THE TEMPEST by William Shakespeare, directed by Sue Miner, with Karen Robinson, Tracey Ferencz, Taylor Trowbridge, Patrick Kwok-Choon, Audrey Dwyer and Ron Kennell (Canadian Stage). At the Dream site in High Park. Previews from Friday (June 26), opens Tuesday (June 30) and runs to September 6, Tuesday-Sunday 8 pm. Pwyc ($20 sugg, under 14 free). 416-367-1652.
One of the storylines in this year’s Dream In High Park, a production of Shakespeare’s The Tempest, is the jealousy between sisters.[rssbreak]
What? Sisters in The Tempest? No such thing.
But director Sue Miner’s version of the story for Canadian Stage turns the magician Prospero into Prospera (Karen Robinson), who loses the duchy of Milan not to brother Antonio but rather to power-hungry sister Antonia.
“Antonia lacks a conscience,” says Tracey Ferencz, who plays the role. “She has no problem ridding herself of anyone who stands in the way of her rise to the throne. She’s felt a sibling rivalry with her elder sister Prospera for years there’s no chance for her to have the control she wants.”
Ferencz, who’s performed in previous CanStage shows like It’s A Wonderful Life and The Overcoat, says Antonia’s fast on her feet when she and the other royals find themselves shipwrecked on Prospera’s island.
“She realizes she can work on Sebastian (Karl Ang), brother of the Neapolitan King Alonso (Robert Dodds), to further consolidate her power.”
Antonia tries to convince Sebastian to overthrow Alonso, just as she toppled Prospera, but goes a step further by suggesting murder.
“The change of gender makes this seduction plot work really well,” admits Ferencz.
“There’s a sexual connotation in the cajoling to regicide that I can play up, and it allows for fireworks between Antonia and Sebastian.
“If she’s close to Sebastian and convinces him to become king, who knows how far she can rise? There’s even something of Lady Macbeth in her attempts to move Sebastian to murder.”
This isn’t the first time Ferencz has played the Bard outdoors she received a Dora nomination for her performance of Beatrice in Shakespeare in the Rough’s production of Much Ado About Nothing.
She’s got lots of advice about doing a show in a park.
“Always keep sunscreen and bug spray ready, and never expect the world around you to be quiet while you’re speaking,” she smiles. “Dogs, children and planes draw attention from the action, so you have to be sure to focus yourself and keep the audience in the world of the play.”
The Tempest is a play about forgiveness and letting go of past hurts no surprise, then, that it’s Shakespeare’s last work.
“But I wonder what Antonia will be like after the play ends,” says Ferencz. “Her lack of response to Prospera’s pardon suggests that the relationship between the sisters is still something of a deep, dark well.”
jonkap@nowtoronto.com
