Shakespeare is always relevant. Measure For Measure, with its corrupt and hypocritical authority figure and the way it addresses the question of whether a woman’s accusations will be believed, certainly rings true in today’s strange climate. And while Shakespeare By The Sea does place the play in a more modern setting for its new online production, the company chooses the Wild West of the 1800s. While it is always somewhat risky and problematic to set one of Shakespeare’s plays in a different time and place, this setting does work with that sense of lawlessness that troubles the city and in fact indirectly sets the action in motion. A major piece of the set is the exterior of a saloon, working as a reminder of the rampant lawlessness of the time and of the setting of the play. Though this production is set in the wild west, the text is not changed from Vienna, which is slightly disconcerting at first, as when Pompey says “All houses in the suburbs of Vienna must be plucked down.” However, at a certain point, the setting becomes almost irrelevant, and you just enjoy the performances.
The first scene of this play always feels too brief, as the Duke seems in a hurry to set his machinations in motion, to place Angelo in charge and don his disguise. It feels even more rushed here, as several of the Duke’s lines are cut. The Duke basically announces his intention to Escalus, hands Angelo his commission and departs. Patrick Vest plays the Duke and also directed the production, which is interesting, because the Duke does his best to direct the action within the play, and Vest’s dual job seems a comment on that very thing. This production features a female Escalus, played by Jane Hink. From her expression upon hearing the Duke’s intention, it doesn’t seem she shares his estimation of Angelo. Or perhaps she simply thinks it a bad idea for the Duke to place control in anyone else’s hands. The Provost (Tara Donovan) is also female in this production. It is interesting that there are women in positions of some power, because this play has felt to me to be, at least in part, about women’s lack of power. When Angelo (Jonathan Fisher) enters, he is dressed in black, so we get the sense of him as a villain from his first appearance. I like that he takes a moment before exiting, to appreciate his new position.
When the Duke speaks with the Friar, the Friar is in black, which draws an important connection between him and Angelo, who is supposedly a pious and moral man. The nun Francisca (also played by Tara Donovan) is also in black, in contrast to Isabella’s white and pale blue habit, showing that Isabella (Melissa Booey) has not yet taken her final vows. Francisca is funny when explaining the rules regarding talking to men, even hiding her face. And when the Duke disguises himself as a friar, he changes his outfit from red to black. His disguise also includes a pair of glasses, and a change in his voice. But, hey, no one recognized Clark Kent as Superman either, so I suppose we can accept this. There is a funny moment when he catches himself being too familiar with the Provost, and it is then that he changes his voice. Humor is often a strange element in this play. For example, it feels a bit twisted to us when the Duke tries to joke with Juliet in prison.
When we meet Mistress Overdone (Dana DeRuyck, who also plays Juliette and Mariana), she stands on a platform, as if to draw customers. Pompey (Brendan Kane) takes particular delight in all his jokes. Though he seems much too thin for the joke aimed at him about his bum being “the greatest thing about you.” Interestingly, Pompey is at his best and most compelling when he is in trouble and more serious, particularly in the scene when he has been arrested by Elbow and then feels betrayed by Lucio. Of course, there is still some good humor in that scene. When Elbow (Andy Kallok) delivers his “strange pick-lock” line, he pulls out a flogger. Lucio (Cylan Brown) drinks from a flask, even offering some to the manacled Claudio (Rogelio Douglas III), who declines. Cylan Brown gives one of the production’s best performances. I love his simple delivery of lines like “Not to be weary with you, he’s in prison.” He is able to deliver subtle, honest moments, and then take great fun in some of his wilder bits, as at the end when he is driving the Duke a bit mad with his interruptions. He takes a sip from his flask when he mentions Angelo, a nice bit of business. Wouldn’t Angelo drives us all to drink?
Angelo says “Stay a little while” to Provost upon first seeing Isabella, making us wonder if he already finds her attractive and doesn’t trust himself alone with her, or if it is simply a matter of propriety. I like Angelo’s reaction to Isabella’s line about him slipping just as easily were he in her brother’s place. He dismisses that idea with a laugh and a shake of his head, as if she uttered a thing absurd, a thing ridiculous, when we know he will desire to do exactly the same thing before long. It is interesting that Isabella at least at one point looks to Lucio for confirmation that she is making a sound argument. It’s a nice moment. And there is an excellent moment when it seems Angelo might be swayed by her arguments. This scene, by the way, has that fantastic line, “Oh it is excellent/To have a giant’s strength, but it is tyrannous/To use it like a giant.” And after Isabella’s exit, we see Angelo’s anger, even disgust with himself, as he tries to come to terms with the feelings she has stirred within him. There is a moment where he might choose a better course, but then he basically talks himself out of it.
The second time Isabella calls on Angelo, we see from her expression that she expects the news to be good. I love the section when she is not quite following his point. And when he is more explicit and asks “What would you do,” his eagerness in hearing her answer is clearly shown on his face. After his “let me be bold,” Angelo touches her arms from behind. Isabella pronounces her threat to reveal Angelo’s sin with strength, then immediately turns to him with worry to see what effect her words have had, an absolutely fantastic moment. And that is even before he counters with “Who will believe thee, Isabel?” And isn’t that the line that strikes at the matter, and feels pertinent in today’s climate, when someone like Brett Kavanaugh can reach the Supreme Court? Both Melissa Booey and Jonathan Fisher do excellent jobs with these pivotal and difficult scenes.
Isabella seems to have taken some joy in her work in the subterfuge regarding the bed trick, which is interesting. This also helps prepare us for that sometimes-troubling ending when the Duke proposes marriage, for it shows us similarity between the Duke and Isabella, and gives us the sense that perhaps she is not quite nun material after all. The Duke takes an even more perverse pleasure in withholding from Isabella for the moment the good news regarding her brother. The Duke adds a little pause before the word “goodness” in the line “I have made enquiry of you, and I hear/Such goodness of your justice,” giving Angelo a moment to worry, to squirm. Again, the Duke is taking delight in his role, in controlling the action. Dana DeRuyck is really good as Mariana, particularly in her reaction to Angelo’s death sentence. Claudio and Isabella do sit together toward the end, though of course without speaking, for Shakespeare has provided them with no lines. Isabella also famously has no vocal response to the Duke’s proposal. However, in this production, we see a joyful smile as they step toward each other, indicating she accepts.
This production of Measure For Measure premiered on March 27, 2021, and can be viewed online by visiting Shakespeare By The Sea’s website. It is free to watch, but donations are suggested, and there is a link on screen at the end of the performance. There is one intermission, coming after Act III Scene i. While normally an intermission lasts fifteen minutes, here it is but a few seconds. Of course, you can pause it as long as you need, in order to visit your own concessions stand.
