Past Reviews

Regional Reviews: New Jersey

Lavish and Lively Love's Labour's Lost
Adorns Outdoor Stage

The Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey

Also see Bob's review of Closure


(center, front) Jonathan Raviv; (l-r) Ben Jacoby, Aaron McDaniel, and Austin Ku
Beautifully set and costumed, and acted and directed with exuberance and joyful enthusiasm, the high concept high jinks of Shakespeare's lightweight Love's Labour's Lost provide a delightful summer night's entertainment for attendees of 2015's Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey's Outdoor Stage.

The young King Ferdinand of Navarre (in the 16th century, most of Navarre, which was located between France and Spain, was conquered and absorbed by Spain with the balance going to France) cajoles his royal companions, Lords Berowne, Dumaine and Longaville, to join him in pledging to forsake all contact with women and to live monastically for three years in order to devote themselves to hermetic study. The outspoken Berowne is dubious as to the benefit and viability of Ferdinand's proposal, all agree.

The unexpected arrival of the Princess of France attended by three ladies, Rosaline, Maria and Katherine (along with Boyer Lord Boyet), quickly upsets the apple cart, and as we immediately realize, in short order, Ferdinand and his lords will be smitten with the French damsels and foreswear their vows. (Their mission, excised from this production, plays little role in the play's shenanigans unless one is aware of what follows the play's muted conclusion.)

The performances of each of the eight royal lovers display joie de vivre and youthful enthusiasm. Jonathan Raviv brings a suave, lightly worn sense of confidence and authority to King Ferdinand. Jesmille Darbouze's Princess of France is a delightfully self-assured and witty Princess of France. Ben Jacoby brings a confident jocularity to his vibrant Berowne. Susan Maris emphasizes the jocularity which makes her the match for Berowne. The more comic, ingénue-like Austin Ku as Dumaine and Kristen Kittel as Katherine, and Aaron McDaniel as Longaville and Carrie Walsh as Maria round out the royal courtships delightfully.

Love's Labour's Lost is happily awash with more than a half a dozen "clowns" whose lustful and/or self aggrandizing behaviors provide most of the biggest laughs, thanks to the performances of the deep pool of this company's Shakespearian comedians. There's Jeffrey M. Bender as the pretentious Don Armado and Connor Carew as the hapless peasant Costard, each smitten by Rebecca Gomberg as the delightfully delighted country wench Jaquenetta. Joseph Hamel as a curate, Nathaniel, and Bruce Cromer as a school teacher, Holofernes, are pretentious fools parading "brilliance" with their presentation anent the Nine Worthies of medieval literature. And James Costello as the constable, Dull. Funny, each and every one.

The production design features set designer Charlie Calvert's fairyland castle front in the royal park with alternating light and dark green diamond shaped foliage. The diamond and not quite diamond motif is repeated on the faux marble floors. Other elements include cement like columns, trees, a statue of Cupid and a gorgeous blow up of the pledge signed by the King and his lords.

Most breathtaking are Nikki Delhomme's sumptuous costumes. Their lavishness, detail, colors, appropriateness, seeming ease of maneuverability, and enhancement of our ability to identify each of the royals at all times are stunning. As to the latter, there are separate matching color accents for the King and Princess (purple), Berowne and Rosaline (blue), Dumaine and Katherine (blue) and Longaville and Maria (yellow). The sheer beauty of the costumes is so outstanding, so colorful, and so appropriate for the production that in and of themselves the costumes become a show not to be missed.

Director Brian B. Crowe, who directed Shakespeare Theatre's last Love's Labour's Lost in 2004, has again given us an absolutely first rate production.

Love's Labour's Lost continues performances (Evenings: Tuesday through Sunday 8 pm/ Matinees: Sunday 4:30 pm) through July 26, 2014, at the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey's Outdoor Stage, 2 Convent Road (at Convent Station), Morristown, NJ (on the campus of the College of St. Elizabeth). Box Office: 973-408-5600; online: www.ShakespeareNJ.org.

Love's Labour's Lost by William Shakespeare; directed by Brian B. Crowe

Cast
Don Armado………………………………..…….……Jeffrey M. Bender
Costard……………………………………..….…......…...Connor Carew
Boyet……………………………………………..Clark Scott Carmichael
Dull……………………………………………....……..James Costello
Holofernes…………………………………….….……..Bruce Cromer
Princess of France……………………..…..….…….Jesmille Darbouze
Jaquenetta…………………………………….....…..Rebecca Gomberg
Nathaniel……………………………………….…….......Joseph Hamel
Berowne………………………………………………...…..Ben Jacoby
Katherine………………………………………….….…..Kristen Kittel
Dumaine…………………………………………..…..……...Austin Ku
Rosaline…………………………………………..…....…..Susan Maris
Moth………………………………………………....……..Felix Mayes
Longaville…………………………………..……….…Aaron McDaniel
King of Navarre…………………………..……………..Jonathan Raviv
Maria……………………………………..…………..……Carrie Walsh
Marcade/ Attendant to the King………………...……….Peter Donahue
Forester/ Attendant to the King………………...……..….J.P. McLaurin
Attendants to the King……………...Benjamin Miller/ Thomas Walters
Attendants to the Ladies…..........Blair Prince/ Brigitte Thieme-Burdette


Photo: Jerry Dalia


- Bob Rendell