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KING JOHN
Folger Theatre

There is little doubt that King John was the worst king of England, bad in every way.  So bad that the response was his being confronted to sign the Magna Carta.  Leaving that historic fact of the story out, Shakespeare’s play King John shows him for a true rotter.
The Folger Theatre’s production could not be better.
For starters, there is a pre opening scene, where the twelve actors explain who they are and their relationships to the others in history.
Women stand out as have key power roles:   Kate Goehring as Eleanor of Aquitaine, mother of John, and Holly Twyford as Constance, mother of Arthur, the son of John’s dead brother Geoffrey.  Both demonstrate strong wills in powerful passionate speeches that are standouts in the play.
The question is simple, who has the right to the throne, the son of the elder brother, or the next brother in line.  Eleanor stands for her son John, and Constance for her son Arthur.
What complicates things is that John owns half of the territory that is now France, and Arthur is backed by the French royals.
Brian Dykstra’s King John is powerful, cunning and cruel. He succeeds in challenging the French and making deals with  Louis the Dauphin  (Akeem Davis) by offering his niece  Blanche  (Alina Collins Maldonado) in marriage. 
John also obtains custody of Arthur (Megan Graves) whom he imprisons under the care of Hubert (Elan Zafir).  Torn between orders from the king and what his heart knows is right, Hubert will save the life of the the young prince in a move that  will lead to tragic end for all.
Kate Eastwood  Norris is superb in the complicated role that is of Philip Faulconbridge, bastard son of Richard the Lionhearted (and thus related to John).   
Multiple roles are played by Sasha Olinick as Cardinal Pandulph, the grisly looking papal Legate, Howard W. Overshown as Philip, the cunning King of France, as well as Brian Reisman as Robert Faulconbridge  and Maboud Ebrahimzadeh as Lord Salisbury
The twists and turns of all of this reminds of a condensed two hour television serial.  But all this happened in the 13th century, and Shakespeare wrote his play in the 16th century.   
But somethings—like the theme of greed for power— never change and neither does  the Folger’s excellence in presentation  of a rare but worthy play for our attention.

At the Folger Theatre until Dec. 2, 2018

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