For a performance with a cast consisting of just three people, Platform 4 gave an emphatic interpretation of Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ on Thursday evening at the Winchester Tower Arts. The performance was by no means the best adaptation I have seen of this famous play, but it was certainly an interesting one.
The actors, although playing the parts of numerous characters, managed to establish very believable personas; the relationship between Ferdinand and Miranda was very well done, with the actors conveying great chemistry. Notably, the parts of Miranda and Aerial were played by the same actor and for her to be able to switch between characters so swiftly and effortlessly is a skill to be admired.
Due to a minimal cast, not every character in the original play could be included in this production due to the fact that in various scenes of the original there are more than three characters on at one time. To ignore more than half of the original characters and to perform a flawless recital, really is exceptional. The way the cast managed to do this was by following the story line of Prospero, Miranda, and Ferdinand, and completely ignoring the likes of Stephano and Trinculo, who only offer supplementary story lines.
The set was cleverly crafted to accommodate the lack of actors, and kept the story flowing and interesting by being transformed regularly. Furthermore, the inclusion of props proved very significant as they also made up for the lack of characters; a chess board was constantly used to set the scene and refer to characters that, if it weren’t for the lack of performers, would be in the play.
The night was a real success, with the performance captivating the audience and maintaining tension throughout the hour and a half show; definitely a four star performance.
Good work - I agree there's improvement, more confidence
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