The Book of Will

This is not the greatest song in the world, no
This is just a tribute

On the way home from The Book of Will by Lauren Gunderson, at Taproot Theatre, I stopped at Molly Maguires for karaoke. Someone sang Tribute, by Tenacious D. The epigraph above is two lines from it. The idea is just what it says. Tribute is not the greatest song in the world, it simply acknowledges the greatest song in the world, points to it, pays homage to it.

So it is with The Book of Will. In addition to acknowledging, pointing to and paying homage to Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets, it brings some greatness of its own into play.

It’s not the thickest plot. The set up is: Shakespeare has died and many of his original company of actors, the Kings Men, are not feeling too good themselves. They decide to cement their legacy, before it’s too late, by publishing all of Shakespeare’s plays in one volume. The rest involves the hoops and hurdles they must clear to get the book done.

What makes the show special is the performances. Every actor seems to be at their very top. I have to attribute that to the direction of Karen Lund. When everyone is that good, in my experience it’s due to the director.

They generate laughs throughout, with comedy ranging from Abbott-and-Costello-esque absurdity all the way to subtle wordplay. Nik Doner as Shakespeare’s rival poet, Ben Johnson stands out.

The best scene is more serious and comes immediately after intermission. Reginald Andre Jackson as Henry Condell and Eric Jensen as John Heminges go heart to heart, interrogating loss, grief, unanswered prayers, why we bother going on, and what’s the stage got to do with it. The answer is powerful, and it’s why The Book of Will is a moving tribute to the original.

(The Book of Will plays through February 24. Photo by me.)