Lights, Camera, Tragedy!
King Lear Act 1 Scene 1
In this scene, King Lear disowns his favorite daughter, Cordelia, when she remains honest and refuses to give him false flattery like her other two sisters. The actors speak in the original Shakespearean, and everyone does an excellent job of talking with their hands and portraying every emotion on their face. King Lear often throws things down on the ground to express his anger, and the others often scramble to pick them up, nearly crashing into each other at times. The actors also make good use of the stage and walk around while they speak, making the scene more realistic. Also, even when the attention is on a different actor, the others still mingle and interact with each other, like Goneril and Regan exchanging nervous glances while King Lear yells at Cordelia. The only distracting part of the scene was that the Duke of Burgundy and the King of France wear modern-day suits and ties while everyone else wears more authentic clothing. Overall, this was an excellent portrayal of King Lear Act 1 Scene 1.
King Lear Act 2 Scene 4
In this scene, King Lear (Ian McKellen) goes to visit his daughter, Regan, after being disrespected by his other daughter, Goneril. Regan acts kind and speaks sweetly at first, but she eventually insists that he should return to stay with Goneril. Her tone gets harsher as she belittles him and treats him like an old man who can no longer think for himself. King Lear is baffled by his daughter's unkindness and nearly explodes with anger when Goneril arrives. He wipes his face in frustration and spits his words when he insults Goneril for her bitterness and disrespect. When both daughters refuse to take him in unless he agrees to have little to no guards stay with him, he appears as if his heart is going to give out from indignation and he sobs into his handkerchief. Ian McKellen portrays every emotion and frustration very well, and he numbly walks away from his treacherous daughters with the Fool holding him and keeping him from collapsing with grief.
King Lear Act 1 Scene 2
Here Edmund puts his treacherous plan into motion by giving "Edgar's" treasonous letter to his father, Gloucester. Edmund starts with a rant, portraying his indignation of being treated as an inferior because he was born out of wedlock. His face twists into sneers and scowls as he discloses part of his plan to come into favor with his father and to betray his brother, Edgar. Edmund cleverly plays both his father and his brother like a magician with his audience in the palm of his hand. He speaks kindly to his brother's face and then bashes him and curses him as soon as he leaves the stage. Once again, the more modern-day outfits are a little bit unexpected, but the Shakespearean language and the vivid emotions of the actors enthralls the audience and allows for this minor detail to be accepted over time.