Tempest, The

Shakespeare's Tempest features four disparate plot lines introduced by one of the longest expository speeches in western literature. Despite its many encumbrances, however—did I mention the dream sequences and the elaborate musical-fantasy pageant?—its tone must emerge as lighter-than-air at all times, lest the sparkling veil of illusion rendering its events possible is revealed to be mere tawdry tinsel. How much more difficult is it to conjure this kind of enchantment when those tasked with doing so are cloistered in their homes with only the camera lens on their laptops for scene partners?

The script and character analysis for this Shakespeare All-Stars production evidence the industry required to bring it off. Instead of an island in uncharted waters, the fantastical adventures transpire on a "space station far in the future, or perhaps just very far away" where the "volatile atmosphere" explains why communication is "almost entirely virtual" and magic spectacle depicted through special effects like animated puppets and slo-focus awakenings.

The genderblind-cast actors display inventive solutions to their limited scenic options—Christine Chang carries out Ferdinand's lumberjack duties schlepping a sheet of plywood, for example—in addition to deftly analytical line readings. Lauren Miller's Prospera and Hannah Boutilier's Miranda anchor their filial discussions in a mother-daughter mode immediately recognizable by modern audiences, while Lauren Emily's Ariel revels in impish glee more suited to the mischievous Puck of that other pastoral realm.

Ironically, this potentially dissonant exuberance instead rescues the play's progress from the sluggish pace so often crippling solo performances struggling to replicate the illusion of group dynamics. Video-viewers fond of fast-forwarding ahead to get to the "good parts" are advised to be guided by this roguish goblin.