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It's hard to begrudge Hollywood stars the opportunity to try Shakespeare in the Park, even though it's usually the audience who suffers. But happily, Anne Hathaway shows the audience a delightful time in this summer's “Twelfth Night”. She's confident, she understands what she's saying, she has a lovely (if simple) singing voice, and she's game for whatever Shakespeare and director Daniel Sullivan throw her way. OK, she prefers clarity of intention over subtlety of emotion, but it never looks like she's phoning it in.
As always, this summer institution feels as indulgent as a Mr. Softee chocolate-dipped ice cream cone. Nothing beats a relaxing evening at the enormous Delacorte Theater (1,900 seats and not a bad one in the house) as you listen to the crickets chirp a beat for the Bard's blank verse. The sylvan settings of comedies like “Twelfth Night” only enhance the innate beauty of the park. Even the threat of rain—which is constant this summer, though they've only cancelled one show!—somehow adds to the experience.
It also helps that “Twelfth Night” is one of Shakespeare's most pleasant comedies: girl dresses as a boy, creating a knot of sexual and romantic confusions (Hathaway, with dashing short hair, plays the “boy” with silly grunts that sound more like a muppet than a man). A subplot involves a team of drunken idiots who play tricks on each other and on a local tightass. Once you get past the first half hour, which indulges way too heavily in Renaissance puns, “Twelfth Night” is simply one of the best plays ever.
Hathaway is gamely partnered with some of New York's best dramatics, including a superbly lusty Audra McDonald and Raul Esparza, whose curly wig comes straight from a 1970s discotheque. But the best job comes from Hamish Linklater, who plays a damp squib of a man and who nails a fun bit of cowardly swordplay with Hathaway. Director Sullivan fills the show with amusements, though he could goose the pace up a bit. He also explores the musical beauty of this show, which famously begins with “If music be the food of love, play on!”
This Central Park “Twelfth Night” is as attractive as its starlet. The rolling hills of its set, like a golf course in Narnia, sets the playful mood. The evening's reigning spirit, David Pittu as a cunning fool, sings mellifluously about the hazards of love, which adds an undertone of melancholy depth and assures us that there's more at stake than a simple good time. It ends, as these plays always do, with the lovers matched correctly and the snobs duly punished. Everyone enjoys the final dance, most obviously Hathaway: She looks like she's fallen in love, not with a man but with the stage. Hopefully, her grin means she'll do more theater in the future.
“Twelfth Night” plays at the Delacorte Theater (located in Central Park at 81st Street) on Tuesdays through Sundays at 8 pm. For tickets, wait in line at the Delacorte Theater or register at vline.publictheater.org. Arrive early!
Photo by Joan Marcus
What other people are saying...
saraht - June 30, 2009 at 11:14 AM
I really want to see this. Say what you will about Anne Hathaway but she is one of the few Hollywood actresses that successfully can straddle the l...
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