Sometimes it is simply better not to know what you’re walking into. Sometimes, the unknown turns into an entertaining and enjoyable surprise. Such was the case for Cliff Cardinal’s As You Like It: A Radical Retelling. The contents of the performance were shrouded in mystery until the moment Cardinal stepped out onto the Great Canadian Theatre Company (GCTC) stage.
The secret behind Cardinal’s As You Like It is to know as little as possible before attending the production. After everyone had taken their seats, the cast and crew were revealed for the first time. Once the play began, the reason for the secrecy became clear; Cardinal shares a secret with the audience, and the audience only.
After being let in on the ruse, the audience spent the next 90 minutes shocked, amused and uncomfortable as Cardinal brought passion and energy to the stage from start to finish. To reveal anything more would be a breach of the contract between the audience and the playwright.
Cardinal brilliantly used the basis of William Shakespeare’s As You Like It, along with its most famous line, “all the world’s a stage,” to bring contemporary issues to life on stage. The radical retelling stayed true to the original play’s themes of love, violence, injustice, deception and forgiveness.
Cardinal played the trickster and honoured his role by deceiving the audience. His storytelling abilities effortlessly pulled audience members into the show as he told personal anecdotes, and had the audience laughing through his use of cutting humour. He broke the fourth wall and engaged with audience members as he narrated the performance with passion and animation.
The costume design was basic and could have been better thought out, as Cardinal was dressed in pants and a hoodie. Including a Shakespearean prop or costume as an ode to the production’s basis would have added an exciting layer of detail to the performance.
The play was performed in front of the red curtain, which was not opened until the last 20 minutes of the play. This was an effective technique, allowing the audience to focus on what was being said and how the actors moved without the extra distractions or needing time for set changes between scenes.
This was truly a performance to remember—it invited the audience to think and consider a radical take on contemporary settler society. The only way to truly understand Cardinal’s secret perspective is to go see the play yourself.
As You Like It: A Radical Retelling runs at the GCTC until Jan. 29. Tickets and showtimes are available on the GCTC’s website.
Featured image by Dahlia Katz.
