Tonight I saw another Shakespeare classic at the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, King Lear. This was a heavy sad play that was very well acted. The one twist was they had a woman playing King Lear (but as a male, not female). The bad guys were extremely bad. I had forgotten how awful the two daughters Goneril and Regan were, but these two were well played to the hilt. The double dealing servants were very smarmy.
Overall the production was very effective. The actress playing Lear played the mental and physical deterioration affecting him, and her grief in the final scene when Cordelia is reveled as dead was powerful. The role of Lear is always tricky for me. They have to represent a long serving successful and powerful king who gives up his power in old age. The issue I had with this actor was that while I could see the deterioration played well, I never really saw her as the once powerful and formidable king. But that’s a minor picking point. All in all an enjoyable play and a nice night out for theater.
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