“King Lear” begins with a foolish ruler swayed by flattery, and ends with what Royal Shakespeare Company artistic director Greg Doran calls “a strange, profound unease.” Shakespeare’s tragedy is, in other words, as relevant as ever. And Doran’s often visually arresting if rarely shattering production at the Brooklyn Academy of Music’s Harvey Theater, which stars Antony Sher as Lear, is as good as any to remind us of the Bard’s insights into stormy times, and the self-delusions of the powerful.
Full review at DC Theatre Scene
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From Left: JAMES CLYDE, DAVID TROUGHTON (both in box) & KELLY WILLIAMS in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
Photo: MIMI NDIWENI in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: MIMI NDIWENI & ANTONY SHER in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: ANTONY BYRNE, ANTONY SHER (reclined) & GRAHAM TURNER in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
Photo: ANTONY SHER & MIMI NDIWENI (center) in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
Photo: ANTONY BYRNE (front at Center) & ANTONY SHER in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: ANTONY SHER & OLIVER JOHNSTONE in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: PAAPA ESSIEDU & DAVID TROUGHTON in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
Photo: ANTONY SHER in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
Photo: ANTONY SHER in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: BYRON MONDAHL, NIA GWYNNE & PAAPA ESSIEDU in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: ANTONY BYRNE, ANTONY SHER & MIMI NDIWENI In KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: CLARENCE SMITH (foreground), MIMI NDIWENI & ANTONY SHER in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
Photo: DAVID TROUGHTON in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
From Left: OLIVER JOHNSTONE & DAVID TROUGHTON in KING LEAR Royal Shakespeare Company By William Shakespeare Directed by Gregory Doran; dress rehearsal photographed: Saturday, April 7, 2018; 1:30 PM at the BAM Harvey Theater; Brooklyn Academy of Music, NYC; Photograph: © 2018 Richard Termine/BAM PHOTO CREDIT – Richard Termine
