“Can people recover from mental illness? Can a marriage survive the wrath of a jealous husband? Can society heal its deepest divisions? And does truth matter?
Shakespeare’s The Winter’s Tale is widely seen as an exploration of these questions, if a problematic one…
With Graham Abbey as the jealous King Leontes, Sara Topham as the wronged Queen Hermione, and André Sills as the loyal Polixenes, the play offers a redemptive experience for modern audiences.
Abbey plays a complex and believable king/dad whose vivid presence in early acts forms the spine of the show. And from the very first scene, it’s clear he’s not okay…
For a modern audience, this King’s redemption in this moment might seem out of reach. But Abbey pulls it off. We’re willing to let him have his reunion with the wife he tried to kill… I guess? We can debate the ethics of it, but for Shakespeare – and perhaps for director Antoni Cimolino – it’s more the idea that redemption is possible, even for people who have done truly bad things.”