UKIAH — Stilt-walkers, clowns, jugglers and aerialists are encamped in the Mendocino College Center Theatre. But forsooth, these clowns are speaking in poetry. The circus has indeed come to town in the form of director Reid Edelman”s zany version of Shakespeare”s play “The Comedy of Errors,” running for two weekends only, March 26 to April 3, at Mendocino College.
Based on an ancient Roman comedy by Plautus, Shakespeare”s madcap farce involves two sets of identical twins separated during a shipwreck as babies. One pair, both conveniently named Antipholus, are provided with two servants, both confusingly named Dromio. Following the shipwreck, one Dromio and one Antipholus find their way to the town of Ephesus where they settle. When, years later, the other Antipholus and his Dromio leave their home of Syracuse to go in search of their long lost brothers, a sequence of mistaken identities ensues.
In Edelman”s production, Syracuse and Ephesus are both circus towns. The Dromios are clowns and the Antipholuses are lion tamers. The plot is further complicated by a long running feud between Syracuse and Ephesus and a harsh law requiring that any citizens of Syracuse arrested in Ephesus shall meet their death.
At the start of the play, the father of the Antipholus twins, Egeon (played by Geoff Graham), arrives in Ephesus seeking his lost children and is sentenced to die by the Duke (played by Maria A. Monti). Meanwhile, the Dromio twins (played by Jake Stoepler and Will Schlosser) and the Antopholus twins (played by Aaron Schimmel and David Strock) are mistaken for their counterparts and wreak havoc in Ephesus, engaging in comic high jinks involving Adriana (the wife of Antipholus of Ephesus, played by Brittani Ray), her sister Luciana (played by Kristy Tucker), a courtesan (played by Joni McLeod), a goldsmith (played by Maxx Jennings), an abbess (played by Jolie Lamour) and several merchants (played by Aaron Rosen, Jimmy Layne and Ryan Eldredge).
The resulting commedia del arte-inspired physical comedy includes a puppet sequence, magic tricks, jugglers, aerialists and other circus performers. The production is a collaboration with the Mendocino Center for Circus Arts (Circus MeCCA) and features the talents of Circus MeCCA guest artists Amanda Grace, Holly Newstead, Kameko and their students. The talented ensemble also includes Marji Artlip, Toni Ashford, Crispin Cain, Maria Frei, Will Knox, Gemiah Kurzfeld, Alyra Slocum, Joseph Sorensen and Sage Sorensen.
“The Comedy of Errors” will feature circus costumes designed by resident designer and college instructor Kathy Dingman-Katz, puppets designed by student Maxx Kurzunski, elaborate make-up designed by Amanda Katz and James Milligan, a sound design by David Wolf, and scenery and lighting by Larry L. Lang. The production is being stage-managed by student Tyler P. Gardner.
“The Comedy of Errors” opens on Friday. Performances will run for two weekends only, through April 3. Performances are at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday, 7:30 p.m. April 1, 8 p.m. April 2 and 2 p.m. April 3.
Tickets ($15 general; $12 students and seniors) are available at the Mendocino Book Company, at the Mendocino College Bookstore and online at www.ArtsMendocino.org. Some performances are expected to sell out, so audiences are encouraged to purchase their tickets in advance. Subject to availability, tickets may also be purchased at the door.
“The Comedy of Errors” is one of Shakespeare”s most accessible comedies and is appropriate for family audiences, though the show is not recommended for children younger than 6. For more detailed information about the production, please visit the college”s theater department Web site at www.mendocino.edu/theater/deptindex.html. For additional information, call 468-3172.
