I'VE A DELICIOUS BIT OF GOSSIP for you. Now don't tell anyone, but Stephanie Shine has been prancing around in her underwear in front of scores of people. Quite shameless, don't you think?
Well, it might be, were she not playing Lady Sneerwell in Seattle Shakespeare's wonderful production of "The School for Scandal" where rumor is the central element. Written by Richard Brinsley Sheridan in 1777, this comedy of manners offers a stinging rebuke to all who wantonly destroy reputations though malicious gossip.
In the drawing rooms and boudoirs of fashionable English society, a cast of smarmy, prattling gossips spread unspeakable lies for the pleasure of being "in" as well as for the purpose of destroying their rivals. The most reprehensible of these coteries is that which revolves around Lady Sneerwell.
This vixen wants, through gossip and deceit, to break up a prospective match between Charles Surface and Maria, the young ward of Sir Peter Teazle. Lady Sneerwell wants Charles for herself. One of her staunch allies in this effort is Charles' own brother Joseph, a hypocritical conniver who would like to destroy his brother's reputation so that he can win both Maria's inheritance and that of their rich uncle.
The other rumormongers of their group aren't aware of these motives, but how they love the intrigue and the character assassination. Among them is the naïve new wife of Sir Peter Teazle. She's a country girl, brought to the big city by the much older Sir Peter.
He finds out, however, that a young wife can bring as much pain as pleasure to an older man. When he suggests to her that he'd like some authority in this relationship, she responds, "Had you wanted authority, you should have adopted me, not married me."
The troubled marriage of Sir Peter is simply one of the complications that unfolds in this marvelously funny production. There are cases of mistaken identity, double entendres, all manner of intrigue, as well as inopportune discoveries of people hidden behind screens and in closets, people who should never have been there in the first place.
Of course, in the end, good triumphs. The right brother gets Maria. The naïve country wife of Sir Peter learns a few valuable lessons that should make her a far better wife than she has been, and the connivers have their comeuppance. But in the interim, the audience has been taken on a rollicking romp through the byways of 18th-century social intrigue.
As usual for the Seattle Shakespeare Company, the acting and timing are superb, no easy feat given the tempo required for speech and action. The language of 230 years ago has been made totally accessible and comfortable to modern ears. The entire cast deserves praise for their performances - from the most insignificant servant to the lead actors. This is an ensemble piece, and the ensemble is grand.
Dressed in opulent costumes, these pretentious, perfumed dandies strut about the stage, waving their handkerchiefs and fluttering their fans. The men bow to each other and to the ladies in exaggerated and complex movements that are so feigned, so phony, as to be laughable. The ladies display their emotions with exaggerated facial expressions. It all reinforces the idea that this is a society where everything is false. What is masked as solicitous information is designed to hurt or reduce someone. The polite gestures are thin camouflage for mean-spirited motives.
THE COSTUMES CREATED under the direction of Heidi Ganser are glorious - opulent fabrics, sweeping lines, lush colors. The company has clearly decided that the sense of the period is far better created through the dress of the many actors than it is through elaborate scenery.
Albert Clementi's minimal set announces the time-frame with a beautifully designed "marble" floor that has been painted on the stage. That plus a few bits of furniture work well to create the appropriate surroundings for the well-dressed and perfumed dandies as they strut about making their mischief.
There was only one element of the production that bothered me. One of the characters is Jewish. Because this is a play written in the 18th century, it reflects the prejudice of its time. The man is called "the Jew" and stereotypic comments are made about Jews. Like Shylock he's a money lender, but unlike Shylock he's fair. I can't understand why the decision was made to have him speak in an accent that one might hear in Brooklyn today. That seems to carry the intolerance of the past to the present.
Aside from that decision, director Rod Ceballos did everything right as far as I'm concerned.
"The School for Scandal" is rarely produced today. That's a pity. We're fortunate Seattle Shakespeare Company took it on.
'THE SCHOOL FOR SCANDAL'
Seattle Shakespeare Company at the Center House Theatre, Seattle Center
Thursday-Sunday through July 1
Tickets: $18-$32, 733-8222 or www.seattleshakespeare.org
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