Live theater is back! It's a pretty lightweight choice as far as Shakespeare goes, but maybe that's just the type of lighthearted comedic fare that the moment calls for. Saheem Ali adapts the Merry Wives of Windsor to a west African community in Harlem. Ali astutely notes that the social mores of Shakespeare's time are still alive in the traditional African immigrant community. I didn't realize that the original relies heavily on French and Welsh accents. Here, the African accents are quite strong, such that it is quite difficult to understand sometimes. But it doesn't matter too much. The actors are still able to convey physical and emotive comedy. It's surprisingly funny and timeless for Shakespeare. And what I appreciated was that it was relatively simple to follow compared to his other comedies that rely on misunderstandings. The set is really great (the angles for 3D perspective, the way the storefronts open up, Falstaff's pimped out room) and the lighting in the final scene against the beautiful trees of Central Park is breathtaking.
