The Tempest

The plot follows island castaway Prospero (a twinkly-eyed John Michalski) and his doting daughter Miranda (Hannah Kahn, who shines in both this role and occasionally that of Prospero’s servant spirit, Ariel). The rest of the play’s cast of characters range from absurdly comic to deeply melodramatic. Kevin Orton and Blake Habermann are hilarious enough as drunken fools Stephano and Trinculo to stop park wanderers in their tracks for a snicker at their antics, and Daniel Patrick Smith is also subtly giggle-inducing as a sexy and none-too-bright Prince Ferdinand. Even Brendan MacMahon, who plays island-native Caliban, a character with little emotional breadth from which to draw, manages to convey humor, anger, and sensitivity. For a production in which anything from inclement weather to unruly passersby can create havoc, the entire ensemble provides a sure-handedness and clarity that would be impressive in a Broadway house.

This self-assurance is thanks, at least in part, to Sean Hagerty’s organic directing, which manages to make even the marches from location to location feel natural. His most outside-the-box choice is for the character of Ariel to be played by three young women (occasionally four when Miranda enters a trance and joins the collective), rather than a single male actor. At times, this adaptation seems to serve a functional purpose, as when the three actresses make up for the lack of props and set by using a rope to create the outline of a sinking ship. But for the most part, this decision, while easy to look past, seems to lack a purpose.

The related choice to have Miranda periodically become one of the spirit Ariel’s many entities is harder to brush off as a logistical adjustment. Presumably, Hagerty is aiming to make a point — perhaps about Prospero’s control over his daughter or Miranda’s connection to the island, but it does serve to draw attention away from the show’s brilliant performances. Mostly though, to the show’s credit, the directorial influence is imperceptible.

Though this New York Classical Theatre panoramic production is less ambitious than some (one version of Henry V actually took its audience on a boat across the harbor to Governors Island), The Tempest is satisfying in its simplicity. Shakespeare’s words are crisp, his characters compelling, and his plot absorbing. This is one of those rare performances of the bard’s work that allows his genius to shine through.