I have had the good fortune to see two great Othellos on stage: James Earl Jones on Broadway in 1982 and David Oyelowo at the New York Theatre Workshop in 2016. Both actors were in their 40s at the time.
Denzel Washington offers a quite different Othello by the simple fact that the actor is 70 years old. His Othello is definitely not middle-aged. Washington’s Othello is old, and when he launches into one of the character’s soliloquies, he does not address the audience. He’s speaking only to himself and his almost (but not completely) incoherent words are the ramblings of addled mind that may be showing early signs of Alzheimer’s. This most unusual and often riveting “Othello” opened Sunday at the Ethel Barrymore Theatre.
And there are other things you would not expect of an Othello, especially one delivered by Washington. Here is an actor who has always exuded intelligence on screen and stage – until now. His old general is not the brightest bulb on stage, and Washington even goes so far as to give the character a facial awkwardness by repeatedly featuring his overbite. In profile, his mouth is often open and gaping.
Maybe we live in an age when tragedy is no longer possible. Sam Gold’s recent Broadway production of “Romeo + Juliet” turned the star-crossed couple into kids who were more the victims of puppy love than their waring families. Where Washington’s interpretation may lack a tragic dimension, it makes perfectly clear why an old codger like Othello would think his young wife lusts for a hot young lieutenant like Cassio. Iago’s crude ruse involving a lost handkerchief now makes perfect sense.
Jake Gyllenhaal plays Iago, and he bursts on stage like some MAGA fanatic launching into another rant about a D.E.I. hire.
One of the great features of Kenny Leon’s direction is how Washington, even in his soliloquies, appears to be off in some alternate reality. Gyllenhaal speaks directly to the audience in our flat American accent, and while there might be some loss of poetry here, he grabs our attention to the point of making us his closest accomplices. The difference between us and his real accomplices — Andrew Burnap as Cassio and Anthony Michael Lopez as Roderigo, both of whom are excellent – is that we know what’s going on. Cassio and Roderigo are duped, we’re not. Even more delightfully creepy is that we find ourselves seduced into cheering on this extremely charming villain. He even entertains us at the top of the show with a spot-on impersonation of Denzel Washington. Gyllenhaal delivers the most engaging Iago I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen some pretty good Iagos: Christopher Plummer with Jones and Daniel Craig with Oyelowo. Gyllenhaal’s performance fuels the show, and when his Iago takes a needed break after getting Cassio wounded and Roderigo murdered, this “Othello” never quite regains either its focus or its propulsive momentum.
Much of that loss of energy comes from Molly Osborne’s weak performance as Desdemona. She’s merely distracting in the first half when Gyllenhaal completely dominates with his many “you talking to me?” soliloquies. By the time Desdemona becomes Iago’s other duped accomplice, Osborne makes it unfortunately clear why Othello doesn’t believe her. This actor gestures so much that she appears to be struggling with English as a second language.
Washington brings some grandeur to the play’s final moments by wearing Othello’s dress uniform, complete with lots of medals. Dede Ayite’s costumes are modern dress while Derek McLane’s set is classic, a series of aged columns that drift across the stage. The many stabbings in the final scene are shocking without being very tragic or impactful.
For the week of March 18, “Othello” grossed $2.82 million, the highest single week figure ever for a non-musical play on Broadway. That historic spot may go to “Good Night, and Good Luck” this week, because the George Clooney-led play upped its schedule to seven performances at the Winter Garden, a larger theater than the Barrymore. For the week of March 18, “Good Night” grossed $2.36 million for only five performances.