JACKSON, Mich.–The Tempest is one one of Shakespeare’s more popular plays, as well as being considered his last. One of his most frequently performed and adapted plays, The Tempest charms audiences with its magic, its island setting, its themes of revenge and redemption and the numerous, complex relationships found within it. It’s a play rich in potential and one that brings out creative interpretations in the companies that perform it.

So it is with the Michigan Shakespeare Festival’s production of this 400+ year old romance, directed by Robert Kauzlaric, a Festival regular who has proven his creative chops with original interpretations of some of the Bard’s most challenging works.

For those familiar with Kauzlaric’s work, there is much that will seem familiar. He plays up the magical elements of the world, creating contrasts between the earthy baseness of Caliban and the other-worldly power of Ariel. He communicates a cohesive vision with his tech crew so that sets, music, lights and costumes all create this magical world where Prospera commands the elements and they do her bidding.

Kauzlaric borrows from one of Shakespeare’s tragedies to open the play, giving Prospera (the role feminized for this production), played by Festival favorite Janet Haley, the famous King Lear speech where he calls upon the storms to blow and rage and crack their cheeks.

Central to this story is Prospera, and Haley has all the gravitas, stage presence and magic that this role demands. She is not the ancient that Prospero is sometimes portrayed as. Rather, she is a powerful woman in her prime who has been betrayed, but who has also been the contributor to her own problems. She is at once fearsome and sympathetic. She has a voice that echoes through the space, underlining her isolation. She declaims, she lectures, she incants. Only rarely is Prospera able to find those quiet, human moments. But when she does, Haley infuses her with a touching tenderness.

There are many ways to portray the air spirit, Ariel, and Brendan St. Clair Saunders creates an alien creature who is powerful in his masculinity. Costume designer Aly Renee Amidei leaves most of his muscular chest bare, arming him with a large, metal pauldron on his left shoulder and a striking head piece and mask.

Saunders matches Haley in strength and the two are clearly a force that cannot be overcome—which is why all falls out on the island according to Prospera’s plans. Like his mistress, Ariel is isolated from others. When given his freedom, he is off without a single glance back or any sort of goodbye to the mistress he has served. The aspects of air that he embodies are those of the raging winds and the powerful gales, not that of the gentle breeze.

Destiny Dunn’s Miranda captures well the role of ingénue, a creature of beauty who dazzles the eyes of those who see her. It’s easy to see why Kevin Tre’Von Patterson’s Ferdinand falls so quickly and hard for her—they fall in love and are betrothed in a fourth of the time it took those other speedy lovers, Romeo and Juliet to do the same.

Dunn moves with gracefulness and her actions are filled with sincerity and innocent passion.

Patterson borders on being too goofy sometimes, which feels out of place with Dunn, Haley and Saunders. It is a valid interpretation of the character, just not one that meshes especially well with the others.

Alan Ball, another Festival favorite, takes on the role of Caliban, bringing to it a base physicality that makes him monster to Ariel’s spirit. He moves with a crookedness that he carries on consistently throughout the show, even as he engages in tumbles and pratfalls and fisticuffs. His energetic portrayal is an impressive physical accomplishment.

His scenes with the drunken butler, Stephano, played by Robert McLean, and the king’s jester, Trinculo, played by Cody Robison are pure fun, especially when Robison starts imitating an inchworm as he moves around the stage. All three fully commit to the physical comedy of their roles and keep their scenes speeding along as they climb stairs, fall down rocks and engage in drunken antics as they plot to kill Prospera and take over rule of the isle.

The remaining group of six is led by Jason Briggs’ Alonso, King of Naples, and his entourage. Briggs is solemn in mourning the loss of his son and little can shake him from it, not even the best efforts of his ever-optimistic courtier, Gonzalo, played by Tobin Hissong.

Meanwhile, the pair of Antonio, played by Zach Fischer, and Sebastian, played by Laurence Stepney, laugh and mock at everything the king and his courtier do and say. They are the play’s villains—Antonio for usurping Prospera and sending her and Miranda out on a leaky boat to their presumed deaths, Sebastian for plotting to kill his brother the king and take his place. Both are excellent at sneering and japing.

One of the delightful edits that Kaulzaric does is in the scene where Prospera summons spirits to perform for the young lovers. In it, Ceres questions Ferdinand about whether he is truly a lover for he performs no tasks that a lover should perform and looks not like a lover should look. Ferdinand answers her in a way that earns the blessing of the spirit goddesses and his future mother-in-law.

There is much which makes this production magical, even beyond the skillful portrayals of characters that each actor gives. It is the coming together of all the creative elements to tell Shakespeare’s story with Kaulzaric’s singular vision.

Kate Hopgood’s music underwrites every moment with muted emotion. It is a constant, but quiet soundtrack that rings true to Caliban’s assessment that, “The isle is full of noises, sounds, and sweet airs that give delight and hurt not.” So expertly woven into the tapestry of the play is the music that it is almost easy to not notice it is there, to let its magic seep into one’s subconscious and work its sorcery. Other times, the original composition takes forefront, as spirits sing to wondrous mortals, captivating them as well as the audience.

Amidei’s costumes are consistently superior. She gives Prospera a layered outfit with a “magic garment” that has a presence both when it is worn and when it is lying on the stage. The spirits are beautifully bedecked all in the theme set by Ariel.

Joe Schermoly is the Festival scenic designer, and the sets featured a stark simplicity that was a somber backdrop to the magic that took place on stage. Yet, the simplicity hides pieces that help to tell the story, whether a glowing fire or a quickly drawn line of clothes between standing rocks.

The Tempest opened the 2018 season for the Michigan Shakespeare Festival with plenty of wonder and beauty. With its lovers, its fools, its kings, its killers, its spirits, and above all, the magician who dictates each of their stories—it is a metaphor for everything the Festival does so well year in and year out. Take the time to catch this production before it vanishes like Prospera’s art in the final scene.

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