Metro Pulse/Backstage/Twelfth Night

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What:
Twelfth Night

When:
Clarence Brown Theatre

Where:
Tuesday thru Saturday, 8 p.m. thru Feb. 14; Sunday, Feb. 8, 2 p.m.

Cost:
$15-$22 general, $5 UT students. Call 974-5161 for tickets.

CBT gives Shakespeare an imaginative twist

by Paige M. Travis

Sometimes a character is so original, so weird, that an instant, indescribable fascination takes hold and you can't look away. Bob Dylan has been such a character for decades (what's with those bizarre mustaches?), and Johnny Depp has thrilled film-goers and earned an Oscar nomination by channeling Keith Richards in his portrayal of Jack Sparrow. Add to that list a new player in our midst.

I don't know what John Forrest Ferguson is thinking—or taking—but he is thoroughly inspired—or possessed—in his performance of Feste in the Clarence Brown Theatre's production of Twelfth Night. At intervals, he sings songs Shakespeare didn't write in a style that defies description. He might be channeling Louis Armstrong with a Southern drawl, borrowing the growl of R.B. Morris, or copping the smooth, half-lidded style of Dean Martin. He is a drunk anti-Polonius, his advice leaning towards the kind you shouldn't follow. The strangely compelling effect grows funnier as the play wears on, as if the sweet brown liquid swirling in his snifter is going to our heads as well.

The icing on the cake is that Ferguson is only one player in a strong cast that makes Twelfth Night as funny as Shakespeare could only dream of being in the 21st century.

Twelfth Night finds the young Viola (Alecia White) washed up on beach at Illyria, thinking her brother dead in the shipwreck she narrowly survived. Quick on her feet, she finds out that Count Orsino (Jeremy Fischer) rules the land, that he's in love with Lady Olivia (Kim Ders), and that she won't have anything to do with him, claiming a mournful devotion to her own dead brother. Times being what they were, Viola can't wander about dressed as a woman, so she dons some clothes—chosen for their likeness to her brother's style—and reinvents herself as the energetic and educated youth Cesario. Gaining favor with the Count in his court, she actually falls in love with him. What's a girl-dressed-as-a-boy to do? Why, accidentally capture the fancy of Lady Olivia, of course! Sent to plead Orsino's case, Cesario's own feelings of unrequited love, used hypothetically as example of Orsino's, turn Olivia into a smitten kitten—and a pretty bold one at that.

While this love triangle unfolds, the secondary story plays out between Olivia's uncle Sir Toby Belch (Guiesseppe Jones), her hapless suitor Andrew Aguecheek (Matthew Detmer), her handmaid Maria (Anne Thibault) and the steward Malvolio (Steven Hauck). Malvolio is a stiff, a nerd of the highest degree, and the three pranksters decide to trick him into believing that Olivia is in love with him. Watch the flirting and frolicking commence!

As a comic actor, Detmer does things with his body and face that are wholly original and completely hysterical. He would threaten to take the viewer's eyes away from the rest of the cast, but everyone seems to be doing something funny every single minute. Wacky facial reactions, pratfalls, drunken slurring, ridiculous capering—these clowns make Shakespeare's old jokes translate into laughter. As they make a fool of Malvolio, the love triangle participants start to seem pretty dull, but that's no fault of the actors. White is wide-eyed and brilliant as the cross-dressing Cesario. It's hard to see, however, why she falls so fast for Orsino. Fischer is a handsome guy, but he's not given much to work with. What might have been played as romantic poetry worthy of Romeo sounds more like macho braggings from Fischer's mouth. He's awfully confident for a guy who's been dissed over a dead brother. His scenes with Viola/Cesario either reveal his suspicion that she is really a woman or that he is actually attracted to the young man. Director Blake Robison has them share a kiss which can be construed in a variety of ways, all of which add a certain depth and mystery to Orsino's character.

In addition to the stellar cast, the production also features the artistry of guest scenic designer Kevin Rigdon and guest lighting designer Beverly Emmons. The two have worked together to create a setting that is abstract but evocative and truly in keeping with Clarence Brown's reputation for stunning sets. The walls of the set are sheets of silver foil that reflect the vibrant elements of yellow, purple and green that appear in the actors' costumes, the lighted backdrops, and pools of light on the stage floor. An upper level with round cut-outs functions as a ship setting and as peepholes through which the pranksters can view Malvolio's receipt of the fake letter from Olivia. The walls roll away to create a garden scene, revealing giant roses projected on the backdrop and a large arm of statuary.

As large as the set is, the actors fill the space. Their performances provide the surprises in a play that—if you've seen or read enough Shakespeare—is fairly predictable. As the love triangle resolves itself and Malvolio recovers from being "notoriously abused," the traditional catharsis is tangible. But this production makes Twelfth Night look effortless and feel like a pleasant surprise.