Cymbeline @LCT

I saw a preview for Cymbeline this weekend.  Broadway is still on strike (I'm out of a job) but thank God Lincoln Center is open for business.  At least I can see some theater on my new found "snow days" off from work (although the novelty wore off after the first day).  Cymbeline.  Who knew Shakespeare wrote such happy endings?  I suppose Shakespeare-ites knew, but I sure didn't.  What a fun little serio-dramatic play.  Lots of drama filled with lots of laughs.  Just when things would get a little too serious and you wonder if you just stepped into a darker play, the old man steps out and hits you with a one liner and things relax again.  I thought the performances were very good.  I had a seat on one of the far sides of the theater in the last row so I wonder if that played any part in my difficulty hearing sometimes, although some actors could project better than others.  I'm so glad I finally got to see Martha Plimpton live on stage.  She really is a force of nature.  Not just her vocal energy carried the back of the theater, but her emotional energy as well.  Every word she spoke made sense as if it were actual everyday dialogue coming from a Mamet play.  Also quite incredible is Jonathan Cake.  Remember that name.  He will be moving onwards and upwards soon.  He has the acting chops, good looks, and physique(not to mention the accent) to make it big.  I've seen Michael Cerveris in many other productions (Sweeney Todd, King Lear, LoveMusik) and this might be my least favorite.  He is a fine actor and has a clear understanding of the work.  I think he is a bit miscast as the leading man lover opposite Plimpton.  Others in the cast perform as expected.  John Collum played John Collum to the tee.  As did Phylicia Rashad.  They both are commanding on stage, if a little cliche as King who doesn't realize the machinations going on around him, and Queen who (like Fastrada in Pippin) tries to get her loaf of a son the throne by ousting the King.  The rest of the cast is wonderful.  Relationships were very clear and specific among everyone.  I think the overall MVP goes to the director Mark Lamos.  I thought everything was clear and concise.  Transition moved along swiftly from scene to scene and the entire production served the overall message in the end.  I love walking out of the theater feeling newly inspired.