"Twelfth Night" in a Resplendent Setting in Door County

I'm not exactly sure why Door Shakespeare, the theater company that performs in the woods in Wisconsin's Door County, chose the image at left to represent it. That Dance of Death, seen at the end of Ingmar Bergman's "Seventh Seal" is not a happy or cheerful image, as it shows the people Death (avec sickle) is leading away to the Great Beyond. Door Shakespeare's image cuts off Death at one end as well as the jester at the other end, showing just the other players who meet Death at the end of the film. Still...

I don't see how that relates to Door Shakespeare. Except for the Scandinavian connection. I mean, they colored that logo in Swedish colors, and they stage their shows in the midst of nature at Björklunden vid Sjön, a beautiful, sprawling estate on the shores of Lake Michigan which bears a distinctly Swedish name.

"Twelfth Night," which has its last performance at Door Shakespeare tonight, takes full advantage of the Björklunden setting; they even offered a "roaming" option to playgoers on the night I saw it. That means, if you wanted to, you could tramp down to the shore with other audience members, arriving just in time to see leading lady Viola (played by Kay Allman for Door Shakespeare) and a helpful ship's captain (Mark Moede) appear as if by magic from out of the misty twilight, with the wide blue expanse of Lake Michigan as a backdrop. The sea breeze ruffled Viola's hair and dress, seagulls keened overhead, and waves crashed behind the players.

For a play that begins with a shipwreck, that was one fine way to open.

This roaming experiment involved two other scenes, as well, including the one where Duke Orsino commands, "If music be the food of love, play on," which should come first, but here was second, performed in a handy meadow. Anyway, it was the seaside entrance that really made an impact. Their motto at Door Shakespeare is "Timeless performance in a resplendent setting," which describes that opening nicely.

Safely back in our seats (folding chairs set up in tiers opposite a simple dirt playing space bounded by tall trees), we saw Viola, now disguised as a boy named Cesario, volunteer her services to the melancholy Duke (played by Steven Marzolf), including acting as his intermediary with lovely Olivia, who isn't at all interested in Orsino, but finds herself falling for Viola/Cesario. Ooops!

The comic plot involves Olivia's drunken, irresponsible uncle, Sir Toby Belch, his silly friend Sir Andrew Aguecheek, and Maria, Olivia's servant, all of whom conspire against the fussbudget steward, one Malvolio, who doesn't appreciate their noisy shenanigans.

Throw in Sebastian, who happens to be Viola's twin, presumed-dead-but-not-so-dead brother, as well as a jester named Feste, hijinks involving a forged letter, yellow stockings and a poorly conceived duel, and almost everybody pining for someone he can't have, and you have "Twelfth Night."

Door Shakespeare and director Jerry Gomis don't mess with big props or set pieces, instead using the surroundings they've been given to frame the action. That includes Sir Toby and his pals eavesdropping from behind pine fronds, exits and entrances into the trees, and one pretty gate that Toby can't manage to unhook.

Gomis also played Malvolio at the performance I saw, and he was so good -- sort of a cross between Hollywood character actor Franklin Pangborn and Lucy's Gale Gordon with his rolled Rs and prissy demeanor -- it's hard to imagine the regular actor besting him.

Stephen Pearce was the youngest Toby Belch I've seen, and that undermined his performance a little, although it may just be that I don't really get into that part of the plot, anyway, since I'm really on Malvolio's side of that argument. (Drunken hooligans against the guy who runs a tight ship and is trying to get some sleep? Yeah, I'm with Malvolio every time.)

In that crowd, Barry Saltzman's Sir Andrew and his long blond hair looked funny enough (like Martin Short's Jackie Rogers Jr.) to make me laugh, anyway, and James Valcq, who is not only an actor but a composer (with "The Spitfire Grill," so recently performed at IWU, on his resume), tried gamely to elevate that tiresome clown Feste.

I also enjoyed Scot West's good-humored take on Sebastian, even if he was miles taller than Kay Allman and unlikely to be mistaken for her under any circumstances, and Leslie Ann Handelman's sparkling Olivia. I remembered Handelman from her performances at U of I in "Into the Woods" and "Intimate Apparel," and it's always nice to see Whatever Happened To.

This summer, Door Shakespeare chose "Twelfth Night" and an adaptation of "Pride and Prejudice" for their summer season. Given how well the outdoor setting worked for "Twelfth Night," I'm hoping they will continue the "roaming" option and pick "The Tempest" and "Into the Woods" next year. I don't know how they'd pull off a whole orchestra, but they definitely have the woods and a viable Cinderella in Leslie Ann Handelman.

TWELFTH NIGHT
by William Shakespeare

Door Shakespeare
www.doorshakespeare.com

Director: Jerry Gomis
Costume Designer: Barb Portinga
Lighting and Scenic Design: Stewart Dawson

Cast includes: Steven Marzolf, Tim Murray, Ryan Shaw, Kay Allmand, Mark Moede, Stephen Pearce, Debra Babich, Barry Saltzman, James Valcq, Leslie Ann Handelman, Jerry Gomis and Scot West.