STAGE REVIEW : A Rare ‘Richard II’ at Powerhouse

“Richard II” is infrequently staged. The Angel City Repertory production, directed by Randall Sommer at the Powerhouse, makes one wonder why.

Shakespeare’s tragic history of incompetence and ambition did not amuse his regal patrons. His Richard is utterly over his head, unable to squelch his court’s internal quarreling, which breaks out into an open rebellion led by Henry Bolingbroke.

“Richard II” is that rare drama that details how a king falls and another--Bolingbroke, becoming Henry IV--assumes power. Characters define the action, so Sommer has designed a basic, actors’ theater style to support the text.

Five of the six-member cast (all in black, changing costumes on stage between scenes) play multiple roles, crossing age and gender. These are young actors, and no matter how stooped-over Timothy Earle tries to be, his John of Gaunt is unfortunately silly. Sheffield Chastain plays Bolingbroke as a California rebel, but his reading lacks his colleagues’ clarity.

Clarity is the least attribute of Dov Bierman’s Richard. His king is interestingly tempted and repelled by power, an internal division given added weight by Bierman’s uncharismatic appearance. He makes the inevitable royal collapse a hard one on the soul, a sad figure miscast by life’s hazard.