Measure for Measure
Reviewed by Taylor Kass
Antaeus Theatre Company
Through April 6 [NOTE: Closed early due to COVID-19]
RECOMMENDED
William Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure defies both categorization and expectation. Its tricky plot and dissonant themes provide a challenge aptly met by Antaeus Theatre Company, who are no strangers to complicated classical texts.
Measure for Measure begins as the Duke of Vienna (Paul Culos) deputizes the coldly moralistic judge Angelo (Ramón de Ocampo) to rule in his absence, then disguises himself as a friar to covertly observe the goings-on within the city. Angelo uses this opportunity to crack down on crime, sentencing the young Claudio (also de Ocampo) to death for engaging in premarital sex. When Claudio’s sister Isabella (Carolyn Ratteray), an intelligent and kind novice nun, appears to plead for her brother, Angelo makes her a deal: her virginity in exchange for her brother’s life. But in this world, where puritanical ideas are law, “’tis one thing to be tempted, ’tis another thing to fall.” And once Angelo falls, the line between good and evil is forever blurred.
Even the language of the play — clearly and vividly delivered by the cast — is strictly parallel in structure. Arguments are carefully crafted with a rigid sense of right and wrong. But virtue and vice aren’t as antithetical as these characters think. Directors Elizabeth Swain and Armin Shimerman have double-cast several members of the company to emphasize that goodness and sin live intertwined in each of us. De Ocampo, who is tasked with portraying moral purist Angelo and lovestruck youth Claudio, fully connects with the emotional core of his characters. Perhaps he does so too easily, as it is precisely Angelo’s inability to understand his feelings that drives his descent into wrongdoing. As the object of Angelo’s lust, Carolyn Ratteray as Isabella is measured and subtle. Her buried rage, grief and fear simmer below a gentle exterior that cracks in only a few breathtaking moments.
While the modest design elements allow for the language and acting to claim sole focus, they feel ever-so-slightly unspecific. Chris Moscatiello’s sound suggests a vaguely industrial cityscape, but the sparse, austere set by Frederica Nascimento leaves time and place to the imagination.
Not only are parallels between the plot of Measure for Measure and stories from the #MeToo movement obvious, viewing the play from today’s contemporary standpoint underscores even subtler forms of misogyny. It is painful to observe Isabella interrupted by men, to see Marianna and Isabella manipulated by men they thought they could trust, and to witness how the women of the play are humiliated and shamed so that men can learn a lesson.
Measure for Measure is tonally bizarre — it is in turns tragic and funny, peppered by violence throughout. Most strongly, it is underpinned by a sense of unease. In a stark departure from the rest of Shakespeare’s comedies, no one in this play gets a happy ending. There isn’t even the catharsis or justice that concludes a Shakespearean tragedy. There’s only the faintest glimmer of hope that this ugly situation won’t ever happen again. But, of course, it has.
Kiki and David Gindler Performing Arts Center, 110 E. Broadway, Glendale; Fri.-Sat., 8 p.m.; Sun., 2 p.m. (except Mar. 1); Mon., 8 p.m. (except Feb. 24 & Mar. 2); through Apr. 6 [NOTE: Closed early due to COVID-19]. (818) 506-1983 or https://www.antaeus.org/. Running time: two hours and 30 minutes with a 15-minute intermission.
