‘Measure for Measure’ @ Shakespeare Dallas

Photos by Jordan Fraker Photography

—Jan Farrington

Who will believe thee, Isabel?…Say what you can, my false o’erweighs your true.

The lines are more than 400 years old, but Angelo’s cold words give us some serious, up-to-date shivers. It’s Brett Kavanaugh v. Christine Blasey Ford. It’s DJT v. Stormy Daniels. It’s Monica v. Bill. It’s every woman who’s ever found herself in the “he said, she said” position. In this case, it’s desperate young nun Isabella (Mikaela Baker) v. Angelo (Carson Wright), the respected, straight-arrow young statesman who suddenly wants her in the worst way.

It’s a world we recognize, too—a transactional, corrupt, I-do-what-I-want city of power brokers and hangers-on. Honesty is a laugh, seeking justice a hobby for fools.

Measure for Measure is the first Shakespeare Dallas winter show in five years—and it’s a gripping experience, gaining emotional impact by how physically close we are to the desperation and fears of the characters. SD has taken over Theatre Three’s in-the-round arena space for the production—and it works well. Measure was written toward the end of Shakespeare’s career, probably only a few years before King Lear. And in it, his astonishing insight into the minds of men and women is at peak level. It makes for some intense theater.

Shakespeare’s setting is Vienna (it could be any “foreign” town), whose Duke Vincentio (Ethan Norris) has decided to go undercover in his own city (disguised as a monk) to get an honest look at what the citizens are up to. In his place, he leaves a much younger man renowned for his judgment and honesty. Shakespeare lets Isabella tell us what she (and he) thinks of this decision: “Man, proud man, dressed in a little brief authority….” Could be trouble.

Isabella is only days away from taking her final religious vows when she learns her beloved brother Claudio (Doak Rapp) has been sentenced to death for impregnating his fiancée. It’s a crime more often overlooked than punished, but Angelo is determined to make Claudio an example.

Claudio’s friends, notably the talkative, working-the-room Lucio (Omar Padilla), ask Isabella to plead for her brother’s life. She and Angelo face off in point/counterpoint arguments—until his eyes spark with desire, and the talk turns gritty. “Redeem thy brother by yielding up thy body to my will,” Angelo says flatly. “Fit thy consent to my sharp appetite.”

And it’s on. Can Isabella find a way to save Claudio without betraying her faith and morals? Is that kind of “sin” really a sin? Even Claudio—whose first reaction is “no way!”—has second thoughts. “What says my brother?” Isabella asks him. “Death is a fearful thing,” says Claudio quietly.

Baker and Wright keep us at the edge of our seats with their verbal battles—and Wright has a way of whirling around to the audience to see if we’re buying his self-serving arguments. (Just nod; he’s wound up pretty tight.) We’re impressed with Isabella’s nimble intelligence, and her grip on the principles that guide her—though we wonder what we’d do in her place. Baker gives her a warmth that balances her strict (but untested) ideas.

Around them is a fine-tuned ensemble: the disguised Duke, who’s developing a deep interest in this dilemma.…older courtier Escalus (Adrian Godinez), who might have been a smarter choice than Angelo for “deputy” duty….rowdy clown Pompey (Brandon Whitlock), a slapstick Cabaret-style denizen of the Viennese brothels and taprooms….constable Elbow (TA Taylor), doing a bad job of herding these cats….unhappy Mariana (Caitlin Chapa), Angelo’s abandoned betrothed….and “bawd” Mistress Overstreet, teetering in stiletto heels. (Nicole Berastequi plays both the brothel “madam” and the nun’s Mother Superior—a walking illustration of the Madonna/Whore complex.)

Director Jenni Stewart keeps energy high, and uses the theater space with imagination: I was struck by the initial encounter between high-up Angelo (at a desk on the top level of the theatre) and on-the-ground Isabella, looking up to plead with him. Their relative positions in the hierarchy (or do I mean patriarchy?) couldn’t be more clear.

Isabella feels (and is) in a trap. But hasn’t that been the way of things for those who check “F” on the forms? She does her best to find a way out, and is helped by the incognito Duke (who thinks he’d best get back to work).

But are there other traps coming at her? Shakespeare’s ending can be played several ways: SD does it in a flash, blackout-style, and leaves us to analyze Isabella’s reaction—and ours. Was our first thought “Oh, happy ending!” or “Hey, wait a sec….”

Your answer will tell you something about yourself.

Will would like that.

WHEN: January 8-26, 2025
WHERE: Theatre Three, 2688 Laclede St., Dallas
WEB: shakespearedallas.org