‘King Lear’ @ Stolen Shakespeare Guild
Photography by Jennifer & Bart Stewart
—Hannah Kneen
Stolen Shakespeare Guild is putting on a double feature of King Lear and As You Like It this October as part of their Stolen Shakespeare Festival 2026. As two of Shakespeare’s more famous plays, Lear and AYLI are great examples of what Shakespeare’s comedies and tragedies are like (if you’re new to all this), or, if you’ve seen them many times, they might be like old but complicated friends you’re still trying to figure out.
The players start their show–whichever one you have tickets to see–with a coin toss to decide if they’ll be doing comedy or tragedy. Don’t worry, the coin seems to know which show is scheduled for which time, so I doubt you’ll walk in expecting a tragedy and get a comedy, or vice versa. But it’s a lovely way to get everyone’s energy and excitement up at the start of the play, and the performers launch immediately into their chosen show with a seamless and well-practiced grace.
If you’re not familiar with the story of King Lear, it begins with an aging king (played by Steven Young) deciding how to divide up his kingdom, based on how well his three daughters love him. Expecting to hear a trio of flattering speeches, he is surprised when his youngest and most beloved daughter refuses to participate in the phony pageantry. Youngest daughter Cordelia (Faith Berry) is subsequently banished, and the last of the king's lands are split between the two flattering daughters, Goneril (Molly Kessler) and Regan (Lindsey Sinopoli).
Unfortunately for King Lear, his two eldest daughters are not nearly as devoted as they pretend to be, and soon the king is stripped of what little power remained with him after the division of the kingdom. It isn’t long before he is cast out into a storm, half naked and half mad with his feelings of betrayal.
Alongside this main plot there’s another family story unraveling, of Edmund (Frank Villalvazo), the bastard son of the Earl of Gloucester (Robert Bradford Smith). Unhappy with his lot in life, Edmund seeks to ruin the fortunes of others, starting with that of his legitimate brother Edgar (Benji Zavala). He sabotages his brother’s relationship with their father and soon enough both Edgar and Gloucester father are suffering tragic fates of their own. Eventually, Edmund allies with both Goneril and Regan as various characters suffer as a result of their machinations.
Steven Young makes an excellent King Lear, expertly delivering the king’s early foolishness, his pride, and the fall that will surely “goeth” after. Lear’s periods of madness and suffering, and eventually his remorse for how he has treated Cordelia, are handled with care and flexibility.
Kessler and Sinopoli play Goneril and Regan with very different approaches, with Goneril the calmer, more calculated sister and Regan prone to fits of temper. Berry’s more honorable Cordelia contrasts strongly with both of them, while Villalvazo’s Edmund was villainous in a complementary way to the evil sisters, both energetic and irreverent. The whole cast, from Lear himself to the smallest bit part (kudos to Nancy Lamb as Curan) performed with wonderful commitment.
The tech in this show was very simple, but truly worked well without needing to be complicated. Among the play’s technical and creative elements, the costume work by designer Lauren Morgan stood out the most: there were some absolutly gorgeous costumes in this show.
The theatre is a close, intimate black box with (for this show) audience seating on three sides and a small platform at the back of the stage area to provide the opportunity for some levels. Up this close to the stage space, I had the unusual experience of not losing even one line of the dialogue for it’s being too quiet. Instead, a few times I had difficulty understanding a line delivered too loudly!
Director Nathan Autrey created some lovely stage pictures, especially in the final few scenes, where emotions are high and the twists and turns of the plot are finally resolving themselves.
King Lear is a heavy play, with deep themes and a very human heart. It is definitely worth spending a few hours on, especially if you’ve never seen it before. And if you have a few hours more, it’s great to watch it with As You Like It, its contrasting counterpart this season at Stolen Shakespeare Guild.
WHEN: October 16-31, 2026
WHERE: SSG, 3623 Decatur Avenue, Fort Worth
WEB: https://www.stolenshakespeareguild.org/
