The Ringmaster and The Clown:
King Lear and Fool*
(played by Daniel Mothershed)
The Lion Tamer:
Earl of Gloucester**
(played by Adrianna DelPercio)
The Tightrope Walker:
Earl of Kent***
(played by Ayden Armstrong)
The Circus Ring
The Magician:
Goneril***
(played by Andrea Mérida)
The Knife Thrower:
Regan**
(played by Erin Bantoff)
The Human Cannonball:
Cordelia**
(played by Adrianna DelPercio)
The Contortionist:
Edmund***
(played by Andrea Mérida)
Lion Tamer in Training:
Edgar**
(played by Erin Bantoff)
Son
Son
Daughter
Daughter
Daughter
The Strong Man:
Duke of Albany*
(played by Jaylin Weise)
The Human Target:
Duke of Cornwall***
(played by Emogene Lovey)
The (other) Ringmaster:
King of France*
(played by Jaylin Weise)
The Snake Oil Salesman:
Duke of Burgundy***
(played by Emogene Lovey)
Curan – friend of Edmund (played by Aidan Blank)
Steward, Attendant
(played by Aidan Blank)
Knight, Attendant, Gentleman, Old Man
(played by Hiko Addison)
Spouse
Suitor
Suitor
Spouse
*Swing 1 – Aidan Blank
**Swing 2 – Drake Simon
***Swing 3 – Kryssi Jeaux Miller
The Magician’s Assistant:
Oswald***
(played by Ayden Armstrong)
Attendant
Director’s Note
Whenever I embark on a new directorial journey, I make it my mission to challenge myself, more so than in my previous productions. King Lear was no different. Upon Bowls with the Bard offering me this production slot, I had to decide which Shakespeare I should take a stab at next, following my Colorado directorial debut of a queer, regency retelling of Romeo & Juliet just last year. King Lear, being my 2nd favorite Shakespeare, came to mind immediately; but what was my challenge? The illustrious and lengthy regal text? Certainly. The tragic nature of this specific Bard play while directing for a company such as BWTB, who illuminates and brings out the comedy in the text through the actors' weed consumption? Absolutely. I wanted to add another challenge, one that would dare my artistry and provoke wonder in an influenced audience. That is where my concept of dualism came into play. The characters you may know well are flipped on their heads in this version of King Lear, with actors playing 2 characters each; one costumed on either side of the actors bodies and faces. In addition, I considered, what would be the best setting for a concept such as this; where the costume design is split down the middle? That is when Lear’s circus, and the characters within, came to me. � While preparing this feat, I studied and analyzed the text, asking myself which characters are foils of each other and how their contrasts contribute to the duality of the eccentric characters within this play. This presented as an explorative challenge within my blocking; how I positioned each actor to appear as one character over the other, and with my King Lear, himself, who is doubled as the Fool and who is the only actor on this stage that gets to act with himself, rather than another actor. This conceptual decision is rooted in Lear’s fall to dementia and his percepted view of the players around him. We see what Lear sees. Additionally, I asked in my analysis, how can the text adapt to the entertaining circus theme that our Lear is now Ringmaster of? � This concept explores the duality that finds Lear when he is succumbed to his own mind and he creates the Fool personality seen in Shakespeare’s text and within this production. The Fool shows up when Lear most feels he is in need of contradiction and when he, deep down, knows that his choices may lead to chaos and ruin within his circus. The Fool pleads with and makes fun of Lear’s decisions, attempting to convince Lear to change his path and reverse the damage that has been done. We see Lear fighting to share the stage with the Fool; the actor turning into Fool and then back to Lear in split seconds, and the characters surrounding Lear expressing annoyance and patience with Lear’s Fool coming out to play. This production intends to inquire how this tragedy transforms when its very core, the title character, becomes an unreliable narrator. � I am thrilled to be presenting this version of King Lear to our audiences today and am so grateful to the actors who jumped into this concept and helped the team discover meaning and madness within it. I am so thankful to my production team, specifically my costume designer, who didn’t shy away from this crazy dream of mine, and embraced the dual character concept fully and completely. Finally, I am endlessly appreciative to Bowls with the Bard, for taking a chance on a new director, and allowing me to expand Lear’s world, immersing this story with comedy, spectacle, and wonder.
~ Clove Love
Director of King Lear
www.cloveslove.com
Synopsis
King Lear has ruled for many years. As age overtakes him, he divides his kingdom amongst his children. Misjudging their loyalty, he soon finds himself stripped of all the trappings of state, wealth and power that had defined him. What follows for him is a mix of anguish, confusion, guilt, and ultimately forgiveness. However, the greed and jealousy of the people around him - his daughters, their husbands, and the father and sons of Gloucester - have already set the stage for tragedy.
Act I
The play begins as the Earl of Gloucester introduces his illegitimate son, Edmund, to the Earl of Kent. Lear, King of Britain, enters with his court. Now that he is an old man, Lear has decided to divide his kingdom between his three daughters. The division will depend on the quality of each princess' declarations of love for her father before the court. Goneril, Duchess of Albany, and Regan, Duchess of Cornwall, both speak enthusiastically and earn their father's praise. But Cordelia, the youngest, says nothing. Misunderstanding his daughter, Lear disowns and banishes her from the kingdom. He also banishes the Earl of Kent, who had taken Cordelia's side against the King.
This action by the king divides the kingdom, both figuratively and literally. Cordelia's suitor, the Duke of Burgundy, rejects her once she is dowerless, but the King of France values her honesty and takes her as his wife. Lear's kingdom is shared between Goneril and Regan and their husbands (the Dukes of Albany and Cornwall, respectively). Lear plans to alternate living with each of them.
Act II
Meanwhile, Edmund is determined to be recognized as a rightful son of Gloucester. By a trick, he persuades his father that his legitimate brother, Edgar, is plotting against Gloucester's life. Warned by Edmund that his life is in danger, Edgar flees and takes the disguise of a mad beggar called “Poor Tom”. Edmund becomes a courtier to Goneril. Goneril meanwhile grows increasingly exasperated by the behavior of Lear's hundred companions who are upsetting her life at Albany's castle, and she criticizes her father.
Kent has returned from exile in disguise and wins a place as a servant to Lear. Kent accompanies Lear when, in a rage against her criticisms, he curses Goneril and leaves. Lear goes, unannounced, to live with Regan and Cornwall who, it turns out, have gone out to visit Gloucester. When Lear arrives at Gloucester's house to find Regan, she spurns him and his followers, namely his devoted “companion”, the Fool.
�Act III
Despairing for his daughters, and deeply regretting rejecting Cordelia, Lear goes mad at the height of a great storm. He and his Fool run wild on the heath until Gloucester takes them into a hut for shelter. He then seeks the aid of Kent to get them away to the coast, where Cordelia has landed with the French army to fight for her father against her sisters and their husbands. Gloucester then leaves and returns home.
Meanwhile, Edmund is employed as a messenger between the sisters and is courted by each in turn. He persuades Cornwall that Gloucester (Edmund’s father) is an enemy because he has been in touch with France and helped Lear when Lear was turned away by Regan. As punishment for Gloucester's seeming betrayal, Cornwall and Regan pluck out his eyes and abandon him. During the act of blinding Gloucester, a servant stabs Cornwall, who dies. But Regan continues to rule with Edmund's help.
Act IV
Out in the storm, Lear finds shelter where Edgar has also taken refuge, still disguised as Poor Tom. The Fool, the mad king, and the disguised "insane" beggar become unlikely companions before they are separated. Edgar finds Gloucester wandering the heath alone and in agony. Since his father is blind, Edgar (as Poor Tom) leads the despairing man to the coast and cleverly helps him in the journey to accepting his life. Gloucester later meets the mad Lear on Dover beach, near Cordelia's camp. With Kent's aid, Lear is rescued and re-united with the forgiving Cordelia. Gloucester, now reunited with Edgar, dies quietly alone.
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Act V
The French forces are overcome by Albany's army led by Edmund, and Lear and Cordelia are captured. Goneril has already poisoned Regan in their jealous rivalry over Edmund's attention. Edgar, disguised now as a loyal knight, challenges Edmund to a duel and wounds him mortally. Seeing no way out, Goneril kills herself, and the dying Edmund confesses his misdeeds and releases Cordelia. However, it is too late to save Cordelia from the hangman. Lear's heart breaks as he carries the body of his beloved youngest daughter in his arms, and he dies. Albany and Edgar are left to re-organize the kingdom and resolve the civil wars.
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- Adapted from Shakespeare Birthplace Trust
Dramaturg’s Note
When Shakespeare’s King Lear premiered in London in 1606, King James I had just united the Scottish and English crowns. It is likely Shakespeare felt incentivized to show support for this unification by dramatizing the tragic consequences of a king dividing his kingdom. �
For Bowls with the Bard’s take on this epic family drama, King Lear’s royal court has become a business under the big top, with the king reimagined as Ringmaster/CEO. Instead of the warring French and English armies, we now see rival circus companies competing for top billing. In an age of shows like Succession, Yellowstone, The Righteous Gemstones, and Empire, audiences can more easily envision the motives driving greedy stakeholders of a lucrative dynastic enterprise, than those of a monarchy.
Not only do we see the consequences of family members vying for ownership, wealth, and prestige, with this business being show business, we get a heightened divide between private identity and public persona. Ringmaster Lear, long sustained by applause and spectacle, must confront his true self when the spotlight fades.
The family drama is intensified by the parallel father/child plots of Lear and his daughters compared to Gloucester and his sons. In Shakespeare’s time, the play read like a morality play: Lear’s fatal error - dismembering his kingdom - disrupts the “natural” order. For Gloucester, his lechery in the conception of the illegitimate Edmund would have been recognized as his fatal flaw. For a modern audience, the greater sin lies in their parenting: Lear’s rejection of Cordelia, and micromanagement of Regan and Goneril - and the way Gloucester treats his sons: marginalizing Edmund and wrongly condemning Edgar. �
Throughout the play, what is “natural” is set against what is earned. Edgar represents legitimacy, while Edmund claims worth through merit: “Thou, nature, art my goddess…” Lear likewise expects love as a natural right of father and king, even as he demands his daughters prove they deserve his favor—establishing the play’s central tension between entitlement and merit. Setting these relationships inside the circus tent forces these characters to constantly audition for their place on the stage, never forgetting that the bigger the spectacle, the bigger the applause. � - Alison Talvacchio