Titus Andronicus
Considered to be the earliest of his tragedies, Titus Andronicus follows a Roman general returning from war that is fighting a battle of revenges with Tamora, the Queen of the Goths. Simply the most violent and bloody of Shakespeare's plays, it boasts a body count of 14 named characters, 9 of them on stage, 6 counts of severed body parts, rape, cannibalism and ends with a live burial. The Reduced Shakespeare Company jokes this play was written during the Bard's "Quentin Tarantino phase". The visceral nature of the play lends itself perfectly to Hollywood's Theatre of NOTE, best known for such works as Darkness and F**king Wasps.
The production is directed by Thomas Craig Elliott, who is no stranger to Shakespeare or this play in particular, having played Demetrius (one of the two villainous sons of Tamora) in the Utah Shakespeare Festival Production. While having acted in many of the Bard's work, this is Elliott's first foray in directing his work. And it is spot on. From the understanding of the pitch of the piece, allowing the tension to mount and then finding the moments of humor built into the script to let it all go, to the modern stylized world he has created that services the play, Elliott's leadership can be seen in every aspect of the production.
And he had wonders to work with. NOTE's company of actors deliver on all fronts, the leader of this being Dan Mailley as Titus. Mailley brings the sense of regalness and war hero from the first moment he arrives on the scene and his fall from grace and pride is almost painful to watch. As he chooses Saturninus (played with an excellent detestability by Bard C. Light) as emperor over Bassianus (gloriously slick is Kiff Scholl), the audience's heart simply sinks as we see Mailley steadfast in his loyalty to Rome and the pains it is about to cause him and his family. The fained journey into madness and the perfection in which he plots revenge is captivating to watch.
Light as Saturninus is one of two other major stand-outs within the cast. His performance makes an already hated character so loathed you love to see him come back just to see if he is about to get what is due him. Never does he play for laughs, and yet has some of the funniest moments of the play and also some wonderful surprise that you have to see the show to get. Joshua Wolf Coleman as Aaron the Moor and Erin Fleming as Lavinia were the other major stand outs within this brilliant cast. Every moment Coleman is on stage, his work is a simple joy to behold and his constant plotting and tormenting of the other characters is so impishly played, there is a taste of Iago in his Aaron that you hate yourself for loving so much. And while Fleming may not have many lines within the play, her performance is perhaps the most gut wrenching and painful of all to watch. So raw and emotional potent is her performance she doesn't even need words to break our hearts.
Powerful, violent, funny and sick at some moments, this production of Titus Andronicus is everything you can hope for and more. Hours of entertainment right in the heart of Hollywood, make sure you do not miss it.
Titus Andronicus is now playing till March 13th. For more information visit www.theatreofnote.com or call 323.856.8611