Caesar opened last night, and I must say, it was fantastic, even better than I thought it was going to be. The energy was up, the actors increased their dynamic movement to fill the stage and make the best use of the set, the amount of character-building stage business went up. While other shows may have had standout performances, the acting was consistently better across the board than any Shakespeare we've done before it. The technical aspects came together gorgeously, looking slick, professional, and painstaking. This was definitely one of the best mainstage shows Hold Thy Peace has put on to date. Lenny and Jenna, the directors of this excellent piece, should be incredibly proud.
Brenda conveys the intensity of an obsessive personality with a fascinating combination of fire and steel. She cuts a tall, square, lean figure in her suit and her military uniform, plotting, imposing, inexorable. My guts twist at the thought that I'll probably never get a chance to direct her myself. She perfectly accents Frances, lovely Frances, who is so talented I get lost in it. Her need to cogitate and weigh contrasts brilliantly with Brenda's constant burning surety. I also admire her for balancing Brutus's quiet cerebralness with a dynamic ponderousness that emphasizes the character's ponderousness without divorcing from the physical performance. I want to see her play every role in all of Shakespeare, because I believe she could do it all, and I want to bear witness to it.
Steph confirms my theory that when good actors are required to stretch, it improves them and helps them to grow. Making the role of Mark Antony a woman, keeping the gender identity while adapting it to fit an atypical societal position, is not an easy job, and not really one Steph has had to attempt before. Among all the fantastic performances in the show, she is the standout, and I believe it is because she was challaneged to create a part outside of her typical repetoire. Her "Friends, Romans, countrymen," speech got applause when it only otherwise occurred at act breaks.
Nati is very interesting to me. He is clearly talented and has fantastic instincts-- of everyone, his stage business I found the most genuine and the most compelling. I could see someone with his repetoire being inclined to over-acting, but I thought he balanced it well last night, keeping busy and interesting and active without being too distracting. Caitlin's performance is so complex. She has a remarkable ability to convey layers of feeling beneath the words-- you get no just what she's saying, but what's going on behind her eyes a the same time, which is a really difficult thing. And I have been impressed by April's progression. She was really good as Regan, but in playing the Nurse and having the opportunity to play a character requiring a lot of meta-commentary by the actor (must understand the dramatic function of the part to the play, has many different notes to hit, has many levels to hit, which levels and which notes are appropriate when, et cetera) I think she grew much more savvy about how to go approach roles. She auditioned for Caesar with a monologue of the Nurse, which though she had performed on stage, she directed herself to clean up her performance to a point of making it more honest and less over-the-top while still keeping it funny. It was one of the best-prepared auditions I've ever seen. Her portrayal of Decius demonstrated how much more sophisticated and nuanced her acting, and her approach to roles, are getting.
I enjoy the double casting of Julius Caesar and Octavian-- I should, it was my suggestion. ;-) I like it because I find actors give stronger performances when they are double-cast meaningfully, which this is. Octavian was the grand-nephew of Caesar, so you get family resemblance, and there is now some continuity between the man that became Rome's first dictator and his heir who became its first emperor. Also, it gives Plesser a chance to stretch. I thought he did a very good job of differentiating the two, making Caesar an arrogant, stage-filling presence and Octavian stern, calculating general planning to win a war and rebuild a government.
The other notable thing about the evening is that Charlotte, wanting to do something creative while killing time before the show, painted a design on my back. It is gothy and gorgeous, kind of an abstract bat wing design. There should be pictures of it up shortly. She is incredibly talented, and I am so flattered to have been able to be a canvas for her. Sadly in sleep I smeared it somewhat, but she can paint a new one on me anytime. :-) I shall be attending again tonight, after which photo call will happen for sure. I am ready and excited. Then, I believe, there will probably be the traditional pilgrimage to IHOP.
All I can say now is "Hail, Caesar!"
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