Brittany Deneen, proper, as Emilia and Joe Sykes as William Shakespeare in “The Darkish Woman.” (All photographs by Casey Gardner Ford)
Precisely who Emilia Bassano was has lengthy been disputed, however there’s no mistaking that she is the completely intriguing middle of the brand new play The Darkish Woman, making its U.S. premiere at Synchronicity Theatre.
Written by Jessica B. Hill and directed right here by Alexis Kulani Woodard, The Darkish Woman closes out Synchronicity’s 27th season and runs via June 29. It’s a two-character present with robust performances and sensible, usually fascinating hypothesis concerning the titular lady described in Shakespeare’s sonnets.
Will and Emilia presumably make one another’s acquaintance after making eyes at one another, nevertheless it seems they’ve met one another earlier than. The 2 quickly uncover that he’s William Shakespeare (Joe Sykes), the creator of three performs, the most recent of which is The Two Gents of Verona, and he or she is Bassano (Brittany Deneen), whose household consists of court docket musicians who play for the queen. He’s married with youngsters; she is the mistress of Lord Chamberlain. She’s additionally multiracial and multilingual.
There’s a romantic spark between the 2, however Emilia isn’t afraid of talking her thoughts. “You might be shit at writing girls,” she tells Will bluntly mid-dance. The truth is, a lot of his feminine characters appear to be portrayed by 12-year-old boys. In Emilia’s eyes, she needs extra complicated feminine characters than the playwright has been providing.
They bicker forwards and backwards but stay shut over a number of many years. Emilia turns into Will’s muse, good friend and lover. She helps him together with his personal creations as he prospers and turns into (arguably) probably the most prolific playwright of all time — but, satirically, she struggles to turn into a author herself. It’s an Elizabethan society the place males are allowed to do what they need, however girls have a lot fewer choices, particularly girls of shade. Bassano finally grew to become the primary revealed feminine poet in England in 1611 with Salve Deus Rex Judaeorum, her assortment of poems. Attending to that time, nonetheless, was not straightforward.
The Darkish Woman is top-heavy with romantic and comedic banter early on, but jells into one thing deeper and way more satisfying. There’s a real affection and appreciation between the 2 central characters.
It’s straightforward to see what attracted Synchronicity Theatre to this undertaking. It’s very a lot a couple of robust feminine protagonist, utilizing a up to date lens to offer us a situation of what might need occurred. Just like the final play I noticed on the firm — Kelundra’s Smith’s The Wash — it’s a finely-spun story about girls discovering their very own energy and mettle.
Hill’s dialogue is crisp, playful and infrequently very humorous. “I’m mocked for being too schooled and also you for not being sufficient,” Emilia observes at one level about Will. The play ought to be particularly participating for Shakespeare followers. These two characters have a definitive impression on one another, and their relationship influences Shakespeare’s future canon. When tragedy unexpectedly occurs to Will and Emilia, it reveals up in Shakespeare’s work.
I ought to be aware my shock on the notion that Shakespeare was bisexual and had a relationship with one other man earlier than he started his marriage or his relationship with Bassano. Each he and Emilia appear fairly nonchalant about it; she is extra shocked about his style in males than the truth that he likes them.
Deneen’s Emilia is a girl longing to be taken significantly and to have the alternatives males do. She is enormously interesting within the position, having emotions for Will but additionally seeing how straightforward it’s for him. She offers him his imaginative and prescient, and he sops up the glory, whilst she stays professionally nameless.
Sykes has lengthy been a dependable actor and makes Shakespeare an equally complicated character. He’s a proficient author, for positive, and he advantages from having Emilia round and the recommendation and love she offers him. But he will also be insensitive and merciless, at one time speaking about Bassano’s failure as an artist.
The Darkish Woman isn’t excellent. The characters age 30 years over the course of the play, and that’s not readily obvious. If it’s generally a bit unclear how a lot time has handed, the performances make up for these shortcomings.
All through the play, musician Andrew Cleveland performs a number of devices, together with a mandolin and a cello. Whereas these moments are usually not solely scripted, playwright Hill has indicated that music is each important to the play and to Emilia’s household and narrative. At occasions it feels a bit off-putting, however Cleveland’s unique work successfully serves as a beautiful complement to what’s going on onstage.
The Darkish Woman is Hill’s maiden play, produced for the primary time in 2023. Additionally an actor and educator, the playwright has said that the undertaking is her try to carry Bassano out of the darkish and out of Shakespeare’s shadow. She has executed a really admirable job in doing so, and, beneath Woodard’s sure-footed staging, Synchronicity’s manufacturing is a intelligent, well-acted, breezy 90 minutes.
The place & When
The Darkish Woman is at Synchronicity Theatre via June 29. Tickets begin at $37.
1545 Peachtree St. NE., #102
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Jim Farmer is the recipient of the 2022 Nationwide Arts and Leisure Journalism Award for Finest Theatre Characteristic and a nominee for On-line Journalist of the 12 months. A member of 5 nationwide critics’ organizations, he covers theater and movie for ArtsATL. A graduate of the College of Georgia, he has written concerning the arts for 30-plus years. Jim is the competition director of Out on Movie, Atlanta’s LGBTQ movie competition, and lives in Avondale Estates together with his husband, Craig.
