PASADENA. March 22. –

The stage is dark and the first thing I hear is the beat of a single drum. As each member of the cast steps upon the stage, the simple beat builds up to a crescendo fitting for the entrance of our main character, King Henry V.

A Noise Within directors Julia Rodriguez-Elliot and Geoff Elliott have provided a fresh take on the highly influential history play by Shakespeare, Henry V. The looming stairs that make up the entire floor-to-ceiling back of the stage best exemplify their clever use of minimal set design.

The chorus that begins the play is made up of the entire cast, with Henry himself—performed by Rafael Goldstein—joining them at the apex of the stage triangle they form once the speech is done. Henry V is introduced as both figuratively and literally the central figure of the story. Looking regal and intense, even in an all-black outfit with shades and a slick back, this Henry V shows the promise of fulfilling his heroic and silver-tongued potential.

In the multi-layered Act 1 Scene 1, the political and religious chiasmus is presented in the conversation between the clergy and the king. Yet, the notion of true authority is never up for question, both for the other characters, and for the audience. In the aforementioned scene, Henry is sits a few feet above the ground on the gigantic steps, condemning the hypocrisy of the greedy clergymen standing below him.

The Elliott directing team cleverly showcases another duality—that between the English and their opposing force, the French. Whilst the new English king is bouncing up and down those large stairs, King Charles VI is slowly limping from downstage towards the lowest level of the stairs, a.k.a. his throne. In the visual differences between Henry and the Dauphin, the former’s black attire and serious demeanor directly juxtapose the latter’s white dress shirt and childish attitude.

Throughout the play, the superb acting exhibited by Goldstein truly brings above the subtle complexities and vulnerabilities of the new king of England. As he lays eyes on a thief about to be hung, a haunted look crosses his face, hinting at perhaps a different time in which he would not have had to do this. Rafael Goldstein’s brilliant performance is well encapsulated in his performance of the famous St. Crispin’s Day speech, during which both actor and king are one in the effort to unite a small and hopeless group of soldiers.

As the epic Battle of Agincourt takes place, we see that the dark and looming stairs in the background have now literally given way to an assortment of bright lights in the shape of a cross, reminding the audience of the chiasmic origins of this war. The truth is in the action, and this production is not one that should be forgotten.