The Tempest
What the Critics Said:
“
The Marin Shakespeare Company
has taken on the challenge of performing the play
with their usual enthusiastic no-holds-barred production
style….audiences will be treated to such dramatic
surprises as Ariel, the spirit who makes her ethereal
introduction by floating 200 feet above the stage;
Caliban, the island native who roams the stage played
by 6-foot, 3-inch, 230-pound ex-professional football
player Len Pettigrew; and an ensemble of colorfully
costumed dancers whose movements are choreographed
to modern jazz dance style with African folk dance
inflections. Although the company is young, it is
already considered on a par with the stately Shakespeare
festivals in Santa Cruz, Orinda and San Francisco.”
_John Papageorge, Marin Independent Journal
“Once again the Marin Shakespeare Company has turned
the stage and natural setting of Forest Meadows into
a magical land full of marvel and illusion….The stage
itself has become a rocky headland of grassy crevices,
pinnacles and caves surrounded by the water-filled
inlets of a great ocean. Borrowed to good effect is
the rest of Forest Meadows, providing the dusky, star-filled
sky, the cool breezes, the eucalyptus trees and the
evening’s creatures….Entertaining and often amusing,
it is also full of music and dance; choreography (Gael
Thompson), original music (Bruce Gehrke, Dana Mandell),
and live drumming (Dan Gorlin) add an enticing dimension….the
play is very accessible to young and old alike.”Roberta
Floden, Marin Independent Journal
“A magical Tempest. It’s hard to imagine that there
could be a setting more magical for Shakespeare's The Tempest than Forest Meadows at Dominican
College. It is even harder to imagine a finer set
than that created for the Marin Shakespeare Company….Or
a more creative use of that set. This is an exquisite
Tempest, one set apart by its richness of color and
choreography, and its original musical score and live
drumming.” Novato Advance
“Director
Robert Currier’s The Tempest, produced by
the Marin Shakespeare Company at Dominican College,
is fresh and vigorous in large part because of his
political alertness and psychological insights….In
this lavish production (a towering velvet-textured
tropical mountain, gaudy and imaginatively ethnic
costumes, drummers, dancers, gorgeously extravagant
sound effects, and a high wire along which Ariel arrives),
a new age does seem primed to dawn….Caliban is invested
with an extremely sympathetic, rational point of view
by the actor and former star athlete Len Pettigrew…Cynthia
Ruffin gives Ariel, too, another point of view, and
it is amusing to watch her assessment of character
and situation, reacting with an elegant arching of
an eyebrow or twitch of the corner of the mouth, obviously
possessing an intelligence and perspective far advanced
from those she observes….Another good touch is the
interpretation of Prospero, as played with a great
deal of intelligence and relish by Howard Swain….a
cohesive and startling production.” Julia Hawkin, The Gazette
“A lively production of Shakespeare’s The Tempest by the Marin Shakespeare Company
offers great summer entertainment….The set…is a work
of art.” Bess Davoren, Tiburon Ark
“Marin Shakespeare Company’s The Tempest at Forest Meadows on Saturday night provided some
wonderfully magical experiences.”
Doreen Burgin, Commuter Times
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