Minimalism, motion punctuate ‘Hamlet’ by Opera House Arts

Here’s the second joke Thomas Piper told the other day at the Stonington Opera House, where he was rehearsing the role of Claudius with the cast of “Hamlet”: “Two peanuts are walking down an alley. One gets assaulted.”

His first joke, about Farmer Ted and an insatiable rooster, was much longer and more animated – and unpublishable. But Piper’s engaging ability to tell a joke was an important component, along with acting talent, in getting him cast in the Opera House Arts production of “Hamlet,” running Aug. 11-14 at the Stonington Opera House.

“When someone tells a joke, it’s very revealing,” said Julia Whitworth, one of two directors working on the production. “It shows skills for storytelling, timing, a sense of humor and intelligence. There are no stupid characters in Shakespeare.”

Whitworth and co-director Jeffrey Frace have become fixtures at the annual Shakespeare offering at the Opera House. Frace directed last year’s hit production of “Romeo and Juliet.” Whitworth directed the opera house’s first summer show, “The Tempest,” in 2001, and has since presented versions of “Twelfth Night” and “The Winter’s Tale.” The two directors share a minimalist, choreographic approach to their craft, using a cast of only seven actors to portray more than a dozen characters. They trimmed the script by half and have placed an emphasis on the physicality, as well as humor, of the show noted mainly for its tragic events. The set, designed by Ray Neufeld, Whitworth’s husband, is a surreal evocation of silent movie stars, vaudeville and Europe in the 1930s.

Both Frace and Whitworth, who have studied at Columbia University, are trained in the performance techniques of Suzuki and Viewpoints, which are behind the signature style of Stonington’s summer Shakespeare productions. The actors, who are from New York City and Chicago, know that working with Whitworth and Frace means working in these two contemporary approaches. The first, developed by international director Tadashi Suzuki, is a physical discipline that focuses the actor’s attention to each moment onstage. The second, established by choreographer Mary Overlie and expanded by American director Anne Bogart and her SITI Company -co-founded with Suzuki – requires actors to interact spontaneously and intuitively as an ensemble.

“It allows actors to work more like directors,” said Whitworth, who teaches theater at New York University. “I consider myself a co-director with everyone onstage. But people do need an outside eye. And even though Jeffrey and I are directing this together, in rehearsal, I’m the one directorial voice.”

In part, that’s because Frace is playing Hamlet. In addition to working on his onstage role, he and Whitworth began shaping the show two years ago when they decided that Shakespeare’s best-known tragedy was perfect for Stonington’s atmospheric setting and enthusiastic audiences. Shakespeare is the most popular theater offering during the Opera House summer season.

“There’s something about being on an island that creates an interesting crucible for creating art,” said Whitworth. Frace described a “sense of calmness” that provides the actors with a respite from the city; he spent the previous day walking around Ames Pond, famous for its water lilies, while discussing character development with a co-actor. Whitworth and Frace hold daily postrehearsal discussions with each other – sometimes with a view of Stonington’s picturesque harbor.

While Whitworth runs rehearsals, Frace leads the cast members in warm-up exercises based on Suzuki and Viewpoints. Dressed in comfortable clothes, they stood together last weekend in a lineup reminiscent of a karate class as much for its uniformity as for its sharp movements. As a group, they recited memorized lines from “Hamlet” and concurrently struck formal positions as a response to Frace’s instructions. Then they performed an extended improvisational activity in which they moved about the stage, reading each moment, each space and each other person as music played in the background.

By the time the cast rehearsed the nearly carnivalesque opening scene of quirky music, twirling umbrellas, crackling radio announcements and dancelike movements, they were warmed up in their own bodies and tuned to each other. Thomas Piper, who told the joke about peanuts, stole the last moment of the scene with an antic grin. He’s a funny guy, but, alas, an ominous tone to his expression pointed to the play’s underlying theme, the one that originally drew Whitworth and Frace together on this project: Something is rotten in Denmark.

Opera House Arts will present “Hamlet” 7 p.m. Aug. 11-13 and 2 p.m. Aug. 14 at the Stonington Opera House. Tickets are $20 for adults, $18 for those on a fixed income or under 17. Island students get in free with advance reservations. A meet-the-artist reception to benefit OHA’s Island Students Free ticket policy will be held 4:30-6:30 p.m. Sunday, Aug. 14, at Goose Cove Lodge in Sunset on Deer Isle. For performance tickets, call 367-2788. For reception information, call 348-2508. Alicia Anstead can be reached at 990-8266 and aanstead@bangordailynews.net.

?Hamlet?

When: 7 p.m.

Aug. 11-13 and

2 p.m. Aug. 14

Where: Stonington Opera House

Cost: $20 for adults, $18 for people under 17 or on fixed incomes

Contact: Call

367-2788 or visit www.operahouse arts.org