Cincinnati Shakespeare Company is engaged in an ambitious effort to become only the second theater company in the U.S. to present Shakespeare’s eight history plays in historical order. Richard II was offered in 2013; the two parts of Henry IV, combined into one production, were staged a year ago. For 2015 it’s Henry V, picking up after the dissolute youth of Prince Hal and his rowdy friendship with Sir John Falstaff. Hal’s father died at the end of Henry IV, ascending the throne following a costly civil war.
Prince Hal (Justin McCombs) is now Henry V, a chastened young king who needs a cause to unify his nation and refill his royal treasury. With a trumped-up legalistic justification to Henry’s claim on the French throne — provided by a tedious cleric (Nick Rose) whose research is a long-winded genealogical explanation that leaves the nobles on Henry’s court rolling their eyes — the king sets out to conquer that nation. It’s bit of a fool’s errand, since French forces considerably outnumber the British. But brash Henry has become quite the motivational speaker as king, and he rallies his supporters to the cause with several memorable exhortations, Shakespearean lines often repeated over the past four centuries to spur on wartime efforts.
Once Henry’s forces arrive in France, they meet with initial success by besieging the port of Harfleur. That riles the French king, who sends a massive contingent to demolish Henry’s army at Agincourt. The “band of brothers,” however, overcomes an outrageous imbalance and somehow wins the day. This leads to a merger of the kingdoms, at least for the rest of Henry’s reign, solidified by his marriage to the French princess, Katherine (Caitlin McWethy), whose halting English attracts him.
Although Falstaff is mourned in the play’s opening act, his drunken supporters Bardolph, Pistol and Nym — amusingly and energetically played by Billy Chace, Jeremy Dubin and Rose — are still on the scene, becoming unreliable recruits in Henry’s ragtag army and continue to provide some comic relieve to the story. Giles Davies, a longtime Cincy Shakes regular, is back onstage as Fluellen, the loquacious officer who repeatedly strives for the last word (the character’s thick Welsh accent renders him hard to understand, but Davies ensures he’s an amusing catalyst for several scenes).
McCombs delivers an outstanding performance as the jingoistic king, knowing exactly which buttons to push — ever so earnestly — to get men to do amazing things. He navigates the balance between a benevolent ruler and a harsh, manipulative leader. In the show’s final scene, when he woos Katherine with awkward charm, some of Prince Hal’s youthful appeal resurfaces. That’s in no small part because McWethy plays the princess as a lovely, sweet tease.
Paul Riopelle has several small roles, but he most notably he is the “Chorus,” a role Shakespeare created as a narrator to introduce each of the play’s five acts. (Fear not, Cincy Shakes performs Henry V in about two-and-a-half hours, including one 15-minute intermission.) These unusual poetic monologues set up action that follows, giving context and theme, and Riopelle delivers them with clarity and expression.
This production is part of Shakespeare in American Communities, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest. Cincy Shakes is one of 40 theater companies engaged in offering Shakespearean productions to middle- and high-school students across the U.S. The additional funding has made it possible to welcome hundreds of students at no or low cost to attend performances during the school day or in the evening, in conjunction with educational activities.
HENRY V , presented by Cincinnati Shakespeare Company, continues through May 30.
This article appears in May 6-12, 2015.
