Fear No More, for Shakespeare in the Park Has Done It Again

Review: Cymbeline

Hamish Linklater as the oafish Cloten and Lily Rabe as the pure-hearted Imogen in Shakespeare in the Park's latest production of William Shakespeare's Cymbeline.

Director Daniel Sullivan and actors Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater have become beloved staples of the Public Theatre's annual productions at Central Park's Delacorte Theatre, tackling some of Shakespeare's greatest works with an unfailing dedication to excellence. This season the three acclaimed artists have teamed up for a pared-down version of Shakespeare's late career romance Cymbeline, and the results are quintessential Shakespeare in the Park: superbly acted, highly accessible, and fully embracing the open air setting for an evening of theatrical magic.

One of the Bard's less performed works, Cymbeline is actually the story of the title character's daughter, Princess Imogen. Against her father's wishes, Imogen has married a commoner named Posthumus Leonatus, a move which so outrages King Cymbeline that he banishes Posthumus to Italy. With Posthumus out of the way, the Queen - who is not Imogen's mother but Cymbeline's second wife - attempts to secure her family's royal position by marrying her loutish son Cloten to the princess, who despises him. Meanwhile, Posthumus makes a wager with the boastful Italian Iachimo that Imogen's heart is so pure it is incorruptible, leading Iachimo to travel to England and attempt to seduce the fair princess. There is also a subplot involving a war between Rome and Britain over unpaid monetary tributes, not to mention the mystery of Cymbeline's missing sons.

The plot is one of the most complex in all of Shakespeare, but thanks to Sullivan's expert direction and uniformly strong performances from the cast, this Cymbeline is easy to follow even without the benefit of the synopsis included in the program. This high level of accessibility is even more impressive given Sullivan's decision to double and triple cast most of his ensemble of 9 to fill the play's 16+ speaking roles. Smart costuming by David Zinn and distinctive hair and wig designs by Charles G. LaPointe combine with the physical malleability of the cast so that there is never any confusion over who is playing whom and when, adding to the production's magical quality and the evening's general sense of fun.

Rabe has tackled many of Shakespeare's most famous ingénues during her time in the park, and her Imogen is every bit the equal to her Portia and her Beatrice from seasons past. Rabe instantly commands the stage with her unmistakably regal presence, bringing an inner fire to Imogen while at the same time keeping the character's melodramatic leanings in check. When Rabe espouses the play's many rich and varied declarations of love she is utterly believable, and her sincerity grounds a work filled to the brim with credibility-straining coincidences. The luminescent actress can also access deep reserves of sorrow at the drop of a hat, crying giant, glistening tears during several of the production's more heart-wrenching moments.

Rabe's real-life partner Linklater tackles the dual roles of Imogen's exiled husband Posthumus and her unwanted suitor Cloten. As Posthumus, Linklater is an appealing romantic lead who is also capable of portraying the deep-seated rage that propels the character's actions through much of the second half (like Othello, Posthumus is a tad too quick to believe the worst about his wife). But Linklater's true showcase and the actor's clear favorite is the impossibly dim Cloten, who he plays to hammy perfection. Linklater fills Cloten's scenes with side-splittingly funny business while finding every conceivable joke in the character's dialogue, and his over the top rendition of "Hark, Hark the Lark" is one of the evening's highlights. (All the play's original music is provided by Next to Normal composer Tom Kitt, who offers work as strong and melodically interesting as any he's written for the musical stage.)

Patrick Page is wonderfully imposing as the title character, tiptoeing right up to the line of absurdity without actually crossing it. Kate Burton is suitably despicable as his second wife, clearly having a blast with the Queen's conniving ways. The surprise with Burton is that she is perhaps even more entertaining and convincing as Belarius, the disgraced nobleman who has been secretly raising Cymbeline's missing sons for the past twenty years. Four time Tony-nominee Raul Esparza struggles to find the right balance between Iachimo's smarmy, off-putting personality and the play's comedic leanings, failing to find the humor in his character's introductory scene and generally being a bit too terrible of a person for audiences to fully surrender to the evening's many charms. It is by no means a bad performance, but with Sullivan and the rest of his cast choosing to highlight the text's humor Esparza stands out in the wrong way.

After 53 summers at the Delacorte, Shakespeare in the Park has become a New York institution, bringing high quality productions of some of the greatest works in the theatrical cannon to the populace free of charge. Cymbeline is yet another triumph for director Sullivan and lead actors Rabe and Linklater, proving that this trio can work their magic on the Bard's more problematic plays just as easily as they can on populist classics like Much Ado About Nothing or The Merchant of Venice. Despite the intricate plot, this production is a marvel of accessible clarity without once sacrificing the complexities of Shakespeare's beautiful language or his observations on human nature, and is highly recommended for both Shakespearean scholars and the layperson alike.

The Best Shows of 2014: Part I

As 2014 draws to a close and the internet is inundated with "Best of the Year" lists, its time to add my humble voice to the cacophony with my annual "Best Shows of the Year" list. For those of you not familiar with how this list works, know that it is not meant to be a comprehensive or definitive list. It is limited to productions I have actually seen, so certain popular shows will be omitted. I have yet to see Beautiful, for instance, although all of the promotional performances make me think it wouldn't make my personal list anyway.

2014 was an interesting year for New York theatre. There were a lot of show I liked, but less I unabashedly loved than in 2013. There was still plenty of commendable work throughout the year, and part of the reason fewer shows felt like unqualified successes is because they tackled less conventional subject matter and storytelling methods (which I'll take over a safe, traditional production any day of the week). Below is the first half of my annual Top 10, with the remainder of the list to follow soon. 

Honorable Mention: Audra McDonald in Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill

Audra McDonald truly disappeared into the role of jazz singer Billie Holiday, winning the acclaimed actress a well deserved and record breaking sixth Tony Award.

Lady Day at Emerson's Bar and Grill, Lanie Robertson's exploration of famed jazz singer Billie Holiday's life and career, is not a great play. The show is interesting because Holiday's life was interesting, but nothing about the play's writing contributes to more than a cursory understanding of the troubled vocalist's final days, performing in obscurity at rundown clubs. That said, Audra McDonald was a revelation in the work's recent Broadway revival, an utterly transformative performance that deservedly won the acclaimed actress her record breaking 6th Tony Award. As usual, McDonald somehow managed to exceed overwhelmingly high expectations to deliver a performance for the ages, one of the single best of I have ever seen. While the show's pedestrian writing keeps it from being Top Ten material, McDonald's performance was one of the most nuanced and entrancing of the year, and deserving of mention.

10) Pageant

The beautiful contestants of the Miss Galmouresse pageant at the center of Pageant.

In the pursuit of high art and a better understanding of the human condition, it can sometimes be easy to forget that theatre is primarily a form of entertainment. The Off-Broadway review Pageant, about a fictional beauty contest where all of the contestants are men dressed in drag, may not have been the most intellectual of evenings, but it was one of the most enjoyable 90 minutes I spent in a theatre last year. The extremely talented and versatile performers milked every bit of campy humor possible out of the premise, somehow making a spoof of beauty pageants feel relevant even when the format is long past its prime. The loose structure allowed the contestants plenty of chances to ham it up, but beneath all the shtick and broad caricatures they remained recognizably human, which only added to the show's appeal. Definitely an underrated gem of the summer/fall months.

9) If/Then

While there were plenty of strong performances in If/Then, let's be honest: Idina Menzel is the reason people are interested in this show, and the Tony winner delivers with what may be the performance of her career.

I can't understand why If/Then has gotten so much flack from the theatrical community. While the show is by no means perfect, it is one of the increasingly rare musicals not based on any pre-existing property that furthermore dares to ask big questions about life (as opposed to most of the successful musicals of the past few seasons, which are primarily meant to entertain). Perhaps the show suffered in comparison to Next to Normal, the groundbreaking Pulitzer Prize winner by the same creative team. And while If/Then doesn't match that show's emotional wallop, the concurrent narratives of Liz and Beth raise a lot of interesting questions about choice versus fate. Idina Menzel has never been better, easily topping her Tony-winning work in the megamusical Wicked 10 years ago and proving that she is one of the most formidable singing-actresses of her generation. The show's sagging box office numbers and Menzel's impending departure probably mean this show is on its last legs, so everyone who claims to support originality in the theatre really owes it to themselves to see this thought provoking new work before its gone. It may be flawed, but its heart is 110% in the right place, and I will take an ambitiously flawed show over a safely conventional one any day of the week.

8) Heathers

Off Broadway's New World Stages is generally where older shows go to extend their runs, but occasional the complex will birth exciting new works like the hilarious and inventive Heathers the Musial.

A darkly comic coming of age tale set in perhaps the worst high school of all time, Heathers proved to be a highlight of the crowded spring theatre season. Featuring a top notch score by Laurence O'Keefe and Kevin Murphy ("Candy Store" is one of the catchiest musical numbers of the year), Heathers' endlessly inventive writing was brought to life by an excellent cast of mostly unknowns. A vast improvement upon the film that inspired it, the musical managed to resolve most of the tonal issues that plague the source material without losing the story's edge, and somehow uncovered an emotional core underneath all the 80s slang and teen melodrama. Although the Off-Broadway production has long since shuttered, the show is already well on its way to achieving the kind of cult status shows like Rocky Horror and Reefer Madness enjoy.

7) Aladdin

Courtney Reed and Adam Jacobs appear to have literally leapt off the screen in Disney's Aladdin, one of the most sumptuous spectacles to grace Broadway this year.

20 years after Beauty and the Beast, Disney Theatricals finally got around to tackling the last major film from the company's early 90s animation renaissance, the Oscar winning 1992 comedy Aladdin. Recovering nicely from their last animated adaptation (the less than successful Little Mermaid), the company brought their trademark high production values and slick presentation to this story of a street rat who dreams of something more. Featuring a game cast (lead by James Monroe Inglehart's Tony-winning Genie) and fantastic direction/choreography by Casey Nicholaw, Aladdin is one of the most magically entertaining shows currently running on Broadway. Genuine showstopper "Friend Like Me" is one of the most elaborate, thrilling production numbers around, and the famed magic carpet ride is every bit as magical onstage as it was on film. An excellent option for families and the young at heart, tickets have been hard to come by, but are definitely worth the effort.
 

6) Much Ado About Nothing

Recovering from an uneven couple of years, the Public Theatre's Shakespeare in the Park presented a top notch (and free!) production of Much Ado About Nothing this past summer.

After a couple of less than stellar seasons (2012's Into the Woods was divisive to say the least, and 2013's Comedy of Errors and Love's Labors Lost were less than memorable), the Public Theatre's Shakespeare in the Park returned in top form with a fantastic production of one of the Bard's best comedies, Much Ado About Nothing. The always excellent Lily Rabe was perfectly cast as the tart-tongued Beatrice, and Hamish Linklater's Benedict made for a perfect comic foil. But while Rabe and Linklater were definitely the star attractions, the entire supporting cast was filled with excellent actors under superb direction by Tony winner Jack O'Brien. A truly magical evening that successfully ran the full gamut of human emotion in just two and a half hours, this production was an unadulterated delight from beginning to end. The lack of a marquee star or available theatre precluded a Broadway transfer, but this mounting of Shakespeare's comedy was as deserving of that honor as anything Shakespeare in the Park has produced.


And that's Part I of my list. Keep an eye out for Part II in the coming days, where I'll list my Top 5 favorite theatrical experiences of the year.

Much Ado About Shakespeare, and Deservedly So

Review: Much Ado About Nothing

Oh Benedict (Hamish Linklater), that sword is no match for Beatrice's (Lily Rabe) sharp tongue.

When discussing the merits of Shakespeare's various comedies, the ubiquitous Twelfth Night is generally agreed upon to be the best, a distinction I've always found puzzling for a play that is typically only haphazardly funny (the recent top-tier Broadway revival notwithstanding).  For my money, the acerbic wit of Much Ado About Nothing is a much more consistent generator of laughs, while also exploring one of the most complex romantic relationships in all of the Bard's cannon.  The side-splittingly hilarious and immensely satisfying Shakespeare in the Park production currently playing the Delacorte Theatre makes a strong case for Much Ado's merits, and provides the summer tradition with its strongest showing since the Al Pacino-led Merchant of Venice several seasons ago.

At the heart of Much Ado About Nothing's plot are the dueling, would-be lovers Beatrice and Benedict, self-professed bachelors who enjoy nothing more than using their razor-sharp wits to devise ever more creative insults for one another.  As a lark, the pair's friends decide to trick them into becoming an item by convincing each one that the other is secretly in love with them.  This well-intentioned scheme plays out during the group's extended stay at nobleman Leonato's Italian villa, while the young soldier Claudio prepares to woo and wed Leonato's daughter Hero.  The festivities threaten to grind to a halt when prince Don Pedro's bastard brother, Don John, decides to spread false rumors about Hero's fidelity, providing the play with some high drama to counterbalance all the laughs.

Much Ado ultimately lives or dies by the strength of its Beatrice and Benedict, here played by Shakespeare in the Park stalwarts Lily Rabe and Hamish Linklater.  Both are sensational in their respective roles, mining these iconic characters for all of their depth and comedic potential.  Rabe, Tony-nominated for her role in the aforementioned Merchant when it transferred to Broadway, is giving another award-worthy performance as the wickedly funny Beatrice.  Rarely has Shakespeare sounded as elegant and natural as it does when Rabe performs it, with the versatile actress proving once again that she is one of our greatest living classical performers.  Rabe also displays a searing emotional honesty during the play's more dramatic sections, and her chemistry with Linklater is palpable.

As Benedict, Linklater doesn't possess the same precision as his costar, opting for a looser and more contemporary portrayal.  This difference in style in no way diminishes Linklater's effectiveness, and line for line the malleable actor gets the most laughs of anyone in the cast.  A rubber-limbed clown, Linklater is especially winning during his many bouts of physical comedy, and watching him clumsily eavesdrop on his companions from the limbs of an orange tree is one of the evening's best sustained laughs.  Yet Linklater also knows when to dial down his antics for the play's more somber moments, and he leaves no doubt that ultimately, Benedict and Beatrice both love and are meant for one another.

Rabe and Linklater are surrounded by a stellar group of supporting actors that make this Much Ado a glowing example of ensemble acting.  Ismenia Mendes and Jack Cutmore-Scott are appropriately naïve is the young lovers Hero and Claudio, respectively, with Mendes in particular showcasing great depth during her character's public shaming.  John Glover is pitch perfect as Leonato, turning a largely expository role into a fully fleshed out character and one of the evening's standout performances.  Brian Stokes Mitchell, a Tony-winner known for his work in musicals like Ragtime and Kiss Me, Kate, reminds everyone just what a fantastic actor he is as the princely Don Pedro, Benedict's commanding officer.  (Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, the production does provide Mitchell the chance to show off his legendary baritone in a first-rate musical interlude composed by Tony-nominee David Yazbek, who wrote all the production's delightful incidental music.)  And Game of Thrones' Pedro Pascal is suitably slimy as Don John, even though the character is one of Shakespeare's most underwritten villains.

The ringleader of these merry players is director Jack O'Brien, who despite a prolific career that encompasses almost every style of theatre imaginable is making his Shakespeare in the Park directing debut.  Put simply, O'Brien nails it, keeping the laughs coming fast and often but expertly shifting gears to a more serious tone when necessary.  O'Brien's fluid staging makes great use of John Lee Beatty's gorgeous two-story set, and the Tony-winning director adds just enough physical comedy to be punch up the laughs without distracting from the beauty of Shakespeare's language.  Despite the play's nearly three-hour runtime O'Brien never lets the energy start to drag, expertly juggling the multiple tones and plotlines with the assured hand of an old pro. 

O'Brien has also succeeded in the all-too-rare feat of updating the setting (in this case, moving the action to early 1900s Sicily) in a way that feels both natural and necessary.  Aided by stunning design work from the aforementioned Beatty and costumer Jane Greenwood, O'Brien makes the Italian milieu its own character which enhances rather than detracts from the action.  From the preshow stage business (charmingly executed in Italian) to a gorgeous masquerade to a thrilling second act storm sequence (vastly aided by Jeff Croiter's lights and ACME Sound Partners' sound design), O'Brien and his team transport us from Central Park to the Italian countryside.

Without a marquee star like Pacino, there's little chance this production transfers to Broadway, although it's certainly strong enough to survive on the Great White Way.  This Much Ado is a shimmering production of one of the Bard's finest comedies, headlined by two of the city's most accomplished Shakespearean actors.  Rabe and Linklater are as good a Beatrice and Benedict as you're likely to find, and the talent surrounding them is just as astounding.  Thanks to Jack O'Brien's nimble direction, this effervescent outdoor production proves to be a highlight of Shakespeare in the Park's recent history.  Much Ado About Nothing only runs until July 6th, so brave the lines and snag your free tickets before these unlikely lovers dance off into the sunset.

A "Night" Full of Laughs, Just as the Bard Intended

Review:  Twelfth Night

Don't let the puzzled expression fool you; Mark Rylance knows exactly what he's doing as Olivia in Shakespeare's Twelfth Night

I have a confession: I can't stand Twelfth Night, that perennially popular Shakespearean comedy of mistaken identity.  It always strikes me as dreadfully dull and decidedly unfunny in performance, with the only consistently entertaining parts being the B-plot focused on the servants’ attempts to humble the unbearably pompous Malvolio.  I also have a generalized disdain for companies who mount Shakespeare using the original Elizabethan practices, as the all-male casting is usually there to mask the fact the director has nothing new to say about the play.  So when I heard Twelfth Night was being revived on Broadway with an all-male cast, the only thing that seemed remotely interesting to me was the opportunity to see the incredibly gifted Mark Rylance perform onstage once again.

I need not have been so cynical; this latest production of the Bard’s comedy is the finest one I’ve ever seen, and one of the most accessible and interesting Shakespearean productions to grace the New York stage in a long time.  For the uninitiated, the show’s main plot concerns twin brother and sister Viola and Sebastian, who become separated during a great storm at sea.  Each has assumed the other drowned, and for reasons that never fully make sense to me Viola decides that her best course of action is to dress as a boy named Cesario and go work for Duke Orsino.  The Duke is madly in love with the countess Olivia, who is in mourning for her dead brother and will not entertain any of Orsino’s advances.  He sends Cesario/Viola to woo Olivia for him, but the countess find herself far more interested in the well-spoken servant "boy" than the lovelorn Duke.  

This contrivance has always been difficult to swallow, not only because the actress playing Viola almost never makes a convincing man but also because when her twin brother Sebastian reenters the picture the two are constantly confused for one another despite incredibly obvious physical differences.  The beauty of this all-male production is that Viola finally makes a convincing man, and the pale makeup and identical costumes she and Sebastian wear make them virtually indistinguishable physically.  The other characters' confusion is finally credible, yet there are enough context clues and subtle differences in physicality for the audience to be able to figure out who’s who.  Samuel Barnett and Joseph Timm - as Viola and Sebastian, respectively - are both fine actors in rather thankless roles, and Barnett in particular does an admirable job of playing the straight man during the play's increasingly ridiculous situations.

But while Samuel Barnett may technically be playing the lead, this production is all about Mark Rylance’s virtuosic performance as Olivia, a hilariously over-the-top rendition that finds laughs in every line of dialogue and bit of stage business.  Most performers tend to emphasize Olivia’s regal air, given her position as a countess; Rylance completely forgoes that route and has created a supremely vain, vaguely stupid woman-child prone to tantrums and side-splittingly inept flirting.  Two-time Tony-winner Rylance has always been an extremely physical actor, and over the course of the evening he throws himself on the floor, scrambles over furniture, hurls props at his fellow actors, and even wields a battle axe for some of the play’s biggest belly laughs.  Although vastly different from the typical interpretation, Rylance’s performance is entirely supported by the text and his unequaled commitment to the role makes it wholly believable.  It's a shame the part doesn’t allow Rylance doesn’t more stage time, but he milks what he has for everything it's worth.

As Olivia’s handmaiden Maria, Paul Chahidi doesn’t even attempt to hide the fact he is a man in a dress, but he also doesn’t comment on the fact.  He merely reacts naturally to the play’s circumstances, and the honesty of his performance allows you to instantly accept him as Maria and enjoy his gleeful mugging.  Colin Hurley is a riot as the constantly drunk Sir Toby Belch, and with Angus Wright’s Sir Andrew Aguecheek as his partner in crime is responsible for some of the biggest laughs not involving Rylance.  And although the character doesn’t really get a chance to shine until the second act, Stephen Fry makes for a masterful Malvolio, the unsuspecting butt of a particularly cruel but also hilarious joke concocted by Maria and Toby.

The intentionally spartan set design by Jenny Tiramani is a refreshing change of pace from the overly elaborate sets that have become the norm these days, and the decision to use onstage seating as an approximation of the thrust staging seen at Shakespeare’s Globe is a nice touch (and watching said audience members double over in laughter provides added entertainment value).  Tiramani is also responsible for the gorgeous period costumes, whose elaborate detail is visible even from the back of the theatre.  Director Tim Carroll makes excellent use of all of this in his staging, which maintains a brisk pace and keeps the focus squarely on the text and the performers.

Twelfth Night is running in repertory with Richard III, and the idea of this same group of actors tackling an entirely different type of play is intriguing, given that they have so thoroughly nailed the spirit of this whimsical comedy.  As Olivia, Rylance proves once again that he is one of the most gifted, versatile, and hardworking actors of his generation, and he is surrounded by equally capable and appealing performers both young and old.  Whether you love Twelfth Night or can't quite comprehend its enduring popularity, this production will leave you smiling.

High Art for a Balmy Summer Evening

Review:  As You Like It

David Furr, Renee Elise Goldsberry, and Lily Rabe in Shakespeare in the Park's As You Like It

The problem with producing Shakespeare is that the Bard only wrote so many plays, which are mounted so often that making any individual production stand-out requires a combination of fantastic actors and strong directorial vision.  Thankfully, the As You Like It which just opened Shakespeare in the Park’s 50^th anniversary season features both in equal measure, breathing (mostly) new life into this oft-produced comedy.

For those unfamiliar with the plot, As You Like It begins when the evil Duke Frederick banishes a host of people, including his niece Rosalind and his daughter Celia, to go live in the Forest of Arden with his usurped brother Duke Senior.  Just before her exile Rosalind meets and falls in love with the young Orlando, who also ends up in the Forest of Arden for separate reasons.  Unfortunately, in order to avoid execution Rosalind has disguised herself as a boy, and when she and Orland meet again he does not recognize her.  What follows is a series of comic misunderstandings involving a host of supporting characters which eventually sort themselves out just in time for the play’s ending.

As You Like It has never been my favorite Shakespeare, but remains a popular choice for theatre companies due in part to the showcase it offers for the actress playing Rosalind.  This production is blessed with the sensational Lily Rabe in the central role, who gives a dynamic performance that expertly balances comedy and pathos.  Intelligent and charismatic, Rabe lights up the stage with a captivating interpretation that proves she is one of the most gifted actresses of her generation by being entertaining, moving, and most of all truthful.  It is unfortunate that Rosalind isn’t more of a presence in the first act, as the production sags slightly when Rabe isn’t around to elevate it.

That is not to discredit the efforts of her uniformly excellent costars, who combine to create one of the finest acting ensembles of the year.  As Orlando, David Furr projects a humble and quiet confidence that keeps his lovelorn youth from becoming insufferably saccharine (even the other characters tease Orlando about his overly earnest proclamations of love).  As Rosalind’s cousin and best friend Celia, Renee Elise Goldsberry has excellent chemistry with Rabe and provides a welcome contrast to Rosalind and Orlando’s platitudes.  Oliver Platt makes for a hilarious Touchstone, the court jester who accompanies the cousins into the forest, and the veteran actor is particularly skilled in making the Shakespearean wordplay comprehensible to a modern audience.  And as the melancholy Jaques, Stephen Spinella gives an ingeniously underplayed performance which leaves the audience in stitches (he also does an excellent job with the famous “Seven Ages of Man” speech).

The glue holding this entire ensemble together is director Daniel Sullivan, who scored a similar triumph two years ago with the Al Pacino-led Merchant of Venice.  Sullivan is a fantastic director with an excellent understanding of pace and narrative clarity, and even those unfamiliar with the play’s twists and turns should have no trouble following this production.  Sullivan coaxes wonderfully layer performances out of his actors, and continues to be a wonderful asset to the Public Theatre in general and Shakespeare in the Park in particular.

John Lee Beatty’s set design does a great job of evoking the play’s whimsical setting, and it’s a shame the Delacorte’s thrust staging doesn’t allow him to bring his intricate forest setting further downstage.  Jane Greenwood’s period costumes are quite beautiful, and the original grassroots score by Steve Martin does an excellent job of setting the production’s mood. 

Overall, this As You Like It is a first-rate production of one of Shakespeare’s proven crowd-pleasers, and is an excellent way to spend an evening in Central Park.  Lily Rabe’s Rosalind is a marvel, and Daniel Sullivan’s assured direction helps reinvigorate this comedy even for those who are intimately familiar with it.  The impending arrival of the highly anticipated Into the Woods will likely prevent As You Like It from extending its limited run, so any interested parties should rush over to the Delacorte to catch it before it’s gone.