Measure for Measure

James Noel Hoban Director	Dan Bilodeau Set Designer	Jen Fok Lighting Designer	Michelle Handley Costume Designer	Julia Jennings Asst. Stage Manager
Aaron Louque Stage Manager	Melissa Nathan Props	Simon Marland Sound Designer

Cast

Sarah Goldman Francisca/ Messenger/ Friar Peter	Henry Hetz Angelo/ Provost 1	Charence Higgins Escalus/ Friar Thomas/       Provost 3	Amber McNew Isabella	Sophia Mobbs Juliet/ Pompey/ Boy
Nathan M. Ramsey Duke Vincentio/ Gentleman	Michael Rosas Lucio/ Abhorson	Reece Santos Claudio/ Barnadine	Casey Turner Mistress Overdone/ Mariana/ Provost 2

From the Director

The western prairie, 1880. The town of Vienna, Montana. An isolated settlement struggling with the tensions between civil law and religious morality, human failing and divine absolutism. A time and place where power and the fates of others can be concentrated in the hands of one man, and where the character of that man determines all.

In Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, under the guise of comedy, vital concerns of power and morality are explored. Fearing he has been too lenient with his people, Duke Vincentio places his authority in the hands of his deputy Lord Angelo, hoping that a new, interim ruler with a reputation for scrupulous morality can impose a stricter regime. Vincentio has put forth he needs to go abroad for diplomatic purposes, but his true intent is to observe in secret the effects of Angelo’s rule over the people; a stress test of government in effect. The first focus of Angelo’s zeal is a young gentleman named Claudio, who having made his fiancee Juliet pregnant before wedlock, must suffer death for his indiscretion. When Claudio’s sister, the novice nun Isabella, is importuned to plead to Angelo for her brother’s life, the clash of these two conflicting views of Christian law and morality takes an unexpected and decidedly human turn. Of particular relevance in this #metoo era is Angelo’s willingness to wield his power to bend Isabella to his will and  publicly call into question the veracity of her word.

The foundation for this production is a 90 minute version I directed for TAM’s 2020 Shakespeare in Maine Communities virtual education tour last fall. To be able to revisit and expand the production with a mostly new cast is a rare creative opportunity I’m truly honored by. Last August, we started the process on Zoom, rehearsed in my backyard for a couple of weeks, then safely mounted and filmed the production in Cumston Hall. It was, in its own modest way, a revolutionary gesture of hope, to make theatre in the thick of a pandemic with no vaccine in sight. The concept of isolation pervaded the endeavor. The isolation of the setting for the play, the isolation of our creative production bubble, the isolation of the students it would eventually reach via streaming in their homes and masked, distanced classrooms. Now, as we begin to gather and create again, It is my hope that in life and in art we can retain the lessons of our time apart, value our common humanity and vulnerability, and interact with a greater degree of mercy and empathy.

At the heart of Measure for Measure lies the lesson of a singularly tolerant biblical passage: judge not lest ye be judged. Always suspect of absolutists, Shakespeare brings his most zealous characters to a humble and humane resolution. Vienna, seemingly impervious to attempts to impose a perfect moral order, emerges as an imperfect place where it’s people can breathe free. Here’s to all of us breathing free again.