'Henry V' ends cycle on passionate, comedic note

By: SUSAN HAUBENSTOCK SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT | Times-Dispatch
Published: June 15, 2009

The peak theatrical pleasure to be had in Richmond is back: summer Shakespeare at Agecroft Hall.

It's a happy mystery how hot, humid days can switch to cool evenings just as the Elizabethan verse gets going, but it seems to happen every time.

This season's opener is "Henry V," the culmination of three years pursuing the Henry cycle. James Alexander Bond has directed all three plays, and Phillip James Brown has played the younger Henry throughout, granting audiences a marvelous artistic continuity.

And again Bond, aided by Master of Verse Cynde Liffick, has brought us a rousing and gripping production, full of action (including Vanessa Passini's fight direction and Cecile Tuzii's movement coaching), passion and comedy.

The formerly roguish Prince Hal is now King Henry, and the English clergy are urging him to seize France as rightfully his. The French dauphin insults him, and Henry prepares for war.

There are combat scenes and interludes of diplomacy; there are remarkable moments when Henry goes incognito among his soldiers on the eve of battle. And there are stirring moments when Henry exhorts his troops -- "Once more unto the breach" and "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers."

Though there are comic and touching diversions, "Henry V" has no Falstaff, so Henry himself is the clear focus -- and Brown is powerful and magnetic enough to keep us riveted throughout. He shows just a few signs of the slacker he was; Brown is regal with a common touch. Wonderfully musical with the verse, he's also an inspiring leader, a steely judge, and a warm and awkward suitor in his final scene with the French princess.

Bond has balanced the production by emphasizing Shakespeare's varied comedic turns. The strongest of these is Bob Jones' Fluellen, the Welsh captain. Jones delights with his mastery of language and his unexpected physicality. Joseph Anthony Carlson, returning as Pistol, is a delightfully comic blusterer, and the pair of Phillip Reid and Thomas L. Cunningham as Bardolph and Nym amuse as well.

The cast of 19 performs 37 roles, with particularly strong supporting performances by Brandon Crowder, Nicholas Aliff, Tim Saukiavicus, Alan Sader, Joseph Sultani, Jamie Rees, Sarah Jamillah Johnson, Jeffrey Cole, Michael Hamilton and Jacqueline O'Connor. J. David White's lighting is dramatic, and the reliable Rebecca Cairns and Ann Hoskins contribute wonderfully detailed costumes.