Liz Duffy Adams’ new play Born with Teeth suggests that the enduring mysteries around William Shakespeare’s life and works are not just a product of time and lost handwriting – they’re by design. “Will” is cagey and anxious, private as a form of political protection for himself and his family. In Adams’ world, the negative space around Shakespeare is not a limitation on what we can know about the individual. Instead, it offers a different form of knowledge about his strategies to navigate and publish literature in a dangerous authoritarian state. Born with Teeth contrasts Shakespeare’s approach with that of his contemporary, Christopher (“Kit”) Marlowe, and through its two subjects creates a complex and engaging conversation about pragmatism, art, creativity, and survival.
Richmond Shakes’ 25th anniversary season continues with the excellent East Coast premiere of Born with Teeth at the Gottwald Playhouse. Under Andrew Gall’s direction, the show is exciting and thoughtful with a punk undercurrent. The story is well-paced, moving with an urgency that conveys the danger of the times but with breathing room to depict the writing process – including the monotony it sometimes involves. Born with Teeth follows the inverse career paths of Shakespeare and Marlowe across three acts as they collaborate on a cycle of history plays. They share their clashing views on fame, safety, and truth-telling as artists during the Elizabethan era, as we watch their adversarial and flirtatious relationship develop into a complicated balance of love and personal interest.
A 90-minute performance with only two characters demands tremendous commitment and skill from its players. Avery Michael Johnson (Kit) and James Murphy (Will) meet the challenge, bringing depth and energy to the roles. I was rapt watching their interpretations of Will and Kit, particularly when the characters’ fears and frustrations about their political environment bubbled to the surface.
Johnson, who recently performed as Horatio in Richmond Shakes’ fall production of Hamlet, shows a different and very impressive range as Kit Marlowe. Kit craves: he delights in his fame, seeks big experiences, is hedonistic. He is both impulsive and precisely aware of the precarious social and political protections keeping him afloat. Johnson’s dynamic performance paints Kit as a larger-than-life figure, flitting between rage, desire, and cunning analysis. He’s constantly moving, contorting his body and expressions. Kit is so self-assured and teasing that many of his interactions with Will read as a game of cat and mouse, but Johnson still conveys the hopelessness and fear underneath it.
Where Johnson is non-stop movement and energy, Murphy provides necessary stillness as Will. He freezes, waiting for Kit to speculate or level an accusation without offering up valuable personal information. Will is more consistent, showing affection for his characters and for Kit while constantly grounding his ambitions in a subdued, nervy desire to protect himself and earn a living. Murphy does a wonderful job calibrating Will’s confidence as his career progresses — and making sure his sharp edges are visible even when contrasted against a figure with more bluster.
The Gottwald Playhouse is configured in an unusual way for this production, with audience seats on either side of a long central table where much of the play’s action takes place. W. Reed West III’s scenic design creates a landscape with a lot of movement considering the simplicity of the setting. Johnson and Murphy push at the boundaries of the tavern room and use the space to the fullest, climbing over tables and chairs, running to the far ends of the room, fighting and grabbing books and throwing papers.
The energy of the production and proximity of the action really engages the audience, especially in moments that props safely make their way into the crowd (I think this kind of interaction with the environment can work really well and am terrified by any other form of audience participation — so once I got past my initial nervousness at Will’s direct-to-audience opening lines, I loved the stage set-up). The intimate layout is a strength of this production, inviting the audience to closely consider and empathize with the dichotomies of Liz Duffy Adams’ two playwrights and their strategies for living in Elizabethan England: freedom and possession, sincerity and opportunism.
Richmond Shakes’ thought-provoking production of Born With Teeth runs through this Sunday, February 11, at the Gottwald Playhouse. Recommended for teenagers and adults given its mature themes, strong language, and suggestive content. Visit Dominion Energy Center for tickets and showtimes.
