“As You Like It”

Highly Recommended ***** If you are a “purist” when it comes to Shakespeare and his works, stop reading right now! This review is about something very special that is bringing live theater back to Chicago Shakespeare Theater on Navy Pier. In my opinion ( and in fact many other opening night audience members) this is a marvelous way to bring Shakespeare to people who do not enjoy ( or understand) the works of the master. What they have done to “As You Like It” is blend in music of the Beatles to help tell the story. This version was conceived by Daryl Cloran and The Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival.

They have interspersed  20 Beatles songs to bring this story to  life. They have also brought us to a different time period in history ( the 60’s) where love can triumph over all. The story  is about brother versus brother. One brother, Orlando ( Liam Quealy is perfect). In order to not be killed or betrayed,  leaves in search of freedom from threat. would prefer to stay with the love of his life, Rosiland ( played to perfection by Lakeisha Renee).  As it turns out, she decides to seek him out, and to do so, dresses and pretends to be  a man. She travels with her cousin Celia ( a delightful Melanie Brezill) who later finds love in all the wrong places as well.

Rosiland, as a man, attracts attention from  Phoebe ( Heidi Kettenring, as usual is a delight) who is loved by Silvius ( Michael Dashefsky has the nerd down to a science), and is unaware that the man she loves, is in fact, not a man at all.

As many of his comic plots involve mistaken identities, “As You Like It” follows suit.

It is often hard to follow, but adding the Beatles “song book” makes the story move better and probably a better experience for those who are not “into” Shakespeare. They can get it!

The play is long ( some 2 hours and 45 minutes) with one intermission, but with the 20 songs, time almost stands still.

FYI- The play begins 15 minutes before the play begins with a wrestling match ( pre-show) where we get to meet some characters and get a bit of the sub-plot. These 15 minutes are worth coming early and settling in for.

Directed by Daryl Cloran on a set designed by Pam Johnson, CST has assembled a dynamite cast to tell this story. Adam Wesley Brown ( in several roles), Tony Carter. Austin Eckert ( who is our pre-show champion wrestler and later handles musical roles),  Lachrisa Grandberry,  the always reliable Kevin Gudahl in two major roles, Deborah Hay, who has two characters that steal every scene she is in ( what a talent), Kayvon Khoshkam, Kieran McCabe, Steven Pringle, Kurt Schweitz and Nancy Voigts. They are all terrific in bringing this epic story to the stage at Navy Pier.

The actors are also in many cases the musicians as they bring us music that everyone seems to know like “Here Comes The Sun”, “All You Need Is Love”, “I Want To Hold Your Hand”, “Eight Days a Week”, “When I’m Sixty-Four”, “Do You Want To Know A Secret” and many many more. Each song is interjected in exactly the perfect spot in order to keep the story flowing with meaning. Again, if you are a Shakespeare “purist”, you will not agree, but if you never loved this play, you will now understand it. And perhaps love what the story unfolds. At the end, “All’s Well That Ends Well” because “All You Need is Love”!

On the tech side, hats off to Carmen Alatorre (costumes), Gerald King ( lighting), Ben Elliott ( music supervision) Owen Hutchinson and Peter McBoyle (sound) and Jonathan Hawley Purvis ( choreography and Fight sequences). Larry Yando ( a fixture at CST) handled the coaching on verse ( we all know that Shakespeare is hard to handle and he is one of the best).

“As You Like It” will continue thru November  21st with performances as follows:

Wednesdays  1 p.m. ( on November 10th a 7:30 p.m. performance as well)

Thursdays  7:30 p.m.

Fridays  7:30 p.m.

Saturdays   3 p.m. and 8 p.m.

Sundays  2 p.m.

Tickets range from $49 and are available at the box office by calling 312-595-5600 or online at www.chicagoshakes.com

SPECIAL PERFORMACES

Open Captioned – November 10th both shows

ASL Duo-Interpreted  Friday . November 19th at 7:30 p.m.

Audio Described, Sunday, November 21st at 2 p.m.

Navy Pier offers discounted parking. Bring your receipt to theater to validate.

To see what others are saying, visit www.theatreinchicago.com, go to Review Round-Up and click at “As You Like It”.