A Winter’s Tale: A Fine Tale for a Long Winter’s Night

By Audra Foster

As with any Shakespeare play, the real challenge lies in appealing to an audience that no longer instantly comprehends the complexities and nuances of an archaic language. Add appealing to the attention span of a generation raised on video games and violent television and it seems nearly impossible that any play written by Shakespeare could ever be well performed. A Winter’s Tale accomplished both those goals with room to spare.

That said, it was still three and a half hours long, like all the really really good Shakespeare plays are. But I am not complaining. Once the second half started and I woke up out of the monologue-induced stupor the first half had put me into, I was fine, and I quite enjoyed the play as a whole. And I know the first half was extremely necessary for the setting up of the tragedy which was extremely necessary for the setting up of the comedy in the second half.

The actors were marvellous, particularly those who had some of the more long-winded speeches, because they were so convinced they knew what they were talking about that the audience started to believe they did as well. The mutual current of understanding that passed between the actors and the audience was tangible, weaving its way through the air to create an atmosphere of intelligent thought. I started to believe the actors really were the characters, they were so convincing—Hermione’s trial stands out in my mind because it was so terrifyingly realistic—and I do say that with the utmost sincerity. My praise for the actors of A Winter’s Tale knows no bounds.

The Shepherd (Sebastian DiNatale) as he delivers his best line: "Well, that's not a sheep!"

In particular I’d like to mention the Forum’s own Sebastian DiNatale, who first played the advisor to King Leontes, and then reappeared in the second half as the Shepherd, everyone’s favorite character. He was the most convincing character of all—charmingly old, delightfully stuffy, in equal parts heartwarming and hilarious—because it lies so close to Sebastian’s own nature.

The first thing that struck me was how beautiful the set was, despite its simplicity. Shakespeare rarely needs to have intricate sets, and the slightly Oriental theme of the beginning mixed with the more Portuguese style of the ending was just right. The costumes were colorful and bright at times, somber and classy at others, contributing to the overall feeling that every aspect of this play had at one point been thought about in great detail, and that someone with a great vision had put forth extraordinary effort to put this production together.

In spite of the raving compliments I have paid so far to A Winter’s Tale, there was one thing I found to be somewhat disconcerting: the music. It was jazzy, it was upbeat, and I liked it—I just failed to see the relevance to any aspect of the play. Was it meant to embody something? Was it meant to represent something? I couldn’t tell. And while I did enjoy listening to it, it confused me because I could not see how it was meant to be conjoined with such a play as A Winter’s Tale.

In conclusion, however, I will say that I so enjoyed A Winter’s Tale that I very strongly considered sitting through another three and half hours of it, but alas, my life got in the way and I found I did not have time. I do, however, pay tremendous respect to those who dedicate their lives to this sort of thing, or at the very least the majority of their spare time.