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‘Slings & Arrows’ S2: Is this a great show I see before me?
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The ghost & Mr. Tennant
The second season of the modern Canadian dramedy “Slings and Arrows” is a wonderful continuation of the first season of this wonderful show about which I wrote earlier this week. That season focused on the Shakespeare festival at which the show is based producing “Hamlet.” The second season ambitiously simultaneously follows the stagings of “Macbeth,” “Romeo and Juliet,” and a premiere of a work by a modern Canadian playwright who directs it.
“Macbeth,” which is a cursed play that is often referred to as “the Scottish tragedy,” is the primary focus of the season. Once again, artistic director Geoffrey is tormented by the ghost of his predecessor and by living actors who challenge his decisions and press him for answers that require additional consideration. A comically portrayed serious accident that supports the theory of the curse is added for good measure. In other words, another day at the office for Geoffrey and the company.
Once again, much of the comedy comes from the quirky and ego-centric performers and directors interacting with each other and with “normal” people. Scenes between the company diva, played by Canadian Shakespearean actress and real-life wife of co-star Paul Gross Martha Burns, and the government official who is auditing her taxes are excellent examples of this.
Burns makes an excellent Lady Macbeth and, like a true diva, has not made her age public.
Fans of theater of the absurd will especially enjoy the segments involving avant-garde director poser Darren Nichols preparing his production of “Romeo and Juliet.” No one would want to be “like they are” when he has the actress who is playing Juliet play Romeo and his male Romeo playing Juliet or when he places them in portable cages on a chessboard-like set and has the rest of the cast wearing chess pieces for hats. This hilarious production would be more aptly called “Hello, Dali.”
This season also deals with the problem that many Shakespeare companies face of attracting the “American Idol” generation to replace its aging audience base. The approach includes an advertising campaign that includes a billboard that shows an elderly ticket holder lying in a hospital bed.
This series of reviews of this exceptional show will wrap up next week with a discussion of its third and final season. This one revolves around “King Lear,” which I consider to be one of Shakespeare’s best. Many of us can relate to the themes regarding parents and siblings that this play presents.
Please feel free to share your thoughts about this show as additions to this entry or as e-mail to tvddvdguy@gmail.com. I need to go wash this stuff that just will not come off my hands. It is rather maddening.
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