Never Mind the Geese, SIR is here

Henry IV, Parts I and II performed at Assiniboine Park by Shakespeare in the Ruins, Friday, June 3, 2011

Reviewed by John Herbert Cunningham

Neither wind nor rain nor sleet nor snow nor a flock of quarrelsome geese nor a band of forty cyclists passing through nor a train rumbling down its tracks nor… all right, you get the picture, will stay these actors from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.

Shakespeare in the Ruins, or SIR as it’s affectionately known by the cast members, is becoming more and more a misnomer as the years go by and the province dickers around with repairs to the St. Norbert Monastic Ruins that once provided them their home. The company opens their eighteenth season, this time in the parking lot adjacent to the recently renovated children’s playground that is next to the recently renovated duck pond at Assiniboine Park, with their stripped-down, souped-up conflated version of the tragicomic Shakespearean play Henry IV, Parts I and II.

Sword play in SIR's Henry IV

Don’t let the recently contrived thrust stage surrounded on three sides by a couple of rows of folding chairs fool you. Although you aren’t going to see a mega-production such as you might at the MTC mainstage, this production is just as professional and probably a lot more fun. The intimate setting of the Assiniboine Park parking lot thrusts you right into the action. You might even have to dodge a few characters emerging from the audience to enter upon the stage as the entire parking lot becomes part of the playing surface. However, there’s no dodging the actors as they invite members of the audience—much to their embarrassment and the delight or regret of those not so chosen—into the action. Is this what Willie had in mind? Perhaps not, but then who the hell is he to tell these thespians what to do? After all, it’s doubtful that Shakespeare ever dragged a member of the audience up on stage, plunked a funky hat on their head, draped a robe around their shoulders and said, “All right, we’re short an actor, you’re now so-and-so. Here’s your lines.” These guys apparently do it on a regular basis— although not in this show.

In a nutshell, Henry IV concerns the reign of guess who from the moment he usurped Richard II’s throne to the time of his death when his son, Prince Hal, inherited the crown. This play gives paid to the phrase ‘uneasy lies the head that wears the crown’ as battle and betrayal and sword fights colour Henry’s reign, at least according to what is happening on this stage. Through all of this the braggart blowhard Jack Falstaff, played by David Warburton, wins our hearts with his conniving, cowardly character. We see Falstaff’s true character when, as he lies supposedly wounded, Hal and Hotpur (Brock Couch) engage in swordplay, Hal killing Hotspur. Prince Hal leaves the stage at which point Falstaff miraculously arises, sees the slain body of Hotspur, inflicts another wound on him in order to claim that Hotspur wasn’t dead, merely wounded, and that it was Falstaff who actually did the killing. Got all that? Only in Shakespeare’s twisted mind would this become a reality.

Toby Hughes, a 2009 graduate of the University of Winnipeg’s Department of Theatre and Film, plays the role of Prince Hal. Already having earned a wide variety of experience in his young career, this is his first time with SIR thanks to his being contacted by director Chris Sigurdson. He says that the hardest part about playing in an open air theatre, something to which he is new, is the noise distraction. He takes it in stride. When a flock of geese dive-bombed overhead towards the end of the play as King Henry IV lay dying, he looked upon this as a portentous omen which fit perfectly with the theme of the play. At other times, he says, open air theatre creates wonderful moments which you could never experience in an indoor theatre.

SIR, which has only nine actors, frequently calls upon them to play more than one role. One such actor is Kevin Klassen, who was called upon to play both Worcester and Shallow. According to him, the trickiest part of acting in SIR productions is finding the different voices and costumes for the varying roles he is called upon to play as well as the quick costume changes he is required to make. He joined SIR in 2002 during their production of Hamlet, after which SIR left the ruins for a variety of stage settings throughout Winnipeg. He says that SIR takes lots of liberties with Shakespeare, creating a mix of the traditional and the audacious, but finds his SIR performances to be the most fulfilling thing he could do as an actor.

Michelle Boulet, who is called upon to play Doll Tearsheet, Blunt, Mouldy and Fang, is one of the founding members of SIR. She says that playing a number of roles is not difficult as each has its own voice and costume. She reminisced about the times when SIR performed at the ruins saying that you couldn’t hire a set designer to create the scenes that the ruins of the Trappist Monastery offered for free. That was the ideal backdrop for a number of Shakespearean plays from Hamlet to Macbeth. She says that, as a result of performing outdoors, the SIR actors frequently have to compete against the unknown so improv skills are a must. She still chuckles when she recalls last year’s production of Merry Wives of Windsor when, on one evening, a huge rainstorm came up right when the production was nearing its end. Competing against the noise of the storm was impossible, she says, so the crew abandoned any effort to act the ending. Instead, much to the amusement of the audience, the actors stood at the edge of the stage and shouted out their lines as loudly as possible.

What this all comes down to: if attending an SIR production, and you should, be prepared for the unexpected and be prepared for a whole lotta fun.