Given the never-ending Rochester winter and perpetually icy sidewalks, it doesn’t feel out of place to stage a play set at Christmas in early March. “The Lion in Winter” marks the Rochester debut of a previously New York City-based group, The Ensemble Theatre Company of New York. The production is directed by TETCNY’s executive director Kevin G. Shinnick and runs at MuCCC through March 8.
“The Lion in Winter” is a darkly comedic historical family drama, loosely based on the medieval antics of King Henry and Queen Eleanor. Written by James Goldman (not to be confused with his brother William, who wrote “The Princess Bride”), the play is perhaps best known for its 1968 film adaptation starring Peter O’Toole and Katherine Hepburn. It also inspired the modernized Fox TV drama adaptation “Empire.”
The play opens in winter 1183 with a shirtless King Henry II (Aaron R. Duclos) in bed with his devoted mistress, Princess Alais (Elizabeth DeFisher). It’s even worse than it sounds: the king has been grooming her since she was 16, she’s been promised against her wishes to wed his eldest son, and their privacy is ensured because Henry has imprisoned his wife Queen Eleanor (Feliza Bascara-Zohar) for attempting to kill him.
In the spirit of Christmas, though, Henry releases Queen Eleanor from the dungeons to celebrate the holidays with the family. For this family, celebration means verbal abuse and plotting as they hash out which son will succeed the throne. Henry wants his eldest son Richard (a guarded and angry Brandan Booker) to take power and make Alais a queen. Eleanor prefers her youngest son John (an indignant and childish Xavier Burgos), who she sees as easier to control. They ignore their middle son Geoffrey (a cool and collected Wanya Simmons), who takes after his mother in his smoothly manipulative quest for power.
Loyalties and desires shift, as do alliances and understandings, in Goldman’s densely plotted script. The dialogue is rich and often humorous as the family throws clever barbs at each other. The verbal abuse becomes physical as the play culminates in a knife fight, choreographed by Eva Sarachan-Dubay.
The cast, which includes several actors new to Rochester stages, approaches the script with gusto and big emotions. The colorblind casting depicts a delightfully fantastical multi-racial royal family reminiscent of the 1997 “Cinderella” movie starring Brandy. Though playing deeply selfish characters in dire need of therapy, each actor commits full-heartedly to their role.
Duclos performs King Henry with clarity and strength, even at his most self-absorbed and petty. Bascara-Zohar as Eleanor captures the queen’s self-assured and calculating personality with a stage presence as pronounced as her emerald green dress. Their three sons lean into the immaturity of the characters, with none of them being a man you’d want to see in a leadership position. The ensemble is rounded out by Parker Ana-Crusis as King Philip II, who brings a uniquely genderqueer twist on this rival French king, playing his deception and betrayal with a femininely flirtatious air.
While the cast brings an enjoyable “love to hate them” energy to their characters, they would have benefited from more restrained and nuanced direction. The characters in Goldman’s script have the potential to be crafty and complex, but under Shinnick’s direction they too often default to yelling as a way of expressing themselves. Although the characters claim to want power, land, and love, in this production they seem primarily motivated by a desire to hurt each other. The few moments of softness or affection come across as jarring and disingenuous.
The production design overall is effectively minimalist, from the lighting design by Kenneth DeBot to the set constructed by Nicole Simpson, which includes two brown chairs, a bed, two tables and a few roll-on backdrops. Original sound, which included dramatic incidental music that evokes epic adventure movies, was composed by teenager Flynn Ayers.
The play is most likely to appeal to fans of King Lear or “The White Lotus” — those who enjoy escaping into the messy, petty conflicts of the rich and powerful. Those burnt out on the latest news cycle may not find pleasant escapism in watching a predatory king lash out every time he doesn’t get his way. The family onstage is deeply unhappy and bitterly competitive, but there’s a joy in watching new local talent giving their all to these over-the-top roles. Visit here for more info and tickets.
Katherine Varga is a freelance contributor to CITY.
This article appears in Dec 1-31, 2024.
