Twelfth Night
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Cititour.com Review
“If music be the food of love, play on,” is undoubtedly one of the most famous lines in William Shakespeare’s comic romance “Twelfth Night,” and there is equally little doubt that the brilliantly varied music of Shaina Taub is the prime reason to visit the Delacorte Theater, where the Public Theater is presenting an often enchanting version of one of its summer staples.
Presented as part of its Public Works series, this 90-minute “revisal” (first seen here in a slightly different form in September 2016) is in no way a traditional production of the Bard’s beloved classic, which is immediately evident from the family-friendly on-stage carnival that all attendees are encouraged to join before the actual proceedings begin. You’ll also notice dozens of players intermingling with the crowd, with more to come, as more than 50 members of various local community groups make up the spirited ensemble (aka citizens of Illyria, where the play is set), adding not only a sense of inclusiveness but a true joie de vivre to this uplifting piece.
Yet, as truly wonderful as Taub’s music can be – which ranges from Carole King-like pop to R&B-inspired ballads, New Orleans jazz and vaudevillian Tin Pin Alley tunes (and all of which I’d love to hear again) – this primarily sung-through adaptation (written with co-author and co-director Kwame Kwei-Armah, who shares helming duties this time with the Public’s Oskar Eustis) is rather a little too “Cliff Notes”-like for my liking.
Yes, the crux of the show’s story is still very clear, especially the central love triangle involving the shipwrecked young girl Viola (the extraordinary Nikki M. James, whose soulful performance is another must-see element), who dresses up as a boy named “Cesario” in order to serve the moony, moody Duke Orsino (a dreamy Ato Blankson-Wood) who pines for the haughty Countess Olivia (a slightly too low-key Nanya-Atuki Goodrich) who herself falls in love with “Cesario.”
But the delicate balance among the characters is decidedly off here: Tony winner Shuler Hensley almost dominates the show with his hilarious, larger-than-life portrayal of Olivia’s rascally drunk uncle Sir Toby Belch; and Andrew Kober is as delicious as can be as the vain manservant Malvolio. But in other, usually more prominent, comic roles neither Lori Brown-Niang as the wily maid Maria or Daniel Hall as the foppish aristocrat Sir Andrew Aguecheek barely register, while Taub, a better singer-songwriter than comic, seems to get a bit too much stage time as the fool Feste. And despite Blankson-Wood’s best efforts, we get little sense of Orsino’s deeply romantic nature (or the fact that he is falling in love with “Cesario” and is confused by the seeming same-sex attraction). Finally, in the smallest of the show’s principal roles, Troy Anthony has enormous presence as Viola’s twin brother Sebastian, while Jonathan Jordan is less than persuasive as Antonio, the pirate who risks all for Sebastian (and who is openly in unrequited love with him).
Of course, those less familiar with the play may not have the same critiques as I do. Indeed, I suspect, to quote one of Taub’s most toe-tapping tunes, the “word on the street” will be that the remaining nights of this “Twelfth Night” will be one of the toughest tickets in town.
By Brian Scott Lipton
Visit the Site
https://www.publictheater.org
Cast
Troy Anthony (Sebastian), Kim Blanck (Female Understudy), Ato Blankson-Wood (Orsino), Lori Brown-Niang (Maria), Nanya-Akuki Goodrich (Olivia), JW Guido (Featured Illyrian), Daniel Hall (Sir Andrew Aguecheek), Shuler Hensley (Sir Toby Belch), Javier Ignacio (Male Understudy), Nikki M. James (Viola), Jonathan Jordan (Antonio), Andrew Kober (Malvolio), Patrick J. O'Hare (Fabian), and Shaina Taub (Feste)
Open/Close Dates
Opening 7/17/2018
Closing 8/19/2018
Theatre Info
Delacorte Theater
Central Park (81st St & CPW or 79th St & Fifth Av)
New York, NY
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