‘The Winter’s Tale’ at The Players’ Ring

“The Winter’s Tale,” which completes the end of the 2007-08 season at The Players’ Ring, is one of Shakespeare’s lesser known works. It’s hard to say why, since the combination of a first-act tragedy and second-act comedy makes for some interesting tale-telling.

In a fit of unfounded paranoia, Leontes (C. Emerson Kelley), king of Sicilia, misinterprets the graciousness his heavily pregnant queen, Hermione (Liz Krane), extends toward his friend Polixenes (Kenneth Butler), king of Bohemia. This misinterpretation embeds itself so deeply that Leontes becomes convinced that Polixenes is the father of his wife’s unborn child.

When his jealousy explodes, Leontes throws his queen in jail and instructs his servant Camillo (Matt Frazier) to kill Polixenes. Unable to perform this unfair task, Camillo turns to Polixenes for counsel. Polixenes, who has loved Leontes like a brother, departs for his home immediately.

Just before her trial, Hermione gives birth. Still convinced that the child is the offspring of Polixenes, Leontes orders the child to be put to death. This order convinces the court that the king has gone too far. Antigonius (Alan Huisman) and his wife Paulina (the gutsy and gorgeous Nicola Imbracsio), decide to simply hide the child far away (and Antigonius meets a gristly death for his efforts).

Before Leontes can order the queen to be executed, he awaits the word of the oracle. What the oracle tells him about the people he has accused and his own actions changes the course of the play dramatically, but it’s too late for many of the people these very actions have offended.

Act Two, wherein the comedy lies, shows how life can sort things out. Of course, nothing is quite as it was before.

We meet the shepherd (Bruce Allen) and his son (Robin Fowler, who gives comedy a delicious new name), who find and raise the baby, naming her Perdita (Chelsea Herman). With the child, they find a small chest of gold, the papers from the trial and the oracle’s proclamation. The shepherd decides to keep these, thinking they might come in handy some day. Perdita and Polixenes’ son later fall in love, but a prince obviously can’t marry a shepherd’s daughter.
As Shakespeare intended, comedy ensues.

Sarah Bailey did a wonderful and inventive job of directing, but did not quite surmount the challenges of the room, which every director faces. The stage is literally thrust into the audience, thereby creating three sections of viewers—one in front and one on each side. So many directors hone their attention only on the center audience, and the performance I attended was no different. People seated on the sides missed much of the powerful action because other actors blocked their view (or bright lights were shining directly into their eyes).

This also held true when the actors came out at the end. It’s traditional to bow to all three sections of the theater, unless the actors are standing at the very back of the stage and can be seen equally by each section. Last night, the cast went to the front of the stage and bowed to the center section, ignoring the other two. From the rumblings of the audience members, it did not go unnoticed. They had paid just as much for their tickets as those sitting in the center.

Having said that, Bailey did a remarkable job of collecting a large ensemble cast with many fresh new faces. She chose actors who showed their power in a variety of ways—Leontes with force and bluster, Polixenes with quiet dignity. It’s impossible to name everyone, but it’s easy to say that three women—Liz Krane, Nicola Imbracsio and Tana Sirois—make this a truly entertaining show. As the queen, Krane shows no less dignity in rags than she does in silk, and during her speech in court, her growing passion is tinged with hues of pain and fury. She will not fall to her knees and plead for mercy for a crime she didn’t commit.

As Paulina, Imbracsio, with her golden tongue, dares speak to the king words which his own counsel cannot. Sirois (as Autolycus, former servant to the prince of Bohemia), most known for her daring and dramatic roles, is finally given a comedic role of huge proportion. She proves herself up to the task at every turn, whether pretending to be a damsel in distress or a drunkard furious at her recent dismissal. No matter what her situation, her charisma and street smarts bring her out on top. 
The simple yet versatile set by C. Emerson Kelly serves the story well, making scene changes short and smooth. Barbara Newton’s costuming, equally simple and elegant, sets the ancient Roman mood tremendously.

“The Winter’s Tale” will run at The Players’ Ring, 105 Marcy St., Portsmouth, 603-436-8123, through June 22, with shows at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, 7 p.m. on Sundays.