Displaying items by tag: Royal Shakespeare Company

They do abuse the king that flatter him

For flattery is the bellows that blows up sin

These days, fireplace bellows tend to be a specialty item. But most of us know that blowing the hot air of flattery into leaders comes to no good. With the presidential election just days away and the globe exploding in violence, Pericles’ nobleman Helicanus reminds us that the habits of powerful people and their sycophants have changed little in 400 years.  

In case you missed Pericles, the Prince of Tyre in college lit class or on stage, you can now fill in the gap with the Royal Shakespeare Company’s visiting production at Chicago Shakespeare Theater. The Bard’s message about power in this play is as strong as in more familiar works like Macbeth and Richard III. However, its authorship remains in dispute – scholars suspect another writer contributed the first two acts – and its dramaturgy presents some challenges.

Tamara Harvey, recently appointed co-artistic director of the RSC, directs Pericles with a sure hand that brings clarity to its intricate plot and cohesion to its stylistic disparities. Flowing yet unfussy costumes by Kinnetia Isidore and a set of sweeping ropes by Jonathan Fensom match the pace established by Harvey. She often places ensemble members in frozen tableau upstage during a downstage scene and lets action from one scene continue silently on the outskirts of another, thus bouncing the story along quickly.

Still, Pericles is a rough ride, beginning with an appalling sin: a king having incestuous relations with his daughter. This could happen in the humblest to the grandest families, but King Antiochus turns it into a competitive royal sport. Whoever can solve a riddle will win the hand of his nameless and wordless daughter. Though many suitors have previously failed and lost their lives, Pericles decides to give it a shot and, in solving the riddle, exposes the king’s depravity. To escape Antiochus’ murderous plan for him, Pericles begins a journey involving strange lands, major storms and wayward ships, a beloved wife and daughter lost and recovered, men using earthbound force and women wielding priestly powers that ultimately result in a happy conclusion.

No surprise, the RSC’s legendary ensemble shifts roles as naturally as breathing, inhabiting each character simply and fully. Zach Wyatt gives a solid performance in the title role despite its limitations. The main characters of Shakespeare’s later romance plays – specifically Prospero in The Tempest and Leontes in The Winter’s Tale – grip our imagination because of their flaws. Pericles, on the other hand, has no noticeable failings that push him into trouble. Trouble finds him without dampening his virtue or his courage. Whether solving the immoral riddle, bringing food to famished people or besting his competitors in a joust with only a worn armored vest while they hold shiny shields, Pericles triumphs. Nothing digs below the man’s smooth surface, and Wyatt doesn’t add any surprises.

The reward of this seldom-produced play is not a specific character’s path to greater humanity, but instead a timeless commentary on leadership. As we wade through this election season, enduring politicians who blow flattery into voters at home and hearing reports of sins from abroad, Pericles’ exotic narrative seems frighteningly familiar.  

Pericles, a Royal Shakespeare Company production at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, is playing now through December 7th. For tickets, go to www.chicagoshakes.com/pericles  

Chicago Shakespeare Theater (CST) presents the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC)'s Pericles, direct from a "triumphant" (The Telegraph) run at the company's home in Stratford-upon-Avon, UK. One of the world's preeminent theater companies, the RSC returns to Chicago for the first time in 30 years as part of a new, ongoing partnership with CST.

Tamara Harvey directs this major new production of Shakespeare's moving tale in her and Daniel Evans' first season as the RSC's co‑artistic directors. The Guardian raved about the UK premiere, "Pericles could not have been done better." This exclusive engagement runs October 20–December 7 in the Courtyard Theater, marking CST's 100th international production bringing the world's great artists to Chicago.

When Prince Pericles solves a riddle set by the neighboring King, he knows the answer could get him killed. Fleeing for safety, he finds himself swept away on an epic voyage that will see him battle princes, marry his true love, and become a father. But this is also a journey of storms and shipwrecks, abduction and devastating loss. Adrift in an ocean of grief, will Pericles ever see his family again?

"It is a huge pleasure to be bringing the Royal Shakespeare Company back to Chicago for the first time in 30 years with this most timely and beautiful production of Pericles," said CST's artistic director Edward Hall. "The inaugural production as co‑artistic director from Tamara Harvey is a rare opportunity for audiences to immerse themselves in this thought-provoking and wise story brought to life by an exceptionally talented company. This marks the beginning of a partnership between the RSC and CST in an expression of the shared passion for Shakespeare long held by us, Tamara Harvey, and Daniel Evans."

Harvey shared, "As I stepped with excitement and trepidation into the rehearsal room to create this, my RSC debut, I wouldn't have dared hope that the experience could be so joyful and creatively exhilarating. This company of actors is extraordinary, and we are thrilled to welcome Zach Wyatt as Pericles for the next leg of our journey together, whose professional debut—a very Pericles-like note of connection and reunion—was with Ed Hall when he was artistic director of Hampstead Theatre in London."

She continued, "Sharing this lesser-known Shakespeare with audiences in Stratford‑upon‑Avon has confirmed our belief that Pericles' perennial relevance is compelling, with its examination of leadership, endurance, loss, and hope. We can't wait to share this beautiful play with Chicago Shakespeare Theater's audiences as together we start to write the next chapter in the centuries-old story of collaboration between our two nations."

Zach Wyatt leads the cast of the Chicago engagement in the title role of Prince Pericles. Wyatt has been seen onstage in the West End production of A Little Life, Bartholomew Fair and The Merry Wives of Windsor at The Globe, Wild East at the Young Vic, and I And You at Hampstead Theatre. His television and film credits include The Witcher: Blood Origin, Timestalker, and Blithe Spirit.

The company also includes Miles Barrow (Thaliard/Boult), Philip Bird (Helicanus), Jacqueline Boatswain (Cerimon/Bawd), Rachelle Diedericks (Marina), Chyna‑Rose Frederick (Antiochus' Daughter/Lychorida/Diana), Sasha Ghoshal (Ensemble), Leah Haile (Thaisa), Felix Hayes (Anitochus/Pander), Kel Matsena (Lysimachus), Miriam O'Brien (Ensemble), Emmanuel Olusanya (Ensemble), Chukwuma Omambala (Cleon), Sam Parks (Escanes, Leonine), Christian Patterson (Simonides), and Gabby Wong (Dionyza).

Joining Harvey on the creative team are Jonathan Fensom (Set Designer), Kinnetia Isidore (Costume Designer), Ryan Day (Lighting Designer), Claire van Kampen (Composer),Claire Windsor (Sound Designer), Annie‑Lunnette Deakin-Foster (Movement Director), Charlotte Sutton CDG (Casting Director),Elinor Peregrin (Music Director), Tess Dignan (Voice and Text), Francesca Murray-Fuentes (Associate Director), Zoë Thomas‑Webb (Associate Costume Designer), and Juliano Zaffino (Textual Consultant).

The press opening for Pericles is scheduled for Friday, October 25 at 7:00 p.m. 

More information at www.chicagoshakes.com/pericles or on social media at @chicagoshakes.

Pericles

By William Shakespeare
Directed by Tamara Harvey
October 20–December 7, 2024
Courtyard Theater

PERFORMANCE LISTING

• Tuesdays at 7:00 p.m. (except November 12 and 19)
• Wednesdays at 1:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m. (no matinee on October 23 and no evening on November 27)
• Thursdays at 7:00 p.m. (except November 28)
• Fridays at 7:00 p.m. 
• Saturdays at 2:00 p.m. and 7:00 p.m.
• Sundays at 2:00 p.m. (additional performances at 6:00 p.m. on October 20 and 7:00 p.m. on December 1)

Chicago Shakespeare strives to make its facility and performances accessible to all patrons. Accessible seating, assistive listening devices, large-print and Braille programs, and sensory tools are available at every performance. Enhanced performances include:

• Audio-described performance with optional touch tour – Sunday, November 17 2:00 p.m.
  A program that provides spoken narration of a play's key visual elements for patrons who are blind or have low vision. Touch Tours provide patrons the opportunity to experience, firsthand, a production's design elements.
• Open captioning – Wednesday, November 20 at 1:00 & 7:00 p.m.
  A text display of the words and sounds heard during a play, synced live with the action onstage.
• Projected Spanish translated performance - Thursday, November 21 at 7:00 p.m.
  A text display of the words of the play, translated into Spanish, synced live with the dialogue.
• ASL interpreted performance – Friday, November 22, at 7:00 p.m.
  All dialogue and lyrics are translated into American Sign Language by two certified interpreters