Rape of Lucrece, The

Although Dan Hodge introduces his virtuoso feat presenting The Rape of Lucrece as “Theater of Compromise,” he never seems anything but fully in charge of his material and unyielding interpreting it. All he really needs he has: space, a flat-top, openable trunk; matches, a holder with lightable candle, and comfortable, loose, easily removable top and pants along with soft shoes, and -- capable of concealment -- a sharp knife. Also a fine memory and talent for acting. The result was as near chamber theater as a solo performer might get.

The basic plot: Tarquin has caused the murder of his father-in-law and joined in a siege of Ardea with other noble Romans. He not only heard Collatinus extol his wife’s beauty and chastity, but Tarquin saw that she merited praise and won it, above all the noblemen’s wives, for her husband. Tarquin soon parted from his friends and, lusting after Lucrece, left Ardea for Collatium to be her guest and shower her with praises of her lord. By winning her confidence, he was able to stay, but betrayed Lucrece and Collatinus by propositioning and then raping her.

Dan Hodge graphically shows the act and its consequences, mainly Lucrece’s pain and demand for revenge, her honor-suicide, and the punishment meted out in Rome to Tarquin, who was banished and whose family bore disgrace. Hodge does not falter in describing such details as desire turned to disdain, prayers of anguish, and comparisons to classical betrayals of women (such as Philomel). He brings out well Shakespeare’s abundance of images of darkness and light, of blind hope and outward manifestation of despair. I was struck, too, by realization of the importance of Time in the story and to achievement of dramatic effect.

Best of all, Dan Hodge handles Shakespeare’s verse naturally. Both speech and movement come over as if they originated today.