Review: LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST Shatters The Misconception That Women Will Swoon At Poetry And Platitudes

Wednesday 30th December 2015, 8pm, Bella Vista Farm Park, Bella Vista NSW

Shakespeare's LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST challenges the romantic notion that women are ornaments that can be won with words alone. As part of Sport for Jove's Summer Season 7, Damien Ryan (Director) presents an adaptation of the Elizabethan work that makes it more accessible to modern audiences and weaves in contemporary issues whilst retaining the 16th Century grandeur.

The stage in grounds of the historic Bella Vista Farm Park, Set co-designers Anna Gardiner and Damien Ryan have created a sparsely furnished chamber within King Ferdinand of Navarre's castle complete with lectern housing the decree which the King's men commit to and a trestle table laden with the sources of knowledge with which the men which to consume themselves with for the next 3 years as they swear to avoid women. Bordered by wisteria lined walls common to the other performances staged as part of The Sydney Hills Shakespeare in the Park series, the space transforms from the stone castle to the tent the Princess of France and her Ladies in Waiting have been relegated too in order to maintain the King's decree that the castle remain free from women. Melanie Liertz has created period costumes complete with stiff ruffle collars and full skirted dresses of beautiful fabrics for the Ladies, opulent velvet coats for the Lords and homespun rags for the countryfolk.

Ryan expands on Shakespeare's observation that women require more than poetic missives to be induced to return a man's interest and that they deserve to be treated as more than just ornaments seen for the 'fair' beauty by also questioning the society that did, and to an extent still does, see women's education as less important than a man's. At first Gabrielle Scawthorn as Lord Longaville appears to be in a 'pants' role, a choice often used in opera to achieve a young man's voice, but given this is a text driven work, it is a pointed choice to highlight that this young woman has chosen to hide her identity to gain access to the education and entitlement that the men are afforded. Ryan also uses Longaville's deception to also provide a statement on the modern fight for marriage equality.

The noble men of the story, King Ferdinand of Navarre (Edmund Lembke-Hogan), Lord Biron (Tim Walter), Lord Longaville (Gabrielle Scawthorn), Lord Dumain (Chris Fernandez) and Spanish Don Adriano de Armado (Berynn Schwerdt) provide the bulk of the comic element of the works as the absurdity of their self entitlement is exposed. There is great physical comedy combined with comedic timing presented in contrast to those that serve them in the form of Amardo's Page, Moth (Aaron Tsindos), Schoolmaster Holofernes (James Lugton) and his assistant Nathalia (Wendy Strehlow). Additional males roles of plebian Costard (George Banders) and Constable/Park Ranger Dull (Scott Sheridan) provide additional physical humor in the absurdity of their characters, in particular, Dull's 21st Century styling which stands out against all the other period characters.

The female characters at first appear as the sterotypical damsels that will be entranced by words but the Princess of France (Emily Eskell), Lady Rosaline (Sabryna Te'o), Lady Katherine (Madeline Jones) and Lady Maria (Lara Schwerdt) evolve to expose their complexity that will not be satisfied with poetry. The demonstrate that they are clever, calculating and not opposed to a spot of fun as they expose their suitor's shortcomings and superficiality.

There are some amazing speeches in this work and the actors keep the audience engaged with clear presentation that ensures that even though the language is complex, it can still be understood. Ryan has had the ensemble present the work with a degree of 'natural' voice, capturing the old world English without an affected English accent or broad Australian accent which other recent interpretations of Shakespeare by other companies have adopted.

This is a wonderfully accessible production of LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST that works on different levels from the lightness of comedy to the more weighty issues of gender stereotypes and equality. Whilst the Bella Vista Farm Park season has finished, it will be staged as part of The Leura Shakespeare Festival in January 2016.

Photos: Marnya Rothe

LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST

The Leura Shakespeare Festival

Everglades Garden Theatre

@ Leura, January 9th @6.45pm, 15th @6.45pm, 16th @6.45pm, 23rd @3.30pm, 24th @6.45pm.

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