The Bard's salad days make for savory fare

CORVALLIS - The great loves, losses and conflicts that shaped the early career of William Shakespeare form the backdrop for The University Theatre of Oregon State University's spring production, "Shakespeare's Journey."

Playwright Leroy Clark spent many years as a university theater professor and director as well as a playwright, and he has offered here a plausible glimpse into 12 defining years of Shakespeare's life.

The play, directed by Charlotte Headrick, begins in 1587, when the restless young man of about 23 (Shakespeare's exact birthdate is unknown) left his wife, Anne, and their three small children in Stratford-upon-Avon to seek his fortune as an actor in London. It details his possible rise to fame and fortune, concluding in 1599.

With his full shock of dark hair and finely drawn features, actor Bryan Bernart offers a credible likeness of the young Bard as he copes with conflicting loyalties and the seductive temptations that accompany fame and money.

As in the 1998 film, "Shakespeare in Love," the play offers up events in Shakespeare's life as the possible inspiration for some of his 38 plays, which have been in near-continuous production for more than 400 years.

For instance, a well-documented love affair that Shakespeare had with "The Dark Lady" may have inspired his "Romeo and Juliet." Was it because his mistress was forced into an arranged marriage that the young actor railed, "I am fortune's fool!"?

Did the tragic event he suffered in 1596 manifest itself as the guilt and grief that motivated his "Dark Prince" Hamlet in the tragic play he started writing in 1599?

"Shakespeare's Journey" persuasively makes the case for such tantalizing speculation without much ado. It unfolds on a stage variously set to evoke Shakespeare's family home in Stratford-upon-Avon, the backstage area of London's Globe theater, a garden, a tavern, a bedroom and even a bridge over a river.

The richly costumed production begins with Madrigal singers Marissa Addicott, Josh Randall, Katie Wolf and Zeke Pitney blending and alternating their voices in precise harmony, the music drawing the audience into Shakespeare's England. We see his wife, Anne (Maarika Teose), send him off with the less-than-encouraging words, "I won't be surprised if you are in jail ... or a vagabond."

"I shall redeem myself in those eyes," he promises her. He and theatrical partner Richard Burbage (Jeff Nichols) are kept busy coping with simmering artistic jealousies among their theater company's players, political opposition from a rising tide of Puritanism and a chronic lack of funds.

The fast-paced play parries clever wordplay, erupts into swordplay, and provides some hearty laughs and rhyming couplets along the way.

Laurie Mason as Margery, a Scottish tavern owner, steals a skillfully choreographed scene that might have been directed "And then, hijinks ensue ..."

Teose plays the role of neglected wife with poignancy and wit. We see her pain and resentment and finally her acceptance at loving a man who is more in love with his art than he is with her.

But is the play accurate? Did Shakespeare really care for Anne and for the stage in near-equal measure?

Historians differ, and Clark has read most of their accounts. He spent two years on research, pored through 80 books on the Bard and produced eight drafts of the play, which he began writing in 1996.

Director Headrick, who is a longtime friend of playwright Clark's, said during dress rehearsal Monday night that the audience can ask Clark himself about his artistic process: He is expected to attend the May 14 performance, where he will take questions from the audience during the intermission.

Title: OSU Theatre's 'Shakespeare's Journey' Date: May. 7th, 2009 Photographer Casey Campbell shares scenes from a rehearsal of Oregon State University's 'Shakespeare's Journey,' playing May 7-16. PLAY »

CHECK IT OUT

WHO: Oregon State University Theatre.

WHAT: "Shakespeare's Journey."

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. May 7- 9 and 14-16.

WHERE: Main stage, Withycombe Hall, 2901 S.W. Campus Way.

TICKETS: $12 general admission, $9 seniors, $7 students and youths, and $5 for OSU students.

INFO: 737-2853 or http://oregon

state.edu/dept/theatre.

CAST

Play by Leroy Clark

Directed by Charlotte Headrick

Bryan Bernart .......... William Shakespeare

Maarika Teose ............. Anne Shakespeare

Jeff Nichols .................... Richard Burbage

Nick Sheler.................... Will Kempe

Anastasia Bumbar.................... Dark Lady

John Ringle................. John Shakespeare

Judy Ringle .................Mary Shakespeare

Rowan Russell.......... Gilbert Shakespeare