The Lion in Winter at PTC

Last night I went to see The Lion in Winter, the current production at Pioneer Theater (I will review the final film in my winter break movie marathon tomorrow).  It is Christmas Eve 1183 and King Henry II of England (Esau Pritchett) has summoned his family to spend the holiday together.  This includes his sons Richard (William Connell), Geoffrey (Damian Jermaine Thompson), and John (Austin Reed Alleman) as well as his wife, Eleanor of Aquitaine (Celeste Ciulla), who has spent the past ten years as his prisoner for staging a rebellion against him.  Since King Philip of France (Grayson DeJesus) is pressuring him to wed his sister Alais (Maryam Abdi) to the heir to the throne, Henry uses this opportunity to decide the succession.  He advocates for John simply because he knows that Eleanor wants her favorite son, Richard, to be the next king.  This pits brother against brother as they scheme, manipulate, plot, and form and break alliances.  It is so much fun to watch.  But the real fireworks come in the scenes between Pritchett and Ciulla as they spar with each other.  Their performances are melodramatic and completely over the top but this is really effective because everything they say is a calculated performance for an audience of one.  They have great chemistry together and I found them to be riveting.  The princes are the ultimate pawns in their parents' battle with each other and, while they sometimes come across as caricatures of the oldest (Richard is the leader), middle (Geoffrey is ignored), and youngest (John is petulant) children in a family, they each have their moments of vulnerability. What I liked most about this production is that, while it is set during the 12th century, it still has a contemporary vibe to it with a message that modern audiences can relate to (when Eleanor says, "It's 1183 and we're still barbarians," it got a huge response from the crowd).  This modern aesthetic is reflected in the set and the costume design.  There are the traditional Gothic arches but they have LED lights on top which change colors during scene changes to reflect the mood.  The costumes have medieval silhouettes and include chain mail and cloaks lined with fur but they feature very modern fabrics and colors (John and Geoffrey even wear athletic shoes).  I really enjoyed this play and would recommend it (go here for tickets).

Note:  The Lion in Winter is one of the very first plays I saw at the Utah Shakespeare Festival when I was in college.  I was fascinated by Eleanor of Aquitaine, as a character and a historical figure, which prompted me to research her and watch the Academy Award winning movie starring Katharine Hepburn in the role.  Good stuff!