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1 HENRY IV at the FOLGER THEATRE
The latest Falstaff now at the Folger Theatre is the greatest ever seen —  or so said many in the audience of 1 Henry IV.
Ed Gero overwhelms as Sir John Falstaff, in a show that is filled with great actors playing great men. 
Prince Hal is a fun guy.  Avery Whitted in his DC theater debut looks every bit that he is having a joy of a ride hanging out with Falstaff as his mentor of a good time! 
Tyler Fauntleroy as Hotspur is Prince Hal’s match.  As Prince Hal steps up to his role of duties to his father and the kingdom so will it be that Hotspur  fall on the battlefield, the demise of his ambitions.  
Peter Crook as Henry IV is serious and worried.  Perhaps a bit of a stickler bore for a father, he is a true counter to Falstaff, both in their status in life and their approach to it, but both sharing a love of Prince Hal.    
The outstanding cast are  all leading stars in their own right: Mabound Ebrahimzadeh as Blunt and Mortimer, Naoimi Jacobson as the Percy family leader Worcester,  Kate Eastwood Norris as the bawdy Mistresss Quickly and Vernon.
Jordan Lee is the Lady Mortimer who speaks no English and her husband no Welsh but who sings a lovely song. Maribel Martinez is Lady Percy who does speak to no avail to keep her husband from going to war.
Todd Scofield as Westmoreland and Bardolph, Jazmine Stewart as Poins, U. Jonathan Toppo as Northumberland and Glendower, Alex Mitchell as Prince John and Gadshill, and Sam Midwood as Peto and Douglas  all join in multiple roles and  rousing battle scenes. 
There was something about the show, as it wiped away the centuries since it was first staged.  With minimal props—dramatic and efficiently employed but not so elaborate to detract attention—the show was all about the people in it,  their complexities not overshadowed by their costumes.  
1 Henry IV —alive and well and not to be missed— 
at  Folger Theatre  until Oct. 13, 2019

PHOTO CREDIT: Edward Gero as Falstaff  (photo by Brittany Diliberto).

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