Single Thread’s Othello shines with talent

by Grace O'Connell, Queen's Journal (Oct 19, 2004); Photo by Tim Fort

Cassio and Bianca share a tender moment on stage.

The prolific Single Thread Theatre Company has once again treated the members of the Kingston community to an exceptional theatre-going experience.

After the success of last fall’s Julius Caesar, the company once again decided to try their hand at Shakespeare. The selection this time was the tragedy of Othello, and those familiar with the text were not disappointed by the company’s ambitious staging, put together after a mere six weeks of rehearsal.

Ahmed Kayssi, of university rector fame, was cast in the title character, his first-ever starring role. Despite being new to the stage, Kayssi gave an admirable performance, and worked well alongside his beautiful wife, Desdemona, played by Robin Willis. Willis herself gave one of the strongest performances of the show, connecting well with a difficult text and showing a real depth of emotion in her character.

A minimalist set design in muted colors, courtesy of Dan Rider, created dynamic levels for the actors to work with, and a backdrop on which director Liam Karry was able to exercise his excellent eye for visually appealing blocking. Othello is Karry’s third directing effort. In April he directed Samuel Beckett’s challenging piece, Waiting for Godot, also a Single Thread production.

Costumes with an intended late Victorian quality, designed by Single Thread veteran Jonathan Langley, kept with the pared down feeling of the piece. Military costumes for the male characters were particularly well-furnished.

Langley portrayed the true central character of Othello — the wicked and amoral plotter, Iago. Karry’s casting prowess is felt in his placing of Langley, undeniably his strongest actor, in this central and pivotal role. Langley served as dramaturge to Karry’s directing, reversing the roles they served in a previous show.

The surprise stand-out performance of the night came from Alex Dault, who skillfully played Roderigo. Dault showed an excellent understanding of the character, presenting Roderigo as a believable tool, who finds himself in over his head with the wicked Iago. His delivery and physicality displayed a connection with the text which made him a pleasure to watch. Dault was only in his first year when he was cast for the role of Roderigo last spring, predicting a future as bright for the company as is its present.

One of the pleasures of this show was the lack of a single weak link in the cast. Karry expressed his appreciation for his actors, calling himself “completely spoiled” by his resources. Actors known within the department as leading men and women graciously accepted smaller roles and made them shine.

While the show started somewhat weak, it steadily gained momentum as the night progressed. Opening scenes were saved by an expressive performance from Phil Borg as Brabantio, whom you loved to hate as he casts Desdemona aside like a sweaty PEC towel.

Particularly enjoyable in the first act was the celebration scene featuring Langley, Dault, Michael Rode as Montano, and Jeff Berezny as Cassio, in addition to assorted supporting cast members. The scene began in a comic tone, with actors chugging fake wine like thirsty revellers at an Aberdeen kegger, yet the transition into one of the most challenging stage fights of the play was utterly seamless. Berezny, who moments before had the audience in stitches, was the very picture of remorse after wounding Rode’s Montano. Berezny gave a consistent and impressive performance throughout the night, never overplaying his noble character. His performance pointed to an actor with great range and control.

The company made an ambitious choice in their selection of Othello. Several scenes required intricate stage-fighting choreography. Karry took another risk filling one of his lead roles with a relatively inexperienced actor. The show was not without slight snags; ends of lines were occasionally dropped, though flawlessly memorized. In a final estimation, however, the risks paid off in the production. Ahmed Kayssi—for his part—shows great promise as an actor, and hopefully will be seen again with Single Thread.

Othello stands up as an impressive show, very well-directed with a stunning cast, and is a credit to all those involved. The show allowed Single Thread to display their range of ability, contrasting what Karry called a “stripped down, straight up the centre Shakespearean tragedy” with last year’s high-concept Julius Caesar.

Othello gave the company the chance to showcase their actors’ talent for character acting without the support of head spinning environmental theatre techniques. With or without embellishment, this is a company which creates original and interesting theatre.

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