No lady is this Richard III

Robert Hurwitt

 

 POLITE APPLAUSE

Richard III: Tragedy. By William Shakespeare. Directed by Susannah Martin. (Woman’s Will, in Bay Area parks through Aug. 14. Two hours, 40 minutes. Free. Call (510) 420-0813 or visit www.womanswill.org).
 

There's little set to speak of, the stagings and performances are iffy and it's almost impossible to picture the attractive Emily Jordan as Shakespeare's loathsomely ill-favored Richard, Duke of Gloucester, however hard she grimaces. Yet, somehow, none of that matters all that much. The further Woman's Will works its way into "Richard III," the more effective Jordan and director Susannah Martin's production becomes.

The casual park atmosphere helps. Woman's Will performs its free, all- female offerings in Bay Area parks each summer (complete schedule at www.womanswill.org). As seen at Berkeley's pleasant John Hinkel Park, Ron Reisner's simple set of a few emblematic curtains and Rebecca Redmond's modern- to-medieval costumes almost dictate a complete focus on the acting and Shakespeare's words.

Martin's stagings range from effective to clumsy, and too often her subsidiary players seem unaffected by the main action. But her straightforward approach to the text pays off. If the acting is uneven, Martin gets solid readings from some key players -- Erin Merritt's too-secure Lord Hastings and remorseful Tyrell, recounting the deaths of the princes in the Tower; Jessica Kitchens' comically conscience-stricken murderer (though her Catesby is over-the-top); an impressive Karen Aldridge, evoking pity and terror in the always problematic role of the haggard ex-queen Margaret.

It's Jordan's Richard, though, that really makes Shakespeare's study in power-mad villainy work. Sidling, scampering and gliding across the stage, jesting, cajoling, dissembling and tyrannizing, she creates a clear picture of Richard's bloody rise and fall. There are aspects of the character she hasn't fully explored, but she captures the essential combination of ambition, cruelty and unsettling charm as Richard takes us into his confidence. She makes us feel the complicity of bystanders who do and say nothing while our government runs amok.