 "Photo: Courtesy American Shakespeare Center")
Absurdity reigned at the University of Massachusetts Rand Theater Sunday night. The American Shakespeare Center performed Tom Stoppard's "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" with an artful blend of humor and desperation.
Walking into the theater, one was met by actors throwing programs into the balcony in exchange for a dollar, while a hodgepodge of performers in black played guitars and accordions on stage, singing the Beatles' "Carry That Weight."
The ASC kicked off the humor before the performance even started. Brandi Rhome and Dennis Henry, who play Ophelia and Polonius respectively, explained the troupe's traditional staging techniques with a heightened comedic effect.
Henry, deciding to explain in the role of long-winded Polonius, unfurled a long scroll to read from.
The two bantered and joked as they went through the list. They detailed the troupe's gender bending, their casting of the same actor in multiple parts, and that they, as Rhome suggestively put it, "do it with the lights on!"
Although most people know the general story of "Hamlet," "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" would be difficult to understand if one were only vaguely familiar with it.
However, the ASC's Stark Raving Sane troupe kindly performed a song-telling story of "Hamlet" just before the performance began.
"Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" is a comical play - with its puns and word games - but there is also a dark undercurrent to it.
The question of "what it all means" plagues Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, and that nothing and no one is reliable.
In order to keep the play lighthearted, director Jim Warren let the wordplay do its job but also hammed up the delivery.
Rosencrantz, played by Rick Blunt, does a Michael Jackson-esque dance when he wins yet another coin after it comes up heads; Hamlet, played by Luke Eddy, moonwalks onto the stage; and the players do a take on the "pound-it" during their initial interaction with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern.
The players get increasingly rowdy and explicit throughout the show, with lots of sexual jokes and pantomimes.
Alfred (Josh Carpenter) added an extra dose of comic relief as the player who is always forced to play the woman who gets ravished. His blond wig and shirt, tied up to reveal his stomach, enhanced the amusement.
The clever choice of props also added to the humor, as Hamlet lay on a "Dora the Explorer" towel and wore a multi-colored sunhat and sunglasses.
Even the traditional staging conditions had a hand in the performance's comedy.
In one scene, Guildenstern asks if Rosencrantz sees anything. Rosencrantz, after taking a long, hard look into the crowd, merely says, "No," which was particularly humorous because the ASC "does it with the lights on."
The constant word games that are played require sharp attention from the audience. For the most part, the Stark Raving Sane troupe kept the pace quick without losing the audience. Though, there were a few areas that could have benefitted from slowing down the pace.
When Rosencrantz and Guildenstern finally got the chance to question Hamlet, the action moved so quickly that even one who knew the story of "Hamlet" was left a bit disoriented.
Yet even with this minor difficulty and the more lowbrow humor courtesy of the ASC, the Stark Raving Sane troupe's performance put on an extremely professional performance. It was clear that Warren had directed this play before because everything ran smoothly.
With actors chosen after scouring the entire country, it is no surprise that the performers were able to flawlessly capture their characters.
Ginna Hoben as Guildenstern was brilliant. Her mixture of uncertainty, distress and joyfulness worked well, as did Rick Blunt's curious questioning as Rosencrantz. The back-and-forth between the two felt natural and genial and their pairing truly made the performance.
Daniel Kennedy as the Lead Player was excellent, as his glee, outrage and solemnity all came across as genuine. The interactions between the Lead Player, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern were artfully acted by all three.
The ASC's performance of "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead" was of high caliber, in addition to being well acted and directed.
Warren's directing successfully blended the serious aspect of the show with humor, allowing the comic to take its rightful place at center stage.
Michelle Fredette can be reached at mfredett@student.umass.edu.
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