Curtain Call: Kevin Spacey Rivets as Richard III

Julia Millay Walsh — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 11:46:44 PDT

The Curran Theatre (445 Geary St., 888-746-1799) was bursting at the seams with celeb stalkers and theater-goers Wednesday night for opening night of the Sam Mendes-directed Richard III, starring none other than Mr. Kevin Spacey. In a word, the performance was magnificent.

The tale of the Machiavellian monarch's rise (and shortly subsequent fall) to power opens with one of the most famous lines from Shakespeare: "Now is the winter of our discontent." With England at peace, Spacey, Duke of Gloucester, sitting hunchbacked and crippled in a modernist leather armchair, is dissatisfied: his eyes are set on the throne. A man who won't be disconcerted, who sickeningly enjoys every challenge, the duke systematically takes out everyone who comes in his way, including his own brother Clarence, who stands before him in the line of succession.

Spacey's performance is absolutely captivating. He's humorous. He's full of turmoil. He's adaptable. He's stern. He's provoking. He's a sociopath. He's sweaty. He's certainly no American beauty. He commands the stage visually, physically, and vocally. And in the few scenes where the crutch-bearing king (or duke) does not have a part, his fellow actors hold their own. Lady Anne (Annabel Scholey), widow of Edward of Westminster, who the duke, naturally, recently killed, is a spitfire. She's fierce, passionate, and blustery, yet easily aroused; the duke manages to seduce her at the most inopportune of times: during the funeral of Lady Anne's father-in-law, King Henry VI, another victim of the duke's. Gemma Jones (whom you know as Bridget Jones's mother) plays Margaret, the matriarch and widow of King Henry VI, and she appears like you've never seen her before. She's absolutely haunting, fear-inducing, full of loss, and compassionate.

Despite the demanding Shakespearean text and the distant intermission, the production is gripping. And while Shakespeare fanatics may "get the joke" more than others, you don't have to be a theater buff, or in it for the star-gazing, to enjoy - scratch that: be absolutely riveted by - the performance. And the finale, which ends in blood (not surprisingly), drums, and a grand gymnastic feat, will blow your mind. Congrats, Sam Mendes, you've done it again.

The performance runs every evening through Oct. 29, with limited seats still remaining. Snag your tickets before they're gone!

Kevin Spacey and Sam Mendes Will Bring Richard III to the Curran Theatre

Julia Millay Walsh — Mon, 08 Aug 2011 13:10:00 PDT

Attention theater goers and celeb stalkers! Shakespearean masterpiece Richard III will be making its way to San Francisco this Fall, led by Kevin Spacey in the role of the English king and Academy Award-winning director Sam Mendes (i.e. the American Beauty dream team). The play will be globetrotting a roster of 11 locations worldwide, which include London, Hong Kong, Istanbul, Beijing, Singapore, Sydney, and New York. As president of SHN Carole Shorenstein Hays says, "This is a really big deal for us, and for San Francisco."

Richard III boasts a stellar British/American cast, including Maureen Anderman as the Duchess of York; Haydn Gwynne as Queen Elizabeth; Chuk Iwuji as Duke of Buckingham; Gemma Jones (aka Bridget Jones's mother!) as Queen Margaret; and Chandler Williams as George, Duke of Clarence.

The performance is currently playing to sold-out crowds at London's historic Old Vic Theatre and is earning rave reviews. Fantastic, funny, triumphant, exciting, smart, marvelous, remarkable, captivating, and "beyond words" are just some of the adjectives that have been used to describe it; see some of the response it's been getting across the pond.

The show will take place at the Curran Theatre in Union Square from Oct. 19 through Oct. 29. Tickets go on sale Friday, Aug. 19 and will range in price from $35-$150. There will be only 12 performances, so be the early bird!

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Curtain Call: Kevin Spacey Rivets as Richard III

Kevin Spacey and Sam Mendes Will Bring Richard III to the Curran Theatre