Othello
Written by Brendan P Frye
Friday, 29 June 2007 05:24
Othello was considered to be one of Shakespeare’s most popular plays during the time of his career. Othello was based upon a novel by Italian author Giovanni Battista Giraldi who wrote under the nom de plume Cynthius. The storyline is that of Desdemona, a prominent senator’s daughter. Othello is a great army general, falling in love with Desdemona they secretly elope when their actions come to the attention of the lady’s father, the senator. Othello and his wife travel to Cyprus where Othello must confront an advancing Turkish fleet. Iago, an officer of the general’s is in mental torment and complete opposition to the promoting of another officer Cassio. A plot of deception is formed and carried out by Iago to dismantle the trust between Othello and Desdemona. Right from the opening act all audience members were captivated by the sincerity of the portrayals.
The opening act began. The crowd had been carefully taken away from every worry of life with the commanding presence of dialogue delivery in the opening act. I was immediately captivated by the expertly skilled performance of Jonathan Goad playing the mischievous Iago, the secret source of the torment of Othello. From the beginning his presence was known as he delivered his lines as if he were the character himself. Philip Akin as Othello began his role hesitantly. As the play gathered momentum his depiction of the maddening Othello was delivered brilliantly. Jonathan Goad and Philip Aiken put forth one of the greatest performances I have seen this year. Assisting each other onstage, maneuvering in the realm of artful words and expressions the duo captivated me and the entire audience with a presence that should have been placed upon the main stage at the theatre this season.
The only unfortunate issue that arose was that the play didn’t go on. I almost wished that it had a sequel, in this modern day of big screen follow-ups and trilogies. The effects were expertly executed, lightly administered, not taking away from the importance of focus to be placed upon the actors. Claire Jullien as Desdemona was in a class of her own. A performance that could have been singled out as a star among many was part of a complete successful team effort.
Successfully, every department did its job. I was impressed with athleticism of the actors. They ran upon the stage with purpose, swinging and climbing the ladders on the set with ease in low level lighting. The Stratford Festival Theatre of Canada’s rendition of Othello in 2007 overall was a well executed performance of the masterpiece penned by Willaim Shakespeare.
 | Othello |
CAST | |
Othello | Philip Akin |
Gratiano | Jerry Franken |
Iago | Jonathan Goad |
Lodovico | Brain Hamman |
Desdemona | Claire Jullien |
Duke of Venice | Jorn Koensgen |
Roderigo | Gordon S. Miller |
Emilia | Lucy Peacock |
Montano | Brad Rudy |
Brabantio | Stephen Russell |
Bianca | Tova Smith |
Cassio | Jeffrey Wetsch |
ARTISTIC CREDITS CONT.  | |
Assistant Directors | Melissa Haller |
| Keira Loughran | |
Stage Manager | Julie Miles |
Assistant Stage Managers | Martine Beland |
| Ann Stuart | |
Apprentice Stage Manager | David Rundle |
Production Assistant | Katherine Chin |
Production Stage Manager | Julie Miles |
| |
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