Review - Othello in Mask

Othello In Mask

By William Shakespeare

Polarity Ensemble Theatre

You’re sitting at a stoplight, minding your own business, when a car pulls up next to you, playing music so loud that the pounding bass actually shakes your own car. Besides being greatly annoying, it puts the thought of the actual medical harm that the blaring music must be bestowing on the occupant’s ears (maybe a just reward?). While sitting in on Othello in Mask, I was subjected to the same feeling - this play is so loud and physically frenetic that I actually ended up getting a headache. (Luckily a bottle of Tylenol has been included in my theatre-reviewing munitions.)

Othello possesses a fairly straightforward story. Mostly devoid of any type of subplot (unlike most Shakespeare plays), Othello tells the story of a young Moorish captain Othello (Cliff London), who is newly married to the beautiful Desdemona. Othello’s scheming companion, Iago, (Mason Hill) successfully succumbs the naïve Othello into believing that his virtuous wife Desdemona (Leah Morrow) is having an affair with the young Cassio (Dustin Ayers). Because of Othello’s misguided naiveté, he lashes out in such a way that causes his world to tragically come crashing down around him.

Othello in Mask is so named because of its use of masks to portray the fact that Othello sees people not as who they are, but as the way that his conniving confidante Iago portrays them. All the characters - save for his wife Desdemona - wear masks. At times this technique is effective, especially by the fact that we are artistically forced to focus on the lyrical Shakespearean dialogue rather than facial expressions. The masks are finely made, save for a few that fit over the actor’s mouths in such a way that words become distractingly muffled. Most of the time, though, the masks do not work, causing more confusion than artistic exploration. For example, if the masks portray the way Othello sees others in his world, then why would he wear a mask himself? I could be coerced to forgive this choice, knowing that often we see ourselves different than others do. But problems truly arise with Desdemona - if Othello’s view of his wife changes from a woman he deeply loves to one he disdains (so much so that he calls her a whore), wouldn’t she then also gain a mask as Othello’s view of her changes? This confusion diminishes any type of authenticity to the mask experiment, contributing to the performance’s overall sloppiness.

It’s interesting to observe that, within the notes, the director mentions that the company was excited to be performing in such an intimate place, giving them the chance to show off the nuance of the play. Uh…this play is anything but nuanced, being presented as if performed in an auditorium. What remains is a well-intentioned cast filling a stage with a bombastic and sloppy overall performance.

Rating: Not recommended (1 star)



	David Mamet is one of our own *Othello In Mask* By William Shakespeare Polarity Ensemble Theatre http://PETheatre.com You’re sitting at a stoplight, minding your own business, when a car pulls up next to you, playing music so loud that the pounding bass actually shakes your own car. Besides being greatly annoying, it puts the thought of the actual medical harm that the blaring music must be bestowing on the occupant’s ears (maybe a just reward?). While sitting in on Othello in Mask, I was subjected to the same feeling - this play is so loud and physically frenetic that I actually ended up getting a headache. (Luckily a bottle of Tylenol has been included in my theatre-reviewing munitions.) Othello possesses a fairly straightforward story. Mostly devoid of any type of subplot (unlike most Shakespeare plays), Othello tells the story of a young Moorish captain Othello (Cliff London), who is newly married to the beautiful Desdemona. Othello’s scheming companion, Iago, (Mason Hill) successfully succumbs the naïve Othello into believing that his virtuous wife Desdemona (Leah Morrow) is having an affair with the young Cassio (Dustin Ayers). Because of Othello’s misguided naiveté, he lashes out in such a way that causes his world to tragically come crashing down around him. Othello in Mask is so named because of its use of masks to portray the fact that Othello sees people not as who they are, but as the way that his conniving confidante Iago portrays them. All the characters - save for his wife Desdemona - wear masks. At times this technique is effective, especially by the fact that we are artistically forced to focus on the lyrical Shakespearean dialogue rather than facial expressions. The masks are finely made, save for a few that fit over the actor’s mouths in such a way that words become distractingly muffled. Most of the time, though, the masks do not work, causing more confusion than artistic exploration. For example, if the masks portray the way Othello sees others in his world, then why would he wear a mask himself? I could be coerced to forgive this choice, knowing that often we see ourselves different than others do. But problems truly arise with Desdemona - if Othello’s view of his wife changes from a woman he deeply loves to one he disdains (so much so that he calls her a whore), wouldn’t she then also gain a mask as Othello’s view of her changes? This confusion diminishes any type of authenticity to the mask experiment, contributing to the performance’s overall sloppiness. It’s interesting to observe that, within the notes, the director mentions that the company was excited to be performing in such an intimate place, giving them the chance to show off the nuance of the play. Uh…this play is anything but nuanced, being presented as if performed in an auditorium. What remains is a well-intentioned cast filling a stage with a bombastic and sloppy overall performance. Rating: Not recommended (1 star) Hosted by www.Geocities.ws