Review for Marin Shakespeare Company’s The Epic of Gilgamesh

A Must-See: Witty and Engaging

Don’t hesitate to go and see this highly entertaining and often drily witty production of the 4000 year old story The Epic of Gilgamesh at the Marin Shakespeare Company’s new indoor theater. Not only is it free, it’d be well worth the money if it wasn’t.

Fable. Artifact. Adventure. Love story. Dirge.

Nate Currier has both adapted and directed this production of the world’s oldest written story, which tells of a bro-mance between a tyrannical king and a friend given to him by the gods to calm him down, following a desperate appeal from his subjects. Adventures, antics and interventions from the gods ensue. It’s hard not to draw modern day parallels, the story of tyrranical leaders and their buddies is as old as the hills, as are the themes of eternal youth and the confrontation of our own mortality.

Cleverly Staged, Acrobatic and Engaging

Very simply but ingeniously staged, and performed, this production allowed the story and the rhyming couplets (so many beauties) to shine. The small stage created immediacy and intimacy and the fight sequences were beautifully choreographed, with mightily good acrobatics from Eliot Hall as Gilgamesh and Jamin Jollo as Enkidu. Other high points include meeting the scorpions, and the natural comedy of our very versatile ensemble actors as wild animals.

Educational Epic for Young and Old

While this story may not be for the very young, it will certainly have appeal and educational value, for kids of middle school age onward. It’s easy to follow and has a sensitive, yet simple live musical score that is very redolent of time and place and led me to think of all the other spaces and audiences this story has unfolded to down the millennia.

Adapted and Directed by Nate Currier

Nate Currier is the son of Marin Shakespeare Company leaders Robert Currier and Lesley Schisgall Currier, so he has a double dose of theater in his blood, and it shows. The age old spirit of story is definitely present in this work, as it has so often been in the productions facilitated by his parents. The passion poured into this adaptation not only by Nate, but by the whole cast and crew, really shines through.  

A Timeless Tale of Power and Corruption—Experience Gilgamesh Live

Can absolute power corrupt absolutely? Go and see this rendition of The Epic of Gilgamesh and see for yourself.

Review by Hannah Yurke

"The Epic of Gilgamesh" runs through February 23 at Marin Shakespeare Company’s Center for Performing Arts, Education, and Social Justice, located at 514 4th St., San Rafael. Shows are Thursday through Sunday at 7:00 PM. Admission is free, with donations appreciated. For more information, call (415) 388-5208 or visit marinshakespeare.org.