"Twelfth Night" by Zephyr Theatre at the Great Banquet Hall

Stillwater's Zephyr Theater is back with a very short run of Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, presented in the Grand Banquet Hall in Stillwater. It's billed as "a 1960s tropical comedy romance," with some inspiration from the iconic TV series Gilligan's Island. This allows for some fun with the costumes and design, which also incorporates Christmas decor, as Twelfth Night is traditionally celebrated as the 12th night after Christmas. I wish they had leaned more into the Gilligan's Island theme, I didn't really get much of it other than that the twins are dressed like Gilligan in the bucket hat, red long-sleeved shirt, and jeans. But it's a fun show, with seating at large round tables and food and beverages available to enjoy before and during the show, giving it a holiday celebration sort of feel. If you're in the Stillwater area, check out one of their three remaining performances this weekend.

Cesario (Amber Solis) attempts to woo Olivia
(Sammie Bonko, photo courtesy of Zephyr)

Our story revolves around shipwrecked male and female twins who are separated, each thinking the other is drowned. Viola (Amber Solis) decides to disguise herself as a man, as one does in such situations, calling herself Cesario and going into service for the Duke Orsino (Alec Berchem). On his behalf she woos the mourning Olivia (Sammie Bonko), who wants nothing to do with the Duke but falls for young Cesario, who in turn is in love with the Duke. Viola's twin Sebastian (Nicholas Pecora) shows up later causing much amusing Shakespearean confusion. Meanwhile, Olivia's handmaid Maria (Heidi Ricks), her kinsman Sir Toby the buffoon (Matthew Kraft), and his equally ridiculous friend Sir Andrew (Danny Zubic) play a cruel trick on another member of her household, Malvolio (Corey DiNardo), using his love for Olivia to humiliate him. It's all tied together with music, "the food of love," and in the end everyone lives happily ever after as true identities are revealed.*

the fools celebrate (photo courtesy of Zephyr)

Captaining this ship is director Amanda Espinoza, whom I know as an actor, particularly gifted with comedy. The show has a comic, at times zany feel, and the banquet hall space is well used - actors enter via the aisle through the audience, or from the bar area, for an immersive feel. A cute tiki bar is the main set structure, the space strung with garland, Christmas stocking, and twinkling lights. The room has some sound issues; before the show I could clearly hear a conversation happening on the other side of the room as the voices reflected off the dome above me. Perhaps for this reason most of the actors are miked, which for the most part works, but is a bit uneven and occasionally some of the lines are muffled, not ideal for Shakespeare. 

Highlights in the cast include Sammie Bonko as the grieving Olivia, believably falling for Cesario; Corey DiNardo, getting some of the biggest laughs as Malvolio in the yellow cross-gartered stockings, really playing to the audience, but also engendering empathy when he gets bullied; Erika Soukup as the fool Feste, providing some lovely or funny musical moments singing and playing ukulele; and Abbey Lowenstein stealing scenes as a number of different characters.

The Twelfth Night celebration continues at the Grand Banquet Hall in Stillwater through March 22, get there early to order food and drinks, and to secure parking in the free lots and streets surrounding the venue. And mark your calendars for July, when they return to Aamodt's Apple Farm for an outdoor production of The Hobbit.

*Plot summary borrowed from what I've written about previous productions.