What I liked
The whole cast was stellar, but of course, the titular Lear steals the show with Loman coming a close second.
It was very clear that all involved had a deep love and knowledge of the source material and that shows. The connections Lear and Loman made with each other were really interesting and it was nice to see these characters who were never able to overcome their tragic flaws in life wrestle with doing so in death.
What I didn't like
But it was too much in love with the source material. In many ways, this felt like watching a theatre school comparative essay that was turned into a play. The analysis of the characters was spot on, but I couldn’t connect to the show much deeper than on an intellectual level for most of the show.
Lear explaining Iambic Pentameter to Willy Loman was an element that did not work for me. This show is very much for the theatre nerds, but that bit felt like it was going too far.
My overall impression
The acting and knowledge of the source material was very solid, but I would be hesitant to recommend this show to anyone that isn’t a hardcore lover of these plays.
