Playing until September 28 at fortyfivedownstairs, Melbourne.
Tickets and more info can be found at: melbourneshakespeare.com/othello
William Shakespeare’s momentous tragedy Othello gets a vivid, intense and immersive revival here by the Melbourne Shakespeare Company, with an exemplary cast and brilliant creative team bringing the more than 400-year-old play to life in spectacular fashion.
The classic tale depicts the downfall of the powerful General Othello (Christopher Kirby), whose immense power and happy life with wife Desdemona (Tanya Schneider) is threatened by the duplicitous, despicable Iago (Dushan Philips), Othello’s trusted confidant, who seething with jealousy of the general, plants the seeds of distrust in his oblivious friend and sets in motion a plan that has horrendous ramifications for all in Othello’s orbit, including Cassio (Matthew Furlani), a trusted lieutenant, and Emilia (Lucy Ansell), Iago’s neglected wife.
Directed by Tanya Gerstle, the staging of Othello is ingenious and involving given the actors are so close and the action on stage has an immediacy and power that a more distant staging might not have had. With the audience seating resembling an L-shape and the rest of the performance space made up of the set, it’s a unique and memorable piece of set design and high praise must be given to set designer Callum Dale for some innovative choices.
This adaptation pares down both the cast and running time of the play to get to the meat of the story without sacrificing anything vital, a difficult task that the company is more than up to. The Bard’s classic tale of deception and manipulation is beautifully depicted here by a small but memorable cast, who all get their moment to shine, with the standout being the wonderful Philips as the detestable Iago.
Philips’ performance is truly spectacular, showing many sides of a cunning, master manipulator, going from playful to pernicious in the blink of an eye, and even having many humorous moments despite the horrendous nature of his character. Phillips has the most difficult but also the most fun role in Othello, and he never misses a beat in his depiction of this ruthless traitor who gleefully ruins the lives of those around him without a second thought.
The rest of the cast is impressive also, with Kirby showing both the powerful and vulnerable sides of the General, and in particular brilliantly conveying the utter powerlessness the character seems to have in the closing moments, making us sympathise with him as a victim rather than a villain. Kirby has a powerful presence on stage, with his booming voice nicely contrasting his Othello to the more softly-spoken Iago.
Rounding out the cast is Schneider as Othello’s ill-fated wife Desdemona, who has a wonderful rapport with Kirby and quickly establishes the connection they share. Furlani makes for a likeable Cassio, and gets to play some great moments of humour, and pulls double duty by also playing the smaller role of Lodovico.
Lucy Ansell is likewise excellent, playing dual roles as well as Iago’s wife Emilia and Cassio’s lover Bianca. Ansell shines especially towards the finale with some truly memorable and commanding moments in which her characters dominate the stage.
The aforementioned set design also sees much of the action taking place behind see-through curtains in the background, which foreshadows events to come and makes for a stylistically brilliant choice. Samantha Hastings’ costuming is subtle yet intriguing, with the setting never quite defined and the costuming quite modern but of an indeterminate time period.
The conviction and passion in which the cast delivers Shakespeare’s prose is truly extraordinary, and the play’s running time of 105 minutes races by.
All of this combines to make Othello a devastatingly powerful piece of theatre that is not to be missed.
4.5/5 STARS
Image by Nick Robertson at NickMickPics via Facebook
TINSEL and TAP SHOES 