will stage Shakespeare's magical tale of power, forgiveness and redemption with Prospero, the magician, and Alonso, King of Naples, re-imagined as female characters.  

The production's non-traditional casting aims to challenge and expand our understanding of the play's characters and themes, and to reflect the reality that we live in an increasingly female-oriented world.  There have been female Properos before but audiences have probably never before seen a Queen of Naples as an enemy to her.  And in this production Miranda is a powerful young woman in her own right and not a shrinking violet.  

Director John Gordon writes that the gender reversals "reflect the mirroring in betrayal by a brother upon his sister, shifting the traditionally male-dominated power dynamics to include female perspectives." In the original play, Prospero is betrayed by his brother, Antonio, and the King of Naples, Alonso, is involved in this betrayal. By making both Prospero and Alonso female, Gordon enables us to explore the parallel experiences of betrayal suffered by these women at the hands of their brothers. This casts the play's themes of sibling rivalry, trust, and the emotional impact of betrayal in a new light.

Mr. Gordon also aims to emphasize the idea of "The Tempest" as a memory play, since its major characters are confronted by their past to recollect their lives. As a young man, Gordon was deeply moved the the books of Carlos Castenada, especially "The teachings of Don Juan," and has always intuited similarities between this Yaqui man of knowledge and the "secret studies" of Shakespeare's sorcerer in this play.  "The Tempest" was Shakespeare's final play and Gordon sees themes from many preceding plays referenced in it -- including revenge as in "Hamlet," the resurrection of conscience as in "A Winter's Tale" and the interpenetration of worlds as in "A Midsummer Night’s Dream" -- as if the Bard used this play to digest his life and work.

Otherwise, the interpretation is traditional, emphasizing the beauty and rhythm of the original text and preserving the play's intended messages about power, control and forgiveness.

The actors are: Nancy Rich (Prospera), Cam Gray (Miranda), Bellamy Woodside Ridinger (Ariel), Coleman Shu-Tung (Caliban), Jason Schlaman(Ferdinand), Alice Marks (Alonsa, Queen of Naples), Martin Challinor (Antonio), Meg Gwyn (Sebastian, Spirit), Tony Savage Thorn (Gonzalo), Brian Mendoza (Adrian, Boatswain), Justin Bennett (Trinculo), Ronan Schwarz (Stephano) and Mira Singer (Spirit, Mariner).

Lighting design is by Eric Nightingale.  Set and costume design are by John Gordon and Nancy Rich.  Music and dance aspects of the production are being created by the ensemble.

Smoking Mirror Theatre Company, led by John Gordon and Nancy Rich, has previously presented "Timon of Athens" in 2007 on Theatre Row; "Shakespeare's Fools and Clowns" (a collage of scenes from various Shakespeare comedies featuring clowns and fools) at Playwrights Horizons Theater School (2017) and "Shakespeare's Prisons: Tales of Conscience and Illusion" at Theaterlab (2023).  John Gordon directed all three productions and played Timon in "Timon of Athens."  He has appeared as Claudius in "Hamlet" (Steps Theatre Company, 2000), performed improv widely in NYC, and over the years directed numerous theatrical short pieces for special occasions, including for charitable and educational organizations. 

Nancy Rich has appeared OOB as Princess Kosmonopolis in Tennessee Williams' "Sweet Bird of Youth," Queen Margaret in "Richard III," the Nurse in Euripides'"Medea," Ranevskaya in Chekhov’s "The Cherry Orchard," The Nurse in "Romeo & Juliet," Gertrude in "Hamlet," Arkadina in "The Seagull," Olga in "Three Sisters," Mme. Voynitsakaya in "Uncle Vanya," Elizabeth in "Richard III," Portia in "Julius Caesar," Hecate in "Macbeth," and Theodosia Dudgeon in Shaw’s "The Devil’s Disciple" at Shakespeare Theater of New Jersey.

To post a comment, you must register and login.