“Pericles” Reviewed by Jeffrey Liebham

**** It has been 30 years since the Royal Shakespeare Company has performed in Chicago. Thanks to the new leadership at Chicago Shakespeare Theater, namely Artistic Director Edward Hall and Executive Director Kimberly Motes, that artistic drought has come to an end with the refreshingly entertaining RSC production of “Pericles.” Directed by Tamara Harvey, who is herself a newly appointed Co-Artistic Director of the RSC, this “Pericles” hones in on the immense burdens that are placed on anyone who may aspire to be a successful leader while also finding great humor and emotional honesty in the text of this lesser-known and rarely seen later work of William Shakespeare.

This being an RSC production, expect nothing less than incredible acting. Nearly all of the actors play multiple roles to decrease the size of the ensemble, which was done for travel purposes. This allows many of them to illustrate great range in their ability to play characters with divergent backgrounds. However, the titular role of Pericles, the Prince of Tyre, is the sole responsibility of Zach Wyatt, who plays the role brilliantly. Wyatt’s Pericles is both noble yet humble, very much concerned about the welfare of his people in Tyre, but also a humanitarian who delivers food supplies (corn) to those suffering from famine in the city of Tarsus. Being a bachelor, Pericles is in search of a wife. Having solved a potentially deadly riddle presented to him by the King of Antioch in exchange for the hand of that king’s daughter, Pericles flees in search of another locale in which to find his bride.

Other prominent members of the cast include Rachelle Diedericks, who initially serves as our narrator but magically morphs into Marina, the fifteen-year-old daughter of Pericles, in the second half of the play. Jacqueline Boatswain does double-duty as the high priestess Cerimon (in which she invokes the stylish grandeur of an ancient Nina Simone) as well as the much more spirited Bawd, the female owner of a brothel. Generating plenty of laughs are Miles Barrow and Felix Hayes as the two bumbling fishermen who discover Pericles washed upon the shores of Pentapolis after his ship was destroyed in a storm. But the greatest amount of mirth can be found in the performance of Christian Patterson as Simonides, the king of Pentapolis who will grant Pericles his daughter, Thaisa (Leah Haile), if he can beat four other lordly knights in a jousting contest. Patterson clearly relishes playing such a juicy role, and quite often breaks the fourth wall with clever asides, both verbally and with physical gestures or facial expressions, which are hilarious. Patterson is skilled enough, thankfully, that he has wonderous restraint and doesn’t allow his performance to become too extreme.

Set Designer Jonathan Fensom has fashioned a simple but ingenious nautical set, complete with a rigging system of over 20 ropes and numerous pulleys gracefully suspended above the playing area and three large wooden grates in the floor. Since much of the action of “Pericles” occurs on ships that travel to five different locations, it seems logical that the set should so closely resemble a seafaring vessel.

But the strongest design element of this production is the work of Lighting Designer Ryan Day. As you enter the Courtyard Theater, you immediately will notice how dimly lit the entire space is. Once the play begins, the lighting will gradually increase as the story unfolds and brighten as the action intensifies. Perhaps the most memorable moment occurs when Pericles and Thaisa consummate their marriage, as hundreds of small lights within the rigging system gently glow, as if under a canopy of stars, while Chyna-Rose Frederick as Lychorida (who is gifted with an incredibly gorgeous voice) serenades the newly joined lovers in a heartbreaking lullaby.

Let’s hope that it won’t be another 30 years before we get to see another stellar production from the RSC here in Chicago.
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“Pericles” continues until December 7, 2024
Performances are as follows:
Wednesdays at 1:00 and 7:00 PM
Thursdays and Fridays at 7:00 PM
Saturdays at 2:00 and 7:00 PM
Sundays at 2:00 PM
with select Tuesdays (October 29 and November 5) at 7:00 PM

Chicago Shakespeare Theater is located at 800 East Grand Avenue on Navy Pier, Chicago, IL 60611
Tickets: Please call 312-595-5600 or visit www.chicagoshakes.com
Running time is approximately 2 hours and 45 minutes with one intermission

Garage parking- bring your ticket to theater for validation.

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