Anchorage Daily News

OTHELLO, presented by Edgeware Productions and Cyrano's Theatre Company, will be performed at 7 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday and 3 p.m. Sunday until Feb. 24 at Cyrano's Off Center Playhouse, 413 D St. Tickets cost $17.50, $15 for students, seniors and military, and can be purchased at 263-2787 or www.centertix.net.

For an audience member, there are few things more excruciating than Shakespeare done poorly. Ask any 14-year-old whose English class read "Romeo and Juliet" aloud.

What a relief, then, that a new Alaska-set "Othello" feels so natural and unpretentious.

At the adaptation's premiere Friday at Cyrano's Off Center Playhouse, it was clear this ensemble dug deep. The actors understood what they were saying, and through expressions and gestures made sure "thees" and "thous" were delivered to the audience in an accessible manner.

These may sound like basic expectations, but taking on a lead role in Shakespeare is the acting equivalent of scaling Mount McKinley: After intense training and preparation, there's still a very good chance of failing spectacularly.

David Edgecombe has plucked "Othello" from Italy and set it down in the Aleutian Islands in the mid-19th century. Othello the Moor becomes an Aleut admiral in the Russian navy.

Edgecombe, who also directs, has slimmed the play down to about 2½ hours.

The tragedy flowed into its new setting like runoff trickling into a stream. Few script alterations were required to accommodate the new dynamic.

The costumes did much of the heavy lifting. Anne Freitag's versatility and skill amazes. Her Aleut wedding tunics, Russian red navy jackets and period gowns and suits were sophisticated and well-researched.

Margret Hugi-Lewis' set -- a geometric quilt alternating the colors of sunset and water -- is a dazzling work of art, yet the abstract deconstruction of the island landscape feels slightly out of place in what is otherwise a literal presentation.

Edgecombe and his cast should be lauded for making smart choices in character development.

For instance, Iago is often erroneously played as a sneering, creepy villain. But this cast understands that Iago must be a likable fellow and a gifted actor, otherwise he wouldn't be in the position to manipulate anyone. Paul Schweigert's Iago is charming and gregarious in the presence of the other characters. His asides to the audience, however, are jaundiced and venomous. Schweigert understands each of Iago's two faces.

As Othello, Allan Hayton seemed a little stiff out of the gate, but once he was able to surrender to the character, he gracefully let Othello's tensions ebb and flow, building to a soaring and murderous crescendo.

Not every Othello goes as far as Hayton does in his physical abuse of Desdemona, but when he smacks her with a rolled-up paper or yanks her to her knees, he brings home the awful reality of domestic and sexual abuse, something Alaskans are all too familiar with.

Hayton's approach also helps us understand Desdemona better; as an abused wife, it makes sense she wouldn't run away when he threatens to kill her.

Tamara Rothman Miller's Desdemona is appropriately sweet, innocent and in denial. As her serving lady Emilia, Elizabeth Ware has imagined a complex and fascinating woman. Her Emilia is refreshingly brave as the only character who truly regrets and tries to make amends for her mistakes.

There are niggling problems. One character has an accent, and the rest don't. Schweigert's booming voice sometimes is uncomfortably loud in the intimate space.

Several supporting actors rushed lines and took big breaths in awkward places. But that's nothing a two-week run can't fix.

Though the audience knows a bloodbath is imminent, this ensemble makes these classic characters so relatable there are moments when it seems like maybe this time Othello will uncover Iago's deceptions before it's too late.

But mankind can't learn lessons that way, eh Shakespeare?

Find Sarah Henning online at adn.com/contact/shenning or call 257-4323.

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