By Eric George Tauber
SAN DIEGO — “Truth’s a game. It’s the lies that are deadly serious.”
Imagine that your country is invaded and your king takes refuge in your house. The invading soldiers knock on your door and ask if you know the whereabouts of your king. You must now choose between your duty to your king and to the truth. You might say, “The king’s exact whereabouts are unknown to me.” After all, you don’t know if he’s hiding in the pantry or under a bed. That’s not a “lie” but an “equivocation.”
When I was a student in England, on that November 5th, the school had a bonfire and burned a straw effigy of a man. That was the first I’d heard of “Guy Fawkes Day.”
The story goes that in 1605, Guy Fawkes and a group of cohorts conspired to blow up Parliament with King James I and the House of Lords in order to restore Catholic rule to the country. They were caught. The plot was foiled and all of the conspirators made full confessions. This is the story that Sir Robert Cecil, Earl of Salisbury wants told.
The haunting strains of a cello and evocative set by Sean Fanning bring us into the world of London’s Globe Theatre. The actors are rehearsing the storm scene from King Lear and complaining that it’s “unplayable.” Robert Smyth is William Shagspear (one of several known spellings), a man past his prime and haunted by inner demons.
Enter Robert Cecil, the king’s chief minister, who commissions Shagspear to adapt his book on the Gunpowder Plot for the theatre as propaganda. It’s an exciting –and dangerous- proposition as no theatre had ever played current events before. Fran Gercke is cunningly sinister as Cecil, a single minded individual who is obsessed with keeping power in the “right” hands.
Shagspear runs into some problems. First, how do you play a tragedy that never happened? The plot was foiled. Second, the details of the plot just don’t add up. The confessions were made under torture which –in spite of some politicians affection for it- simply do not lead to reliable information.
“I want to tell the truth. I just don’t want to get caught at it.”
Throughout the play, reality slips into rehearsal and fantasy is sharply halted by hard realities, making for a surreal experience that will keep you on the edge of your seat.
“How could there be anything true about a play?”
Caitie Grady touches our hearts as Judith. Hers is a complicated relationship with Shagspear. She’s as devoted as a daughter can be, but famished for a father’s affection.
Hats off to Director Deborah Gilmour Smyth for putting together a tight ensemble. The Globe’s company of actors: Francis Gercke, Ross Hellwig, Brian Mackey and Paul Eggington play multiple roles with quick costume changes. Kudos to Costume Designer Jeanne Reith for a brilliant array of attire.
As to the question of the ethics of equivocation, the Sages of Talmud posed a similar dilemma. If someone runs past you and goes to your right, and a murderer comes after him, you have a moral obligation to misdirect the murderer to the left. The value of a soul, Piku’ach Nefesh, trumps all other concerns.
If you love Shakespeare, history and the twists and turns of a great mystery, Equivocation will pull you into a dark and fascinating world.
*
Tauber is a freelance writer specializing in coverage of the arts. He may be contacted via eric.tauber@sdjewishworld.com