Love, obsession, fire, and Greek gods - no, not the ingredients of a horror film, but a 16th century black comedy, brought to you by the American Repertory Theater (ART). And although ART's production of "Dido, Queen of Carthage" suffers from production excesses coupled with an unfittingly minimalist set, the performances of several strong leads manage, in part, to redeem the show.
"Dido," a tricky and rarely performed classic, was written in 1585 by Christopher Marlowe. As his first play, it lacks the candid risk of the diabolic "Dr. Faustus," but works a similar passion. According to legend, after the fall of Troy a group of soldiers from the ransacked city escape by sea. Among them are Aeneas and his young son, who plan to flee to Italy. Yet by Juno's intervention, a shipwreck lands the crew in Carthage, where Cupid mortally wounds the heart of Dido, the city's queen.
The act dooms her to infatuation with Aeneas, and obsessive love torments and consumes her. Supporting characters include Dido's suitor Iarbas and sister Anna, who loves the latter. Also involved are a cast of oddly-interpreted Greek gods, who make appearances for dramatic and comic effect. The tale follows the struggle between desire and resolve, and, of course, the will of the gods against the reason of men.
There is no set to speak of. Rather, actors bring out chairs, tables, and other props as needed, but all action takes place on a dark black stage furnished with ladders for dramatic entrances and exits. While effective in keeping the focus on the action, a few strategically placed columns or draped cloths could have done wonders to balance out the production.
In an attempt to make Dido's story applicable to contemporary times, the costumes combine modernity with a glamorized "neoclassical" style. The combination, however, draws adverse attention, given that there is no set to counterbalance the costumes. When we first meet Aeneas, he is dressed in what appears to be a modern guerilla-type soldier's uniform. One would think that the show must be set in a modern period - but then why are Dido and her sister Anna dressed in eighteenth-century-style French court gowns the size of hot air balloons? Dido's costuming is, actually, rather fitting to her character.
But she is set out of place by her co-actors, including an Iarbas who, at one point, looks like he is wearing a Jewish Tallit, or prayer shawl. Even more striking is the attire of the gods, which ranges from spectacularly glamorous (Hermes, stunning with huge wings and gold body paint) to utterly ridiculous (Juno, who appears as a transvestite with fuzzy heels and a revealing pantsuit.) Of course, one does not have to feign complete historical accuracy - but some degree of consistency would have been good.
The performances of the ensemble are commendably well-executed as each character emphasizes his identity and will in conjunction with the others. Several leads stand out in particular.
John Kelly's Cupid is deliciously and disturbingly evil - an unexpected portrayal of the chubby baby god. Although the character has few actual lines, Kelly manages to inject a mischievous cunning into his onstage mannerisms; he is able to control and manipulate the play's action in all sorts of ways and shows himself to be more capable than the rest of the gods because of his power to influence emotions and minds. Love conquers all, but the effect is far from beautiful. Here, love is a draining and all-encompassing vice, well personified by Kelly's character.
Diane D'Aquila is likewise excellent in the title role. From the moment she appears, she assumes the commanding air of Carthage's top woman with a natural ease and propriety. The queen is front-and-center throughout, even as her emotional condition degrades. D'Aquila has the difficult task of making the audience understand what sacrifices love forces Dido to make; not only as a woman, but as a ruler.
She cannot give in to a pathetic erosion of character too suddenly, as she must remind us that pride is a queen's greatest endowment. Eventually though that love and obsession, quite literally, will rid her of her crown. D'Aquila's acting is focused, passionate, and powerful; she cannot let go all at once, but neither can she contain it all. The difficulty of the character is adeptly showcased by this well-cast leading role.
The combination of great acting with unfortunately forced interpretations and costuming causes the production to feel disjointed. Furthermore, "Dido" runs for approximately two hours with no intermission - pleasing for enthusiasts, perhaps, but not for faint-of-heart theatergoers.
