Review: Shana Cooper's direction adds zest to All's Well That Ends Well at Chicago Shakespeare
Cooper's movement-driven staging, choreographed with Stephanie Martinez, brought energy to one of Shakespeare's more difficult "problem plays" at the Navy Pier theater.
Chicago Shakespeare Theater's spring 2022 production of "All's Well That Ends Well," running through May 29 at its Navy Pier home, drew a positive review from Third Coast Review, which credited director Shana Cooper's movement-based staging with energizing one of Shakespeare's harder-to-stage "problem plays." Reviewer Nancy S Bishop described Cooper as "a director known for her use of movement to express ideas and emotions."
The production starred Alejandra Escalante as Helen and Dante Jemmott as Bertram, with Ora Jones as the Countess of Rossillion, Francis Guinan as the King of France, Elizabeth Ledo as Lavatch, Emma Ladji as Diana, Christiana Clark as the Widow Capillet and Marc Bedard as Parolles.
Bishop singled out the healing scene between Helen and the ailing King as a standout moment: "Cooper adds some magic to All's Well, in a beautifully lighted scene where Helen cures the king." The review's overall verdict was favorable, though it did not claim the production erased every challenge inherent to the play's uneven tone.
The movement work behind the staging
Cooper collaborated with choreographer and movement designer Stephanie Martinez on the production's physical sequences, including its military scenes. Third Coast Review's review noted this was consistent with Cooper's broader directing signature: "The movement scenes for which Cooper is well known are crafted with movement designer/choreographer Stephanie Martinez."
A play that divides audiences
"All's Well That Ends Well" is grouped by scholars among Shakespeare's "problem plays" for its uneasy mix of comedy and darker material around Bertram's rejection of Helen. Other reviews of the same Chicago Shakespeare run took a more mixed view of Cooper's directorial choices -- one noted the production's costuming and time period, described as "Bohemian-Edwardian," left some elements feeling disconnected even if intended to mirror the play's transitional themes. Cooper herself framed her approach to the material in promotional remarks: "Every day I fall more in love with this strange & quirky play about the pivotal transitional moments in our lives."
US In News compiled this archived account from contemporaneous coverage by Third Coast Review. It restores a story originally published on this site in April 2022; figures are as reported at the time.