Shakespeare in the Park, Take Two

Having seen David Melville as Iago in Othello, the ISC’s first production of the summer, I was looking forward to seeing what he would do with the role of Benedick in Much Ado About Nothing. In Othello, Melville played Iago as more of a comic villain. It was an interesting interpretation, but it made it hard for me to believe that Iago was actually the architect of all the evil that occurred. So, since I knew he liked to play characters more comically, I figured I was in for a good time with such a witty character as Benedick.

And I wasn’t disappointed. The production was very entertaining. And you could tell the actors were having a lot of fun. They even broke the fourth wall several times, all to hilarious effect. At times, the comedy verged on slapstick, as when Beatrice (ISC co-founder and artistic director Melissa Chalsma) wags her head back and forth between Don Pedro and the audience, an exaggerated expression of horrified surprise on her face, after Don Pedro offers himself as her suitor. If Chalsma’s hair were a touch redder, I might have thought Lucille Ball had risen from the grave.

The casting of Beatrice and Benedick was very good, which, to me, is the key to the feel of the play as a whole. The repartee between Melville and Chalsma was sharp and fast, just as Shakespeare brilliantly wrote it.

I'm looking forward to ISC’s next summer season. But you can still catch Much Ado About Nothing if you hurry. The final few productions are happening this Thursday through Sunday at 7 pm in Griffith Park.