I was honestly blown away by the bravura performance of the actors in the play I Gelosi. So blown away in fact all I could think of throughout the entire show was: Why are they not at the Geffen or another bigger theatre? They deserve it! They honestly do!
The Plot: Inspired by true events I Gelosi (”The Jealous Ones”) were the first theatre group formed in Italy, and the first to present a woman actress Isabella Adreini. From 1569-1604 they were the talk of Europe; traveling to France to play in the court of King Henry III. All was going well until the troop decided to do a satire on Pope Gregory…and were immediately ostracized. The play follows their rise and eventual fall from fame; fully incorporating their motto Virtu, fama ed honot ne far gelosi, “We are jealous of attaining virtue, fame, and honor.” They beg the question: Is theatre for entertainment only or is it a path through which the oppressed give voice for change?
All the archetypes of the renaissance period are represented in this phenomenal play: Arlecchino (the joker), Pantalone (the merchant), Il Capitano (the captain) and others; and Isabella was the glue that held them all together. The play showed the clear depiction of a group of actors each driven by their own ego, passion, definition of poetry and art and how their differences, not only from each other, but from the rest of society would be catapulting factor of their eventual demise. (No spoilers)
Stage and Setting: The scenes were performed in one background, and that was all that was necessary. The actors were so vivacious and great that their fluid and strong voices and body movements were able to convince the crowd of motion and stasis; of travel and stage performance; of the different countries of France and Italy. The costumes were illustrious and demonstrative of their climb to fame as their pockets grew in riches.
The actors: BRAVO! I was standing at the end; somewhere between crying and laughing applauding till my hands hurt. All actors deserved to mentioned for their outstanding performances.
- Albert Meijer played Francesco Andreini and was so captivating and strong he literally swept me off my feet. He had the audience in his hands as he cleverly juxtaposed the character of an ego driven actor and that of a rebel who believed his destiny was to ignite change.
- Paige White expertly played Isabella Andreini, the first gentle creature dedicated to poetry to hit the stage (a woman) in the 16th century, and who, restricting the sequence of events, loses her mind.
- Isaac Wade played Giulio, the merchant and was so convincing of his role he brought me to laughter (and to tears ) by his mere facial expressions.
- Michael Pappas played Simone, the youngest more naive of the troupe who no matter what, always had one thing and one thing only on his mind: food.
- Eleanor Van Hest played Vittoria the seductress; with one bat of her eyes she had whatever she wanted, whenevere she wanted and her coldness played through so excellently there were times I wanted to slap her and shake the men back into their senses.
- Jon Redding was excellent as Orazio, the love sick more dramatic actor of the troupe. Sylvia the maid was played by
- Catherine Talton was so authentic in her portrayal of the lower class, uneducated stereotype, I kept looking at the program and back at her to try and see the resemblance. Vincenzo Duke of Mantua was played by
- Christopher Tillman who had such a strong air of arrogance and unjustified dignity, one could only get a clear and dismal picture of what the aristocracy must have been like in those days.
- King Henry III was played by Luke Bailey who played the monarch stereotype to a “T” and literally had the crowd rolling in laughter while the cold .
- Lastly, heartless Catherine De Medici was divinely and convincingly played by Danielle Katz.
The director David Bridel, currently the Director of Movement at USC directed the play in such a stunning way that all I can say is once more Bravo! He brought out the best in each actor and put together such a magnificently strong production you almost want to scream NO when the lights come on and the actors take their final bow. Among his credits he boasts: The Death of Mayakovsky at UCLA; The Heretic Mysteries at the Franklin Stage; Pinocchio; The Taming of the Shrew and many, many more.
I strongly recommend anyone who is fan of history, politics, love, poetry the renaissance or just mere entertainment to see this play as it holds a special something for the likes of all. You will laugh, you will cry, but more importantly you will leave with an almost unrecognizable feeling of contemplation and nostalgia.
The play will run through Friday June 14th at the Powerhouse Theatre located at:
3116 2nd st. (Map)
Santa Monica Ca 90405
- Showtimes are: Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 8pm
- Tickets are $20
- Students/Military $10
- Tickets can be purchased on location or by calling (310) 396-3680 x 3 or by visiting www.latensemble.com
Do not miss this MUST SEE show!
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