Terrific Tempest
Shakespeare fest gets all stormy
by Christopher Key
Having endured a few storms of its own over the years, the Skagit River Shakespeare Festival brings that experience to The Tempest and there isn’t an ill wind to be found onstage. Artistic Director Damond Morris has been the driving force behind the festival since its inception in 2001 and has built it into a seasonal spectacular that is not to be missed.
Another founding member of the group, Rob Slater, directs The Tempest with a subtle hand. He has ingeniously set the play in a 1920s amusement park reminiscent of Coney Island and that works perfectly given the slightly freakish nature of some of the characters. He has also made some gender-bending casting choices that help this production sizzle.
Chief among these is the magical Carolyn Travis as Prospero, the usurped Duke of Milan who is exiled to the enchanted island. She puts forth a powerful performance that will make you forget that she’s a woman playing a man. Travis’ hubby, Trey Hatch, is brilliantly bipolar as the hermaphroditic Caliban. He somehow manages to be both sleazy and sympathetic, a rather impressive feat in my book.
Miles McGillivray as Sebastian tries to shoulder the burden of Robin Stift as Ariel in the Skagit River Shakespeare Festival production of The Tempest. Photo credit - Maryanne Olson.
Robin Stift has an astonishing gift for physicality that he uses to full advantage in his otherworldly portrayal of Ariel, a role that is conventionally cast as a woman. Just try to take your eyes off him when he is onstage. Festival veteran Mike Wallace is absolutely delightful as Trinculo with a performance that is reminiscent of Stan Laurel at his goofy best. I don’t hand out comparisons like that lightly.
As drunken sailor Stephano, Katie Cole makes you wish you could shave his (her?) belly with a rusty razor. She told me after the show that this was her first time playing a drunk but she would make the legendary Foster Brooks proud. Bjorn A. Whitney and Shelby Ford are perfect as the young lovers, Ferdinand and Miranda, who help salvage the whole situation by being willing victims of Cupid’s missiles.
There are also a couple of young actors in this show whose talent is both inherited and frightening. Ian Slater and Sheridan Musick-Slater play minor characters with a verve that bodes well for their future onstage. Some might think that their director Dad was being a bit nepotistic if their gifts weren’t so obvious.
The set design isn’t credited in the program, but it should be. Jeremy Morton delivers an absolutely artistic lighting design and the nifty costumes are the work of Lynn Lambert.
This is a very well-conceived show with a bulletproof cast. The Tempest plays July 26 & 30, August 2, 6 & 8 at 7:30 p.m., August 1 & 9 at 2:00 p.m. The venue is the wonderful McIntyre Hall in Mt. Vernon. Tickets are $12 – $20 and can be purchased by calling the McIntyre Hall box office toll-free at (866) 624-6897. You can also purchase online at www.mcintyrehall.org.
The Skagit River Shakespeare Festival deserves sold-out houses for its imaginative and professionally-performed shows. Trust me on this one.
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