RICHARD III
at the Second Unitarian Church
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This, the fourth of Footsteps’ unigender productions (which is also being performed at the Cultural Center on April 22 and 24 as part of “The Lancaster Cycle”) puts psychology before biology: the all-female cast make no attempt to reproduce the physical traits of their characters–Richard’s deformities are limited to an almost unnoticeable limp. In this way they’re freed to consider the meaning of Shakespeare’s narrative without the distractions of a mundane universe. Under this interpretation, Richard’s envy and disapproval of his brothers are what spur him on to deadly mischief–for in a world as riddled with violence and upheaval as England during the Wars of the Roses, bloody deeds may be motivated by minor-league malevolence. But even before the ghosts of his victims visit him to prophesy his death, this Richard has his moments of misgiving and regret–as in the rarely performed act four scene (included here) in which his own mother renounces him. Full of himself he may be, but what man could take a curse like this lightly?
Footsteps Theatre has made all-female Shakespeare seem so easy that several other companies have experimented with cross-gender casting. But their efforts mostly serve to demonstrate how difficult pulling it off actually is. The latest of these is Bugeater Theatre’s Twelfth Night: not only are all the roles played by women, but all 14 of them are played by 6 women.
