Tuesday, September 16, 2008

TNT comedy delights audiences

By Katie Libecco

NILES — Remember in high school when you thought speech was the best thing that ever happened to you, and “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)” was the funniest play ever?

OK, that was just me, but I still think “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)” is one of the funniest shows I’ve ever seen.

Trumbull New Theater opened a run of the production Friday, letting local audiences experience the farce on The Bard’s collected works.

The play was written by Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield (The Reduced Shakespeare Company) and TNT’s production is directed by Heather Fenstermaker-Whetstone. The cast includes Ben Gavitt, Ian Kundus and Al McKinnon.

The three actors take turns playing a multitude of roles as they present shortened versions of every Shakespeare work. It begins with “Romeo and Juliet,” before taking on “Titus Andronicus” and rapping about “Othello.” The first act also includes parodies of “Julius Ceasar,” “Anthony and Cleopatra” and “Macbeth.” Act two delivers several versions of “Hamlet.”

Gavitt, Kundus and McKinnon do an amazing job updating and modifying the script for current audiences. Kundus is outstanding, handling his plethora of characters with charisma and a level of eloquence unusual to community theater.

However, all three get occasionally bogged down with character voices that let dialogue get lost in tone. Among those circumstances was “Macbeth,” in which those not familiar with the work could get mired in the faux-Scottish accent.

Still, “The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)” at Trumbull New Theater is a warm and wonderful production worth seeing, whether educated in Shakespeare or not. The light-hearted look at such well-known plays makes for a delightful experience.