Terry Morgan
If having someone change the language, plot, themes, settings and characters of a play is seen as a tribute or homage or compliment, Shakespeare must be the most complimented playwright on the planet. He must be blushing fiercely even now, although the thought may have occurred to him that perhaps his plays were pretty good to begin with and didn’t require all the updates. I know that there are all sorts of practical and creative reasons to adapt Shakespeare, and I’ve enjoyed most of them. This leads me to the west coast premiere of Ellen McLaughlin’s modern verse translation of Pericles. The current production at Boston Court Pasadena (in partnership with Play On Shakespeare) has a great ensemble, creative direction and is quite enjoyable, and I’d recommend seeing it. However, the modern frame of the show added little to the experience for me.
A group of people have gathered in a high school gym that has been made into a disaster shelter from a storm. Looking for something to take their minds off things, one man with a copy of Pericles, Gower (Joel Swetow), starts having the people perform the play. Young Prince Pericles (Randoph Thompson), prince of Tyre (a city in Lebanon), is on the run from a corrupt king trying to protect an incestuous secret. Eventually he finds a beloved wife, Thaisa (Nicole Javier), and the two have a daughter, Marina (Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson), before fate takes them both away from him. Besieged by cruel fate, Pericles falls into despair, until one day he encounters impossible blessings.
Thompson does a great job with the title role, projecting decency and portraying the results of long suffering in an affectingly emotional performance. Swetow is cannily expert as both good and evil kings, and Javier is poignant as the wife who suffers just as much as her seemingly cursed husband. Johnson is terrific as the strong-willed Marina, but it was her touching prayer for help to the goddess Diana that stuck with me. The entire cast is impressive, but two actors that especially stood out for me were Julanne Chidi Hill in an energetically funny turn as the Bawd (“Well, I ain’t a platypus!”) and Desirée Mee Jung as the sarcastic and diabolical Dionyza.
Director Margaret Shigeko Starbuck gets superb work from her ensemble, and her creativity shines through, from amazing shipwreck sequences using nets as sails and silver fabric for the sea to amusing touches such as using pool noodles for dueling weapons or ‘Rock Paper Scissors’ to resolve conflicts. Michelle Joo’s set is realistic yet conducive to metamorphosis, and Pablo Santiago’s lighting is the magic that makes the changes happen. McLaughlin’s adaptation is deft and her verse is up to the task, but I didn’t feel that it improved upon the original text in any major way. I’m sure there are those who might find it more approachable for modern audiences, but I’ve seen a few productions of Pericles in the past decade or two, and I found them to be easily comprehensible.
All that being said, this is a strong and entertaining production with a lot to recommend it.
Pericles is presented by and at Boston Court Pasadena in partnership with Play On Shakespeare through September 27, 2026. Tickets are available at https://bostoncourtpasadena.org/
Pauline Adamek
