Romania offers Shakespeare for international critics’ congress

By LOU HARRY

I had the honor of representing the U.S. as a delegate to the International Association of Theatre Critics congress in Craiova, Romania in late May. The fringe benefit of that was the chance to attend productions at the wildly ambitious and wide-ranging Craiova International Shakespeare Festival.

Of the four productions I witnessed, the most satisfying and consistently impressive was a homegrown King Lear, anchored by a riveting Claudiu Bleon in the title role. With all audience members seated three quarters around the National Theatre stage, there was no escaping the intensity of the action (or the asshole in the front row who was scrolling on his phone during the climactic scene).

So rich were the performances that I found myself only occasionally glancing at the unobtrusive projected English titles. With the storm downplayed and a greater emphasis on palace intrigue than Lear’s emotional arc, I can see purists being a bit put off, but I appreciated the kinetic energy and up-close intensity it offered.

The most visually exciting of the work I saw was Titus Andronicus Reborn, from the Japanese company Kakushinhan.

Even those unfamiliar with Shakespeare’s goriest work may realize early on that “reborn” here means recontextualizing, adding characters (including a young boy and a crow), incorporating traditional Japanese theater elements, and breaking the fourth wall (the strongest moment for me was a narrator confrontationally asking the audience why they would attend such a show).

Although at 2 1/2 hours without intermission — compounded by an over 20-minute late start — I’d be lying if I didn’t say it was a rough sit. By the time Titus’ notorious dinner party arrived, I had mentally clocked out.

Less interesting was II from Cape Town, South Africa-based Abrahamse & Meyer Productions. A fusion of Christopher Marlowe’s Edward II with Shakespeare’s Richard II, it did no favors to either.

Instead, the two troubled kings engaged in a kind of therapy session with each other, exchanging passages from their plays mixed with original material that trivialized both. Without the context of each original, the drama was drained.

Meanwhile, Mercutio (from Paris, France’s Collectif NOX) was more playful, mixing pop music and rap battling. Clever, at times, it nonetheless felt overly padded, as if the creators were trying to hide the fan fiction nature of the project.

That quartet of shows is just a small portion of what’s offered at the festival. In addition to a long list of additional full productions, the festival includes an outdoor Shakespeare village, free concerts, art exhibitions, lectures and more. If it was a few hours away instead of requiring a 24-hour three-plane journey, I’d happily return.