“A heaviness that’s gone.”

The Tempest – Oak Park Festival Theatre

After a year of so much turmoil and sadness, it’s all too easy to be left feeling jaded, bitter, and resentful towards all that was taken from us. Returning back to the liveliness of theater is quite an event, and starting with a classic such as Shakespeare’s The Tempest is an appropriate reintroduction. Viewing The Tempest with the events from this past year still in close hindsight lets us absorb an entirely new perspective of this 400-year-old play. The antiquity does not make this play any less applicable today: especially with the lively modern alterations featured in this production.

The production takes place on the “Great Pacific Garbage Patch”—an island—where a father and daughter have been stranded for many years. Pure magic stirs up a tempest in the sea which brings more civilians
to the island… including the people who stranded the two on the island in the first place. Pent-up vengeance, animosity, and bitterness drive the play and characters’ interactions, but you’ll have to see for yourself who and what ends it.

In this performance, you can feel the frustration of the characters resonate past the stage. For me, and I am sure many others, there was an ability to connect with the loathing that lingered so deep in the souls of the many wounded characters. Filled with vulnerability was the famous speech “Our revels now are
ended” recited in act IV by Prospero (Kevin Theis). There was a feeling of solemnity, a hidden and lonely suffering amid an existential crisis. This performance opens the audience up, and gracefully acknowledges forgiveness and love as the only stop to a cycle of resentment and anger.

Barbara Zahora, the director and a thoroughly educated expert in the works of Shakespeare, retains the authenticity of The Tempest while adding slight pieces of modernity, humor, and ambiguity to keep things active and relatable.

The scenic and sound design—orchestrated by Ryan Fox and George Zahora respectively—complemented the naturalistic elements of The Tempest. Billowing trees perfectly frame the stage and whimsical instrumentals echo through the park to create a truly enchanting set up.

If you are looking for a classic work of Shakespeare to find a new way to dig into your heart and headspace, then I recommend seeing this performance. This would definitely be an enjoyable performance to read beforehand and then watch it sprout to life on a magical Friday night. Bring a bottle of wine and charcuterie board, a small group of friends so as to discuss the big ideas after this cathartic work, and maybe some reclining chairs or a portable ottoman.

Recommended

Reviewed by Rachel Robbins

Preview performances are July 15 & 16; opening is July 17. Performances run through Aug. 21. Show times on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays begin at 8PM and Sunday performances start at 7PM. Tickets are on sale now at oakparkfestival.com.

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.