Richmond Shakespeare’s Summer Series is upon us! Opening this past weekend was Cyrano, the 1897 romantic revivalist play by Edmond Rostand (1868-1918), loosely based on the life and exploits of the 17th-century French novelist Cyrano de Bergerac. Considering the theatre world was consuming Ibsen, Chekov, and Strindberg at the time of Cyrano’s debut, not to mention digesting Freud, Marx, and Nietzsche in their salons, Rostand’s deeply felt heart-wrencher stood in opposition to the clinical miasma of late 19th-century preoccupation. It’s easy to assume the play is much older than it is, considering the Elizabethan rhythms of its Alexandrine verse and the vivacity of its truly original tropes and themes. The bizarre love triangle and seduction-by-proxy most associated with the story overshadow some of the stickier threads of voyeurism and cuckoldry.
There have been numerous adaptations, including my favorite by A Clockwork Orange author Anthony Burgess. There have been innumerable film adaptations, which was a burgeoning art form at the time of its writing. The legend of Cyrano burst into the collective consciousness and never left – in name, nor indirectly. Dozens of Cyrano de Bergerac’s have graced the silver screen, including Steve Martin’s go at the character in 1987’s Roxanne, to the Cyrano-inspired animated film Megamind.
My favorite legacy of the work is Cyrano himself. He remains one of the most intriguing characters in modern literature. Culled from real-life rumors of the aforementioned author and puffed into legend, he feels like the Walter Mitty-style shower dream of the romantically challenged. He’s a master swordsman, poet, thinker, jester, bon vivant, and dubious scientist. He’s the jack of all trades one becomes when curiosity for everything meets contempt for convention, hierarchy, and criticism. He is the embodiment of free will, constantly engaged in whatever pleases him, and consistently on the edges of society for those pursuits.
What his character brings to the table is also a word the play coined to the English language, “panache.” Cyrano has an indefatigable ability to speak with eloquence, style, and confidence, parallel to the courage to back his quips in action.
Did I mention Cyrano had a huge nose? Like, enormous. He tells tale of it better than I can, and does famously, in numerous ways. The nose is the bane of his existence. It’s the one thing that overshadows his wit, ability, and, well, panache. It’s the one thing that keeps him from his beloved Roxanne. The dichotomy of pride and shame Cyrano bears like a sun and moon sharing the same sky is refreshing and sad all at once.
Enough of context, let’s discuss Richmond Shakespeare’s run at the title. Firstly, let us give props to Andrew Gall, the Director of this attempt, who went so far as to adapt the play from the original French himself. The gall of the man! I couldn’t stop myself. Sorry.
The titular character and first dibs at scrutiny goes to James Murphy, who in last season’s Born With Teeth stunned as William Shakespeare himself. As Cyrano, he brings the loud, loutish, lover to life with layered notes of bravado over doubt. His characterization is complex with a fine finish of self-hatred, impossible longing, and a pinch of Groucho Marx. He less chews the scenery than sips it, letting the undertones of Cyrano shine through the one-man band act Cyrano desperately needs his peers to focus on – lest they see his true pain. I always felt the character puts on his stamping pantomime of bravura to distract from his short(long?)comings, but that would halve Cyrano into less than what he is. His “nose” is his curse but also his freedom. It allows him to be as different as it is – large and ostentatious – and is called to own it, rather than hide it. He is beheld, but not held, by Paris’ fashions and gossips. James Murphy rolled all of these concepts into his portrayal perfectly. I was captivated.
Kaitlin Paige Longoria plays Roxanne. The character is written to elicit groans pointed at the vanities of youth, lust, superficiality etc, and yet in Ms. Longoria’s hands they affect a perfectly normal teenage girl swooning over the latest Boy Band poster boy that happened to saunter into court. Highborn, lovely, and spoken of as having a wit to match our dear Cyrano, Kaitlin’s Roxanne acknowledges her popularity without abusing it. There seems no malice about the person, just a scent of naivéte. The portrayal is seamless, if even as a side-dish to the chaos of courtship surrounding Cyrano and Christian. Longoria is currently the Artistic Director at 5th Wall Theatre locally, but has extensive credits and honors in New York and Edinburgh. There’s a mastery of craft about her. She melts into Roxanne.
Erich Appleby is a damn fine, good-looking dude. He’s giving young Bily Dee Williams vibes in a wig, and I don’t hate it. That may be a weak comment befitting a theatre review, but consider this. Notice the difference between a beautiful person who knows they’re pretty and one who doesn’t. Notice the body language of a person who’s honestly tired of being just pretty. Notice the aversion of eyes, discomfort, of someone who knows they’re pretty, is tired of being pretty, but needs to be pretty because that’s all they have going for them.
You can go down the rabbit hole of conflicting and exacerbating conditions beauty brings in relation to the soul that bears it. It’s subtle, but Mr. Appleby took the effort of plumbing those depths and struck the right notes to achieve the essence of a good, if not dim, man trapped in a smokeshows’ body. Erich’s Christian reminds the audience that the green on the other side of the fence may yet be full of glass, even if it’s attached to that ass.
The rest of the cast is rounded out by actors with significant frequent flyer miles on Richmond stages. Most notably on the day I was lucky enough to catch the performance, was the appearance of Foster Solomon, one of the O-est of G’s in Richmond theatre. He has been a part of the Richmond Shakespeare family since 1999, when he directed and starred in their first-ever Agecroft Hall show. He filled in as DeGuiche, in a last-minute swashbuckle that dared you to notice he was reading lines from flash cards. Big ups to the versatility of a trained professional. To display no apology, to behave as if it were completely natural that the Comte de Guiche reads his thoughts from his hand, was a bit inspiring.
Cole Metz brings the big “hon-hon-hons” required of any properly rounded French baker, complete with booming voice and geniality. John Cauthen is consistently brilliant as Cyrano’s sidekick LeBret. A cool thing about his take on it is that he sells the idea that this is the guy someone like Cyrano would actually hang out with. Chill, non-judgmental, along for the ride or die. I enjoyed watching him.
Minus some overly broad ‘drunkenness’, conventionally typical backdrop character behavior, the ensemble manages to not step on the leads’ toes, which is a feat when there are so many opportunities to do so. Sydney Wright was a standout, and Claire Wittman’s multiple characters each contained their own souls.
You can’t get any better than the courtyard at Agecroft Hall for a beautiful night at the theatre. It is truly a thing you must do. Go see Cyrano!
You can find tickets HERE
Support RVA Magazine. Support independent media in Richmond.
In a world where corporations and wealthy individuals now shape much of our media landscape, RVA Magazine remains fiercely independent, amplifying the voices of Richmond’s artists, musicians, and community. Since 2005, we’ve been dedicated to authentic, grassroots storytelling that highlights the people and culture shaping our city.
But we can’t do this without you. A small donation, even as little as $2 – one-time or recurring – helps us continue to produce honest, local coverage free from outside interference. Every dollar makes a difference. Your support keeps us going and keeps RVA’s creative spirit alive. Thank you for standing with independent media. DONATE HERE.
Also, you can show your support by purchasing our merch HERE.
