By Galen Simmons

It is a rare thing to go into a Shakespeare play with zero expectations.

When it comes to Shakespeare’s most popular works, most, if not all of us know the stories, the characters and the plot twists either by having read them in high school, through references in television and movies, or by seeing them produced again and again by theatre companies around the globe.

That is not the case with perhaps Shakespeare’s most rarely produced play, Cymbeline, which opened at the Stratford Festival’s Tom Patterson Theatre May 29.

Walking into the theatre auditorium, I must admit I knew nothing about the play I was about to see. I didn’t know the story, I didn’t know the characters, I didn’t know who was in the cast and, honestly, I didn’t even know it was a Shakespeare play.

While I’ll blame my ignorance on a bout of food poisoning that kept me from doing the research I’d normally do before reviewing a play, I think that was actually to my benefit. Going into this production without any expectations and a truly open mind allowed me to immerse myself in the world of Ancient Britain and the repercussions of the controversial marriage between Innogen (Allison Edwards-Crewe) – the daughter of Queen Cymbeline (Lucy Peacock) – and Posthumus Leonatus (Jordin Hall) – a Roman man below her station – more than I otherwise would have.

I didn’t have any other productions of Cymbeline to compare it to, nor had I read the original text in which Cymbeline is the King of Britain, and I had to pay close attention to ensure I wasn’t lost in Shakespeare’s often unnecessarily descriptive prose.

But it paid off.

From the moment Jupiter (Marcus Nance) and Philarmonous the Soothsayer (Cynthia Jimenez-Hicks) set the stage for the story that ensued, introducing each of the characters and their motivations, I was hooked.

I’m a sucker for special effects, and this play delivered on that front. From the lighting and the fog machines to the set design anchored by a large tree that glows when certain characters touch it and the enormous wings of Jupiter puppeteered each with their own onstage actor, the audience experience felt nearly cinematic at times.

The battle scenes between the Romans and Queen Cymbeline and her soldiers were particularly exciting to watch thanks in part to the special effects, but also to the impeccable fight choreography.

The performances were also on point. Peacock’s portrayal of Cymbeline’s unbridled fury at her daughter’s choice to marry a man below her station and Edwards-Crewe’s enactment of Innogen’s emotional roller-coaster ride from being helplessly in love to being betrayed by that same man, then thinking he’s dead before finally finding out he is indeed still alive are, unsurprisingly, high points of the production.

Yet the two leads weren’t alone in their stellar performances. Christopher Allen’s hot-headed and vain portrayal of Cloten brought humour to the production as he tried again and again to win over Innogen to take advantage of her wealth and power, to no success, as did Tyrone Savage in his portrayal Iachimo as he hid himself in a trunk placed in Innogen’s bedroom to steal a token that could prove her infidelity and win him his bet with Posthumus.

Jonathan Goad’s Belarius, an English nobleman who kidnapped Cymbeline’s two sons after he was unjustly banished and raised them as his own into strong, kind men, and Wahsontí:io Kirby’s Cornelius, the doctor who didn’t trust the Duke (Rick Roberts) – Cymbeline’s husband – and gave him a concoction that would mimic death instead of causing it like the poisons he’d asked for, were also highlights for me.

Like me, if you’ve never seen a production of Cymbeline – or maybe you’ve never even heard of it before – director Esther Jun’s production of this rarely staged play won’t disappoint. Just make sure you brush up on your Shakespearean English first.

Cymbeline runs at the Tom Patterson Theatre until Sept. 28.