Theater Review: Shakespeare's late Henry VIII gets a rare performance
Henry VIII
Written by William Shakespeare and John Fletcher
Translated by Caridad Svich
Directed by Adrian Alexander Alea
Starring Anthony Cochrane and Pun Bandhu
Play On! Festival
Classic Stage Company, Manhattan
June 29, 2019
Henry VIII (1613) was one of Shakespeare’s last plays, and was a collaboration with John Fletcher (1579-1625), who succeeded him as house playwright for the King’s Men and wrote popular plays often termed “tragicomedies”. These are perhaps best thought of as hybrid dramas involving high and low comedy, history, and romantic couplings both serious and comic. Henry VIII is an example of this form, and another example of how a Shakespearean “history play” could be many things, ranging from classically tragic like Richard III to largely comic like Henry IV Part 1 (with Falstaff, et. al.). Henry VIII, written a couple years before Shakespeare’s death in 1616, is an odd mix of comedy, pageantry, courtroom drama, and the historical of Henry’s efforts to divorce his first wife Catherine of Aragon in order to marry Anne Boleyn. Perhaps the audiences of 1610-1615 wanted a bit of everything from a night at the theater. The strongest character and dramatic focus of the play is the manipulative Cardinal Wolsey, Henry’s Lord Chancellor. Wolsey was the leading international diplomat at the court, and was also the most important Catholic in England—this was ultimately unfortunate for him, given Henry’s impending break with the Catholic church over its unwillingness to grant him divorce(s). Wolsey died before he could be beheaded for treason, thus disappearing from the play before its ending. After this death, the last act rushes through Henry’s wedding to Anne Boleyn and the birth of Elizabeth, who will succeed Henry as Elizabeth I. The most odd thing about Henry VIII is that it sets up all the intrigue about his illicit marriage Anne Boleyn, then pretty much drops her from the proceedings in the last act, concluding with an extended laud to the newly born Elizabeth, amusingly set up by a comic dialogue between two guards trying to control the crowds at Elizabeth’s christening ceremony. There were later rewrites of the play, and I wonder if the original draft would have more dramatically told the tale of Henry’s marriage and later falling out with Anne, which would certainly have provided a better and more dramatic ending. Instead we get this rushed paean to Elizabeth, and four acts instead of the usual five—were the original last two acts lopped off later to create the festive ending? The Virgin Queen had died about a decade before this play was written, and was still beloved to audiences. The play’s slapdash ending felt like it was tacked on for inclusion in some court or popular tribute to the dead queen. Or perhaps the play’s reference to Elizabeth was added to coincide with the play’s performance at the marriage of Princess Elizabeth (daughter of King James I) in 1613. Scholars differ, but after a strong start, the end of the play is a bit of a mess, making it one of the least performed Shakespearean plays despite a most familiar subject.
The focused translation into modern English, the theme of the one month PlayOn! series, was of high quality, and clarified my understanding of plot and comic banter. Translator Caridad Svich is a playwright who works both in English and Spanish, and I wonder if that bilingual experience helped her create the excellent script used here. The play was performed largely with actors reading behind stands, with occasional more dramatic interactions, a good compromise, since the casts only have 3 days of preparation. The cast seemed comfortable with the unfamiliar script, were well directed, and formed a good ensemble. The standout was the Wolsey of Anthony Cochrane, just as good here as he was as the lead in Timon of Athens. Wolsey’s part is long, and is a hybrid of Iago-like attempted manipulation of the king with bureaucratic puffery. But unlike Iago, Wolsey’s manipulativeness fails before an even more ruthless opponent, Henry. Unfortunately, the play became less interesting after his Act III death.
An overall theme of Henry VIII is the transience of fame, and how hubris may lead to a fall—very akin to Greek drama, and relevant to our time. This has the makings of a much better play, but at least for three acts it has many quality Shakespearean moments, and I am glad I saw it. I hope some researcher discovers an earlier draft in some moldy attic someday, since it feels like we do not have Shakespeare’s original construction now.
Written by William Shakespeare and John Fletcher
Translated by Caridad Svich
Directed by Adrian Alexander Alea
Starring Anthony Cochrane and Pun Bandhu
Play On! Festival
Classic Stage Company, Manhattan
June 29, 2019
Henry VIII (1613) was one of Shakespeare’s last plays, and was a collaboration with John Fletcher (1579-1625), who succeeded him as house playwright for the King’s Men and wrote popular plays often termed “tragicomedies”. These are perhaps best thought of as hybrid dramas involving high and low comedy, history, and romantic couplings both serious and comic. Henry VIII is an example of this form, and another example of how a Shakespearean “history play” could be many things, ranging from classically tragic like Richard III to largely comic like Henry IV Part 1 (with Falstaff, et. al.). Henry VIII, written a couple years before Shakespeare’s death in 1616, is an odd mix of comedy, pageantry, courtroom drama, and the historical of Henry’s efforts to divorce his first wife Catherine of Aragon in order to marry Anne Boleyn. Perhaps the audiences of 1610-1615 wanted a bit of everything from a night at the theater. The strongest character and dramatic focus of the play is the manipulative Cardinal Wolsey, Henry’s Lord Chancellor. Wolsey was the leading international diplomat at the court, and was also the most important Catholic in England—this was ultimately unfortunate for him, given Henry’s impending break with the Catholic church over its unwillingness to grant him divorce(s). Wolsey died before he could be beheaded for treason, thus disappearing from the play before its ending. After this death, the last act rushes through Henry’s wedding to Anne Boleyn and the birth of Elizabeth, who will succeed Henry as Elizabeth I. The most odd thing about Henry VIII is that it sets up all the intrigue about his illicit marriage Anne Boleyn, then pretty much drops her from the proceedings in the last act, concluding with an extended laud to the newly born Elizabeth, amusingly set up by a comic dialogue between two guards trying to control the crowds at Elizabeth’s christening ceremony. There were later rewrites of the play, and I wonder if the original draft would have more dramatically told the tale of Henry’s marriage and later falling out with Anne, which would certainly have provided a better and more dramatic ending. Instead we get this rushed paean to Elizabeth, and four acts instead of the usual five—were the original last two acts lopped off later to create the festive ending? The Virgin Queen had died about a decade before this play was written, and was still beloved to audiences. The play’s slapdash ending felt like it was tacked on for inclusion in some court or popular tribute to the dead queen. Or perhaps the play’s reference to Elizabeth was added to coincide with the play’s performance at the marriage of Princess Elizabeth (daughter of King James I) in 1613. Scholars differ, but after a strong start, the end of the play is a bit of a mess, making it one of the least performed Shakespearean plays despite a most familiar subject.
The focused translation into modern English, the theme of the one month PlayOn! series, was of high quality, and clarified my understanding of plot and comic banter. Translator Caridad Svich is a playwright who works both in English and Spanish, and I wonder if that bilingual experience helped her create the excellent script used here. The play was performed largely with actors reading behind stands, with occasional more dramatic interactions, a good compromise, since the casts only have 3 days of preparation. The cast seemed comfortable with the unfamiliar script, were well directed, and formed a good ensemble. The standout was the Wolsey of Anthony Cochrane, just as good here as he was as the lead in Timon of Athens. Wolsey’s part is long, and is a hybrid of Iago-like attempted manipulation of the king with bureaucratic puffery. But unlike Iago, Wolsey’s manipulativeness fails before an even more ruthless opponent, Henry. Unfortunately, the play became less interesting after his Act III death.
An overall theme of Henry VIII is the transience of fame, and how hubris may lead to a fall—very akin to Greek drama, and relevant to our time. This has the makings of a much better play, but at least for three acts it has many quality Shakespearean moments, and I am glad I saw it. I hope some researcher discovers an earlier draft in some moldy attic someday, since it feels like we do not have Shakespeare’s original construction now.
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