Alley veteran James Black showcases Iago, Shakespeare’s greatest villain, with nimble dexterity. His rapid-fire delivery works well, although he, like others in this talented cast, often gets going so fast that his lines are hard to follow. The scenic design and the lighting and sound nicely underscore Black’s interpretation. Schwartz, the director, also finds creative ways to keep the villain’s never-ending soliloquy visually stimulating. In one early speech, Iago divulges key portions of his plan under a spotlight while Cassio and Desdemona stand suggestively mute in the darkened background, a device that illuminates the evil mechanism of Iago’s plot.
The major flaw in this production appears in moments before and after Desdemona’s murder. Here, curiously, David Rainey’s otherwise excellent portrayal of the noble, misguided Moor goes wildly off-pitch and elicits laughter where a shocked audience normally remains silent. Elizabeth Heflin’s portrayal of Emilia, Iago’s wife and Desdemona’s mistress, falls similarly off-kilter during the cathartic moments following the murder. When Emilia realizes her husband is the true architect of Desdemona’s death, Heflin overdoes it and ruins the moment.
Early on, Othello and Desdemona weather a shipwreck while being transported from Venice to Cyprus. Leaving the security of Venice on a precarious journey by sea into an uncertain future is essentially the start of their undoing. This show elegantly transforms the Alley’s Hubbard stage into a gargantuan ship that serves as an effective motif of the couple’s new life on the isle of Cyprus.
The maritime set design inspires floor-to-ceiling movement all over the house and clever stagecraft onstage. Likewise, many scenes originate in very elevated portions of the house, adding to the maritime atmosphere. The creative use of entrances and exits enhances the prevailing mood of apprehension.
Both the ship motif and the production’s sheer physicality heighten the vulnerability of Othello, Cassio, Roderigo, Desdemona, and Emilia – all of whom are cruelly misled and manipulated by the villain Iago.
The Alley Theatre’s production of Othello runs through March 30.
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