Jordan Wright
March 17, 2014
Special to The Alexandria Times
Alex Mills as Hamlet. Photo by Koko Lanham.
As far as this critic is concerned Synetic can do no wrong. How could you fault their electrifying choreography, their spectacular dancers or their break-the-mold interpretations of the classics…especially in their noted Silent Shakespeare series. Theatre critics from the New York Times to the Washington Post have rained down superlatives on them and they have garnered 24 Helen Hayes Awards and 92 nominations to prove them right. Hamlet…the rest is silence is the production that started it all – – a magnificent journey that took hold of our collective psyches a decade ago. For those of us who are already converts, it’s a trip down memory lane. For newer audiences it is a ticket to the ensemble’s evolution and a view through the looking glass into their groundbreaking productions.
I’d suggest brushing up on your Hamlet before you go. The program doesn’t explain the plot. You’ve only got a listing of the scenes to go on – “Something is Wrong in the State of Denmark”, “Murder Most Foul”, “To Be Or Not To Be”, etc. and with such innovative interpretations and no dialogue you could get lost in the translation, as they say.
Irakli Kavsadze as Claudius and Irina Tsikurishvili as Gertrude with Ensemble. Photo by Koko Lanham.
In a play that presents revenge, romance, and tragedy without words, it is up to the dancers, the lighting and the sound design to convey complex emotions. And here it is done in a whirlwind of riveting pantomime, garish lighting and mood altering music – all coordinated to lend a somber tone and element of danger.
Costume coordinator Claire Cantwell has chosen funereal black and gunmetal grey with splashes of blood red, while lighting designer Brittany Diliberto bathes the set with midnight blue, poison green and fiery red, to echo the nefariousness of the characters’ motives. Sound designer Irakli Kavsadze pulls out all the stops, using heavy backbeat rock, New Age, classic, military flourishes, and an eerie tango for Claudius (Irakli Kavsadze) and Gertrude (the magnificent Irina Tsikurishvili, who is also the ensemble’s co-founder and choreographer) to frame the macabre machinations. Watch for Irina Kavsadze, a sensuous pre-Raphaelite beauty who plays Ophelia. Her portrayal of the devoted daughter, who shows her love for Hamlet in an early scene where the two lovers tenderly mirror each other’s hands and bodies, is powerful counterpoint to her fiery solo as Ophelia descending into madness.
Irina Kavsadze as Ophelia with Ensemble. Photo by Koko Lanham.
The dancing is flawless, as expected. Can anyone say anything new about the caliber of excellence Synetic offers? Alex Mills digs deep into the role of the conflicted Hamlet to pull out an intricately crafted portrait of a megalomaniacal madman. Just remember this is not typical of the high-flying, production-on-steroids Synetic of today. It is a spare yet focused reinvention – – the one that brought the world to their doorstep. And it plays out like a journey to the center of the earth smack after the Big Bang.
Through April 6th at Synetic Theater, 1800 South Bell Street, Arlington in Crystal City. For tickets and information call 1-866-811-4111 or visit www.synetictheater.org.
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