by Michael Buzzelli
Rewriting Shakespearean heroines to give them a new ending is becoming a motif. First, “& Juliet,” the frothy Broadway musical, and now Caridad Svich’s “12 Ophelia’s (a play with broken songs,” which is (kinda, sorta) a musical.
Let’s brush up our Shakespeare (with a 400+ years spoiler alert). By the end of “Hamlet,” everyone is dead: the king, the queen, the evil uncle, Hamlet, Ophelia, Rosencrantz, and Guildenstern. Everyone but Horatio.
In “12 Ophelia’s (a play with broken songs),” Ophelia (Madyson Hearsh) comes up from the water, strangely dry and alive after drowning herself in the middle of “Hamlet.”
Note: Her death is Act 3, Scene 1 of the original work.
Ophelia encounters literal and figurative ghosts from her past, including Queen Gertrude (Lulu James), Rosencrantz, going by R (Gabriel Hammesahr), and Guildenstern, going by G (Samm Gibson), and Hamlet, who Ophelia has dubbed, Rude Boy (Leandro Bilello).
The original works only survivor, Horatio, simply known as H (Dermot Hannon), shows up, too, courting a woman named Mina (Susie Iannitelli).
There’s also a chorus of Ophelias, who would be best described as water nymphs. Cast members in flowing rags that drape their frames.
The cast of characters speaks in Shakespearean Light (a frappe of Elizabethan English with words from modern vernacular mixed in).
Svich expands on a quote from the Danish prince’s story; “Young men will do’t if they come to’t, By Cock they are to blame.” Truer words…and all that.
Unlike “& Juliet” all’s well doesn’t always end well.
Bilello is a dynamic Danish prince. He struts with gravitas, owning the stage. To be (or not to be) Hamlet one must have equal parts confidence and confusion, and Bilello portrays both aspects of the Rude Boy.
Hearsh, who looked like she stepped out of Sir John Everett Millais’s painting (pictured above), dried herself off and went about her new business. She does a magnificent job in the title role.
R & G prop the play up with exposition, bits of the original work, and much added humor. Hammesfahr and Gibson are delightful. They added a camp value to the production, winking and mugging. They are scene stealers.
James’s Gertrude is commanding, regal.
The orchestra, consisting of Marshall Benton, Aryan Cheruvattath, Illijana Husak, Theo Kutsko and Colin Villacorte are, playing wonderful music , mostly in short clips (hence the ‘broken songs’ portion of the show). Their curtain call music was exhilarating, joyful.
Tonya Lynn’s fight and intimacy coordination is a highlight of the play. The fight between Rude Boy and H seems brutal, savage and genuine. It was such a good fight scene, that my seat mate, Lonnie the Theatre Lady, had to cover her eyes. Also, the passionate kisses between Ophelia and Rude Boy were swoon-worthy.
There’s some beautiful movement choreographed by slowdanger, especially amongst the fluid chorus of Ophelias.
Claudia Brownlee’s costume design was near brilliant, adding to Hearsh’s resemblance to the masterpiece by Millais.
There are a few criticisms of this fine production. It’s not easy to understand what Svich is trying to say. The play is more poetry than prose. It lacks structure. It’s not simply a “This is the story of A who wants B, but finds C along the way.” Like a mighty river, you have to go with the flow and not be drown by logical questions like: “Where are they?” “Are they dead?” and “What do they want?”
The second problem compounded the first. At times, the characters were hard to hear in the back row of the theatre space. The problem could have been easily solved with tiny lav mics, which the cast of “Jerry’s Girls” had in the same venue.
If you’re going, sit in the front row, away from the birch tree which obscures a corner of the show.
Despite these minor flaws, “12 Ophelias (a play with broken songs)” boasts the best fight choreography on any stage in Pittsburgh. The play runs 90 minutes with no intermission.
-MB
“12 Ophelias (a play with broken songs)” runs March 26 to 30 at the Highmark Theatre, inside the Pittsburgh Playhouse, 350 Forbes Avenue.
Pittsburgh, PA 15222. For tickets and additional information, click here.
