I albe9lihigun ?tuiIp 'Yes I am. - That guy Hey, you feis Cathouse wil Stratford production of 'Othello' flies Editor's Note -The Stratford Festival performs several of Shakespeare's plays in repetoire. In a Shakespeare marathon, Melissa Rose Bernardo viewed them all Her reviews of the performances will run during the rest of the summer. By Melissa Rose Bernardo In contrast to "Hamlet" or "Macbeth," "Othello" is a domestic tragedy. There are no kingdoms at stake, no countries in strife; it is the story of one man and how racism poi- sons and eventually destroys him. Consequently, it is a diffi- cult show to produce, because the intimacy of the story must always remain the focus. In a highly commendable production, the Stratford Festival has succeeded in conveying "Othello"'s intimacy with- out losing any of its energy or intensity. The story centers around Othello (Ron O'Neal), a Moor with a prestigious position in the military. He has just eloped with Desdemona (Lucy Peacock), a white woman, and everyone is politely disapproving. But since Othello is such a gifted general and edu- cated man, they can overlook this interracial mar- riage; after all, that makes him "more fair than Black."Butnoteveryone believesthatOthelloshould live like a white man, so his assistant, Iago (Scott Wentworth), presumably disgruntled about a missed promotion, proceeds to poison Othello's mind with destructive lies about Desdemona. Director and Stratford veteran Brian Bedford has set the play in the 1920s, giving this production some serious advantages. The presence of a uniformed military is much strengthened, giving the character of Iago a more defined position; fancy evening gowns and tuxedos clothe Othello's acquaintances, giving the whole circle a country club snootiness. Songs in the play, including one sung by Iago, turn into jazz- hot torch songs. Because of this updating, missing is the ethnic aura which usually surrounds Othello. When he is draped in African-printed robes, laden with knives and primitive weapons, Othello appears more threat- ening tohis colleagues and more exotically attractive to Desdemona. But we can forgive this otherwise laudable production this arguable flaw, since strong performances give this "Othello" such drive. RonO'Neal endows Othello with all the requisite eloquence and presence, and ably makes the transi- tion from man to shell. What Othello loses in the end is his language; Shakespeare has given Othello the most high-flown and metaphoric poetry of any character, which Iago slowly strips away, leaving a sputtering mess of a man who can no longer even aspire to that height of language. O'Neal needn't worry about "Superfly" any longer. Resplendent in white and ivory gowns, Lucy Peacock's Desdemona is a nice match for O'Neal, with as much intelligence and grace as she has beauty. Also notable is Dixie Seattle as the sharp- tongued Emilia. But the most finely crafted performance in production is ScottWentworth's asIago.Wentwo s intensity -whether it be in a glib smirk or a straight- faced standing-at-attention pose - is ever-present and he rarely misses a beat in Iago's movements. All of this is set on another Ming Cho Le masterpiece. Lee's trademarks are very appropriate here: a row of walls operated by a fly system, eac wall dividing the stage into a different depth; back grounds extending far above the audience's view providing some wonderfully elegant lines. The co scheme -you guessed it - black and white, d to every last bit of furniture. Brian Bedford does well behind the scenes, and fuels this production with the same subtle intensity whichcharges hisperformances. Hisone slipis inthe last scene, but after all, two murders and a suicide ar hard to manage. A parental guidance warning should probabl accompany this production. Most kids have neve witnessed a strangling, and it will no doubt elici scattered giggles, as it did at this matinee. But a ward laughter aside, most viewers will be shocked b the contemporary resonance of "Othello." Thanks t this production, we now see that Shakespearean tragedy extends far past kingdoms and countries; it extends into our homes and into our hearts, and that can be a scary place to be. OTHELLO runs in repertory through Oct.15 at the Avon Theatre in Stratford, Ontario. For tickets, accommodations or information about this or any other production, call the Stratford Festival box office at (519) 273-1600.40 :!! $6.50 and fix are Only available at Women the door. It's that light alternative Dave Sim and Gerhard music thingee. Go on, go to it. Aardvark Vanaheim Inc. ZuZUS Petals will be theretoo. To begin, this is not the beginning. Or rather, "Women" is not technically the beginning of an overall story. It is, At University Towers, we've got room just for you... 'o V ER N" ' ...or the whole team Exercise Room " Study Lounge t TV Lounge " Computer Room " Laundry Facilities 24 hour Attended Lobby " Game Room " Outdoor Pool " Heat and Water Included instead, volume eight of the overall "Cerebus" novel. Or it can be viewed as book two of the sub-story "Mothers and Daughters." To hell with it, let's examine it in and of itself. "Women" consists of scenes from severaldifferentindividuals' livesmost of which are brought together at the end of this nearly 250-page writed- arted work. The first two pages of the story are text pieces written by two characters within the active portions of the work. It then starts jumping from life to life (with more text pieces inter- spersedperiodically).Religious-politi- cal intrigues abound with power bro- kers puzzling out the meanings of cer- tain characters' actions. Then magical stuff happens and everyone has to stop dicking around with meaning and has to deal with reality and/or unconscious realms, until the most important char- acters converge and this volume ends. Not that the story is all dark and brooding (it is in black AND white, after all). There are plenty of light momentsto balanceoutthe darkerones. Nothing relieves the tension in a work like the hero standing on the back of someone's neck and making them apologize to a doll 100 times. The art is up to Dave Sim and Gerhard's usual standards. In other words, it's great. Sim's half-comically drawn figures are a treat for your eyes andGerhard'smeticulous backgrounds beat the shit out of anything else cur- rently in comic books. There is little else to say. "The pictures am good, like the words am good" (hey, I think that was the work speaking for itself). So, basically, we have another stallment in the lives of Cerebus the Aardvark and of those around him. Less basically we have a statement by Sim on mothers and daughters (known i 663-2973 Counseling Specializing in Relationship Issues: + couples school " work " Individuals Univer8ity Towers Apartnent 536 S. Forest Ave. 751-Z68U M.S.W., A.C.S The continuing saga of Cerebus, by Dave Sim and Gerhard, continues in the graphic novel, Women.