By Galen Simmons

There is something to be said about setting a Shakespearean comedy about a woman who disguises herself as a man to gain favour and influence in a male-dominated society in 1967.

Though, admittedly, I didn’t initially understand why Seana McKenna opted to position her directorial debut, Twelfth Night,just weeks before The Summer of Love, looking back on the play as a whole, I now see there are some key themes that ring true both in Shakespeare’s writing and in the decade shaped by counterculture.

Finding herself shipwrecked in the exotic land of Illyria stranded separately from her bother, who she believes is dead, Viola – masterfully played by Jessica B. Hill – disguises herself as a man, Cesario, to gain favour with Duke Orsino, played by André Sills, and secure her place in his court as his personal confidant.

As Viola aids in Orsino’s unproductive attempts to win the heart of the wealthy Lady Olivia, played by Vanessa Sears, Olivia instead falls in love with Cesario, and Cesario’s alter ego, Viola, falls in love with the duke. Muddying the waters even further, Viola’s brother, Sebastian – played by Austin Eckert – who is the spitting image of Cesario, unwittingly and without his sister’s knowledge evades death and reaps the benefits of Olivia’s already established love for Cesario, ultimately marrying her.

In true Shakespearean fashion, everything comes to a head as true identities and passions are revealed, hilariously and one by one giving each of actors a chance to flex their considerable comedic chops.

Yet while the central plotline of Twelfth Night touches on the empowerment of one woman, the play’s secondary plotline steals the show and fits perfectly with the ‘60s motif, at least in my mind.

This plotline involves a trio of drunken fools – Sir Toby Belch (Scott Wentworth), Sir Andrew Aguecheek (Ryan Wilkie) and Feste (Deborah Hay) – along with Olivia’s servant, Maria (Sarah Dodd), conspiring to destroy the reputation of Olivia’s authoritarian steward, Malvolio (Laura Condlln), who disapproves of their drunken revelry.

Condlln plays the traditionally male character perfectly, allowing the audience to at first understand why she would be conspired against, a result of her overbearing and controlling nature, before revealing that nature is simply to mask her deep love for Lady Olivia. Once convinced Lady Olivia feels the same, Malvolio risks deep humiliation to woo her love, only to discover she’s been tricked before being locked away for supposedly losing her mind.

While a male Malvolio may be perceived as having received his proper comeuppance, Condlln’s portrayal of the steward leaves the audience feeling pity for the wronged woman, who was only doing her job – and doing it well. While Malvolio is ultimately released from her imprisonment, she is the only character who does not get a satisfying conclusion to her story arc; she swears revenge, but that vengeance is never acted out onstage.

As a straight, white man living in the 21^st century, I can’t fully put it into words, but there is something that rings true about a scorned woman not getting the justice she deserves in 1967. While women’s rights and female empowerment did take a big step forward thanks to the counterculture of the ‘60s, both still had a long way to go – and they still do.

There is one more component of this production of Twelfth Night that fits well with that ‘60’s motif, and that’s the music. While studying Twelfth Night in high school, I remember reading Shakespeare’s song lyrics and then later hearing them performed and thinking, “He may be a playwright, but he sure isn’t much of a songwriter.”

Having now seen this production, I am willing to admit I was wrong. The decision to put Shakespeare’s lyrics to ‘60s-esque folk rock and have it performed by Hay, who I couldn’t help but compare to Janis Joplin, was a stroke of genius. That in and of itself made this production of Twelfth Night work for me, though I do think the music director could have had a little more fun with that final song-and-dance number.

Overall, McKenna’s directorial debut is thoroughly enjoyable and I applaud her for taking creative licence in presenting a play familiar to so many of us.

Twelfth Night is playing at the Festival Theatre until Oct. 26.