Northlight delivers delightful literary jaunt with 'Book of Will'

Posted November 22, 2017 10:00 am

By Scott C. Morgan

Henry Condell (Gregory Linington), Susannah Shakespeare (Dana Black) and John Heminges (Jim Ortlieb) look at the First Folio of Shakespeare's plays in the Midwest premiere of Lauren Gunderson's “The Book of Will” at Northlight Theatre in Skokie. Courtesy of Liz Lauren/Northlight Theatre

“The Book of Will” - ★ ★ ★

Wars dominate the major turning points of world history. But can you imagine the loss to global culture if the collected plays of William Shakespeare had never been published in the First Folio of 1623?

This unsettling thought is the thrust of Lauren Gunderson's enjoyable 2016 history play “The Book of Will,” about the efforts of Shakespeare's friends to make the extremely influential First Folio a reality. Now receiving a fine Midwest premiere led by director Jessica Thebus at Northlight Theatre in Skokie, “The Book of Will” is a touching literary jaunt that should also please fans of Gunderson as well as Margot Melcon's Jeff Award-winning “Pride and Prejudice” sequel “Christmas at Pemberley” from last holiday season.

“The Book of Will” opens three years after Shakespeare's death in 1619 with a young Jacobean actor (Sam Hubbard) performing Hamlet's famed “To be or not to be” soliloquy. But the text is comically wrong because it's from a pirated publication.

Understandably, the surviving acting company members of Shakespeare's official “King's Men” are incensed. Richard Burbage (a grandiloquent Austin Tichenor), Henry Condell (Gregory Linington) and actor-turned-manager John Heminges (Jim Ortlieb) all rail and reminisce over drinks in a London tavern, reliving their acting heyday originating iconic roles in “Macbeth,” “Hamlet” and “Othello.”

Elizabeth Condell (McKinley Carter), Henry Condell (Gregory Linington), Alice Heminges (Dana Black), John Heminges (Jim Ortlieb) and Rebecca Heminges (Rengin Altay) pore over a trove of uncovered transcriptions of Shakespeare's plays in "The Book of Will" at Northlight Theatre in Skokie. Courtesy of Liz Lauren/Northlight Theatre

But when Burbage unexpectedly dies that night, the families of the other two are jolted into putting out an official version of Shakespeare's plays in one book. It's an arduous task full of complications, which is how “The Book of Will” creates drama out of an essentially foregone conclusion.

First there's the scramble to find the surviving fragmentary texts, since so much was lost in the Globe Theatre fire of 1613, and Thomas J. Cox as tetchy transcriber Ralph Crane is a great help. Then there's the matter of publishing rights, which cause much antagonistic back-and-forth between the supportive playwright Ben Johnson (a delightfully over-the-top William Dick) and the unscrupulous publisher William Jaggard (Tichenor) and his more upstanding son, Isaac (Luigi Sottile).

Gunderson prominently features the women in Heminges' and Condell's lives, including wives Elizabeth Condell (a no-nonsense McKinley Carter), Rebecca Heminges (a feisty Rengin Altay) and daughter Alice Heminges (a very clever Dana Black). Even though women were not allowed to perform in theaters, Gunderson shows how Shakespeare's stories touched and influenced each of them.

Henry Condell (Gregory Linington), on table, tries to rally the compilers of Shakespeare's fragmented plays in Lauren Gunderson's "The Book of Will" at Northlight Theatre in Skokie. Courtesy of Liz Lauren/Northlight Theatre

Director Thebus has assembled a wonderful cast full of actors who are equally adept at balancing Shakespearean fragments with the thoroughly researched historical details in Gunderson's text. And the production design is all that you would expect from a first-class Shakespeare play with sturdy Tudor-style sets by designers Richard and Jacqueline Penrod, plush period costumes by designer Janice Pytel and lighting that evokes candlelight by Paul Toben.

Gunderson's writing in “The Book of Will” can be a tad too twee or inconsistent at times (the character trait of John Heminges' stuttering is abandoned almost as soon as it is introduced). And historians may grumble at how the play compresses years of time into a mad dash.

But Gunderson vitally emphasizes how theater can be a consoling and inspiring force for people facing tremendous difficulties. And considering the timeless impact of Shakespeare's stories and ideas, “The Book of Will” reverently captures this monumental historical turning point to preserve a dramatic genius for the ages.

Location: Northlight Theatre, 9501 Skokie Blvd., Skokie, (847) 673-6300 or northlight.org.

Showtimes: 1 and 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. Thursday, 8 p.m. Friday, 2:30 and 8 p.m. Saturday, 2:30 p.m. Sunday (also 7 p.m. Nov. 26); through Dec. 17

Tickets: $30-$81; $15 student rush (depending upon availability)

Running time: About 2 hours 15 minutes, with intermission

Parking: Free nearby lot and multilevel garage

Rating: Some language issues, but largely for general audiences

Article Comments

Article Comments

Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.