Two topical takes on ‘Henry V’

With war afoot, so is “Henry V.” William Shakespeare’s 1599 saga of Henry Plantagenet’s 1415 French conquest remains acutely pertinent, as two notable productions demonstrate. “Henry V [Masters of War]” at the Knightsbridge Theatre in Pasadena and the Charlens Company “Henry V” at the Stella Adler in Hollywood offer differing yet apt approaches.

Agitprop outrage dominates director Tiger Reel’s Pasadena deconstruction, less complete than Kenneth Branagh’s 1986 film but even more antiwar.

Video monitors framing the bomb-shelter-scaled venue flash montages of political corruption intercut with historical carnage throughout. The cast assembles, dressed in utilitarian black, delivering John Lennon’s “Gimme Some Truth” with assistance from Lesley Alicia Tye’s martial choreography. After the subsequent group declamation of “O for a Muse of fire,” indifference is inconceivable.

Reel’s extravagantly effective concept suggests astral input from the live camera close-ups to the uniformly excellent ensemble centered by Eric Baldwin’s unblinking monarch, Martin Sheen as Michael Corleone.

But to make the House of Lancaster accommodate the House of Bush (or Hussein), Reel distorts the ironies.

Shakespeare’s protagonist, though certainly flawed, is heroically drawn.

Reel paints him as absolute despot, with a hands-on attitude toward the Act 1 traitors, and courting French princess Katherine (Karen DeThomas) with a brutal, “Sopranos”-style assault.

These in-your-face tactics diminish Reel’s diatribe through overstatement, as does deleting Falstaff’s doomed Boy, Shakespeare’s trump card. Moreover, while Marti Hale’s Quickly touches with her delivery of Elvis Costello’s “Shipbuilding,” the interpolated protest songs ultimately are overkill. Yet this is another kind of irony altogether, and the vivid theatricality is its own reward.

So is the enthusiasm with which director A.M. Charlens’ eager cast invests its account in Hollywood. Like the Knightsbridge staging, it uses non-gender-specific casting. Ideologically, it is the polar opposite, cut to favor patriotic uplift.

Not that all ambiguities are erased. As Henry, Justin Saj goes from cocksure adolescent to shell-shocked conqueror. Charlens works with bare-bones means. The set consists of a center-stage throne, and the costumes are shrewd wardrobe-rack pulls. Such spareness throws emphasis on the verse; given that “Henry” contains some of the loveliest poetry in the canon, this is an asset.

Leandro DiMonriva, alternating Chorus duties with equally eloquent colleagues Brigitte Gardiner and Matthew Saxe, burrows into “O for a Muse” while encircling the venue.

The mechanicals go from rowdy rustics to rending veterans. The French court is dryly satirical, with the vaudeville between Lisana Jeffries’ Katherine and Malinda Zehner’s Alice delightful. Kelly Vincent’s Exeter, Chairman Barnes’ Canterbury, Suzie Duck’s Quickly and Pete Brown’s Montjoy are other standouts.

True, certain National Forensics League aspects are detectable. The pace is erratic, with some awkward scene transitions. Nor does every actor maintain simultaneous iambic pentameter and inner conviction. Nevertheless, the group fervor, along with the topicality, carries both day and play.

*

‘Henry V [Masters of War]’ and ‘Henry V’

Where: Knightsbridge Theatre, 35 S. Raymond Ave., Pasadena

When: Saturdays, 8 p.m.; Sundays, 3 p.m.

Ends: April 20

Price: $20

Info: (626) 440-0821

Running time: 2 hours, 10 minutes

Also

Where: Stella Adler Theatre, 6773 Hollywood Blvd., 2nd Floor, Hollywood

When: Friday and next Thursday, 8 p.m.; Sunday and April 19, 2 p.m.

Ends: April 19

Price: $15

Info: (323) 428-5678

Running time: 2 hours