Arden of Faversham

Red Bull's fabulously entertaining production of Arden of Faversham, directed with a wry hand by Artistic Director Jesse Berger, tells the story of Alice (the terrific Cara Ricketts), a young wife who wants to trade in her boring husband for a hunky steward. Being as it's the late-16th century, divorce is not an option. But Alice has a plan!

Cara Ricketts, Thomas Jay Ryan
Photo: Carol Rosegg

Jeffrey Hatcher and Kathryn Walat have done a smooth job of adapting this Elizabethan farce, believed to be one of the earliest "ripped from the headlines" plays and possibly coauthored by Shakespeare. Hatcher and Walat compare Arden of Haverham, with its gruesome version of farce, to Coen Brothers movies. In their adaptation, they have leaned on the noir and expanded the women's roles. 

Tony Roach, Joshua David Robinson, Cara Ricketts
Photo: Carol Rosegg

In the Red Bull production, the farce wins out over the noir, as the characters aren't real enough to care about their lives or deaths. But that's not a problem--Arden of Faversham is completely satisfying as farce. The show is great fun from start to finish. The performances are calibrated in that wonderful realm of overacting-just-enough, and each character is beautifully delineated with quirks and particularities. Outstanding in addition to Ricketts are David Ryan Smith and Haynes Thigpen as two breathtakingly useless miscreants; Zachary Fine, as a goofy lovelorn suitor; and Joshua David Robinson, fabulously funny in three different roles. But the whole cast delivers. (Though a little better enunciation from the Widow Greene would have been appreciated.)

The set is by Christopher Swader and Justin Swader; the costumes by Mika Eubanks; the lighting by Reza Behjat; the music and sound by Greg Pliska; and the props by Samantha Shoffner. All are excellent.

[spoiler] As for the play possibly being cowritten by Shakespeare: (1) I am no expert; and (2) Red Bull's production is an adaptation, so it would be difficult to ferret out Shakespeare's voice. However, the only facet of the play that struck me as Shakespearean was the body count.

Wendy Caster