Cast adrift with a young daughter, Prospero is put out to sea to perish. Stranded on a distant island for many years, Prospero masters and perfects the magic arts. Read more …
As Prospero’s enemies approach, and with the help of the spirit Ariel, a storm is raised, sweeping a royal ship and Prospero’s enemies onto the rocks.
What revenge is planned?
The central concept is so overwhelmingly pointless that even the stronger elements are in danger of being submerged in the detritus of Green's ugly set.
If such an ambitious reading threatens to topple into itself at times, MacDougall anchors things with such a nuanced mix of dynamism and pathos that it's hard not to be moved by Prospero's plight in a richly realised production.
This unconventional casting turns the play into a metaphor not just for the sexual awakening of Miranda as she falls for Kevin Lennon's Ferdinand – the first man she's ever seen – but for relations between men and women everywhere.
It is, however, Green’s pointless clutter (MacDougall got her feet caught up in a bin bag on press night) which defines this production, ensuring that Levick’s directorship of the Rep gets off to the most disappointing of starts.
The overall effect of the show, though, is as powerful and disturbing as it s dfficult to forget.
Irene MacDougall to play female Prospero in Dundee Rep's The Tempest
Women for all seasons
Dundee Rep Theatre, Dundee from Wednesday June 6, 2012, until Saturday June 23, 2012. More info: www.dundeereptheatre.co.uk
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