Prospero’s Gender-Bending Fantasy Island

By Roland Finger
Staff Writer

Welcome to Fantasy Tempest Island, where lawful hierarchies will be reestablished, and the punishment for transgressors will be light but effective. Director David Wheeler’s version of Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” transports us to a lively world of shipwreck, intrigue, and tidy resolution. This adaptation of The Tempest alters the original play by casting as Prospero a strong matriarchal figure, played by Meagan Volkman-Wilson, and Alonso, the ruler of Naples, is also played by a woman. In other words, women are the main power brokers in the play, while male characters try to usurp the authority.

Twelve-years ago, Antonio betrayed his sister, Prospero, the Duchess of Milan, casting her and her daughter, Miranda, out to sea in a small boat, leaving them for dead. But Prospero ended up landing on and colonizing an island, from which she now orchestrates an elaborate plan to return to her rightful place in charge of Milan. Prospero raised Miranda on this island inhabited by an indigenous man named Caliban, which name some say recalls the words cannibal and Caribbean. After Caliban tried to rape Miranda, Prospero for all intents and purposes enslaved him. Tyler Michaels plays Caliban masterfully, shambling around like an embittered hunchback who craves vengeance and power. Some have interpreted The Tempest as a new-world allegory about colonial powers and their need to sort out political arrangements through confrontations on the imperial front. But let’s not go there. This production of the play emphasizes young love, comedy, and matriarchal authority.

With the aid of Ariel, a sort of indentured spirit servant, Prospero raises a storm that maroons her enemies Antonio, Alonso, and their servants, on the island. Hi-jinks, danger, and some romance ensue, and then Prospero persuades Antonio and Alonso to renounce their treacherous ways. To seal the deal, Prospero arranges the marriage of Miranda to Prince Ferdinand, Alonso’s son. Early on, the dashing Ferdinand sweeps Miranda off her feet, all according to Prospero’s wily plan. It’s young love with making out, some gentle petting, and a barely constrained desire to get naked, but mother Prospero keeps it all fairly chaste. Matt Englund plays Ferdinand with dashing ardor, and Caroline Stommes reveals beauty and innocence in her portrayal of Miranda. Prospero wants to keep the lovers on edge, devoted and engaged, with virginity intact until the proper wedding ceremony has taken place. But Miranda is quite flirty when she sees other men; does this bode well for her married life?

This is not a story of revenge. It’s one of returning the social hierarchies to proper balance. On the island, Caliban plots to have Stephano, a butler, kill Prospero. This murderous side-plot grows from what is akin to a game of Twister, which Caliban and Trinculo play quite comically. Caliban ridiculously kisses Stephano’s feet, and Stephano, in an act evoking notions of peer pressure, forces Caliban to drink too much wine. Stephano wants to kill Prospero, and seize Miranda. It’s all very primitive and barbaric.
In another plotline, Antonio encourages Sebastian to kill Alonso and seize the crown of Naples. In the prelude to the play, before the action begins, Caliban’s mother, the witch Sycorax, imprisons the spirits of the island and then dies, leaving the spirits trapped in pain. Prospero returns the characters to their rightful positions, which is fair, but also in her best interest.

Fulfilling a contract to gain her liberty, the spirit Ariel, played by Katie Adducci, zooms around the island, appearing as if she’s had a few Red Bulls and is now floating on air. Ariel displays courtly gestures and a kind demeanor, making her bond with Prospero seem a little flirty.

I like this version with a female Prospero for many reasons. I imagine Queen Elizabeth and Queen Latifah would like seeing a strong female leader who could restore order after a tempest of political adversity and corruption. Prospero plays strong power politics, scaring those who challenge her, but also shows compassion. Prospero could easily have knocked off her foes, but she shows even more strength by forgiving them. Her generosity may reveal an admission that twelve years ago she was too busy with her magical studies and private life to attend to affairs of state, which gave place to her brother’s villainy. Additionally, Prospero’s appearance while she controls the weather and directs spirits suggests that she is a kind of Mother Nature figure.

As the play concludes, Prospero leaves her magic staff and books behind on the island. Some critics have seen Prospero as a symbol of Shakespeare’s retirement from the magic of theatre life. This play was reputedly one of, if not, Shakespeare’s last. Further, Miranda will now get married, the perfect image of harmony and union, nobody in the play gets permanently injured, and Caliban gets to have his island back. The Sebastian and Stephano subversion plots come to naught because Prospero has kept a careful eye on the visitors to the island. This version of the play subtly demonstrates that women can lead a culture, pushing corrupt males aside. Kimberly Miller plays Gonzalo wonderfully, assuming the guise of age quite well. Gonzalo’s kindness in supplying Prospero with food, clothing, and books, probably preserved Prospero’s and Miranda’s lives.

The unnamed members of the cast, who play other spirits, do an excellent job supplying dynamic sound effects, from the boom and crack of thunder and lightning to the gentle sound of a magic charm that induces sleep. This is a strong and worthy version of “The Tempest.”

Questions and comments: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

If You Go

What: Shakespeare’s “The Tempest”
Where: MSUM Gaede Stage
When: July 13-16
Info: 218.477.2271