By by Katie Bogdan for DC Metro Theater Arts, on October 31, 2015
With the Women’s Voices Theater Festival in DC still going strong, Brave Spirits Theatre asks its audiences to consider the role women have in theatre beyond the reach of the festival. With the first majorly re-gendered production that the company has done, Henri IV provides its wonderful cast of women (and a few men) the chance to tackle a traditionally male-dominated show.
The first part of Shakespeare’s Henri IV Repertory concerns the turbulent reign of Queen Henri IV (Annette Mooney Wasno), who has just taken the throne from Queen Rachel II. While her ne’er-do-well daughter Hallie (Sarah Anne Sillers) is carousing around London with her companions Falstaff (Karen Lange) and Poins (Nicola Collett), Henri is facing rebellion from the Percy family, led by the tempestuous Hotspur (Briana Manente). Tensions come to a head at the Battle of Shrewsbury as the future of England’s monarchy hangs in the balance.
Director Kevin Finkelstein deftly condenses the 67 characters of the cycle to fit the 12 actors in this production, 10 of whom are women. He keeps the story fresh not only with his re-gendered casting, but with his live musical performances of songs from “Girls Just Wanna Have Fun” to a beautiful rendition of “Hallelujah” in Welsh.
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