The Not-So-Royal Shakespeare Company's production of "The History of King Henry IV, part I," will change the mind of anyone who believes that Notre Dame lacks culture. The entirely student-run play offers a welcome interpretation of Shakespeare's classic history.

Re-founded in 1993 as an effort to bring Shakespeare to the Notre Dame student body, the NSRSC has built strong support and appeal, regularly selling out its shows and gaining support from student government.

"We want to be as loyal to Shakespeare as possible in the text," stage manager Lindsay Updike said. "But Not-So-Royal is also intent on giving its shows a lot of energy and attitude."

The play follows two plots: one concerning the strained relationship between King Henry IV and his son Prince Hal (the future Henry V) and the other concerning the rebellion spearheaded by the noble Percy family that is rebuked by the king. Both plots eventually converge in one of Shakespeare's most dramatic battle sequences.

In the beginning of the show, Prince Hal has taken up a lifestyle of vice hardly befitting his royal status. He drinks in a mangy tavern filled with highway robbers and criminals. Falstaff, one of the regulars, evolves into a father figure for Hal; he also provides a great deal of the play's comic relief, often making light of his obesity. Falstaff's lifestyle, however, appalls Hal's real father.

King Henry IV wants to reform his son so he can follow in the path of his ancestors. His desire strengthens as a new crisis forms with the Percy family that was largely responsible for King Henry IV's ascension to the throne. The king refuses to ransom one of his lords captured in battle, Mortimer, whom he believes is a traitor for marrying into the family of the Welsh rebel leader, Owen Glendower (played by sophomore Justin Williams).

Mortimer's cousin, the youthful and up-and-coming Henry Percy, who is also called "Harry" or "Hotspur," is beguiled by his uncle, the treacherous Worcester (played by freshman Ellen Kennedy) into joining forces with Glendower in opposition to the king.

Hotspur's quick temper provides a daunting and powerful challenge to the throne. He attacks the king's forces and a final confrontation between Hotspur and Hal ensues.

The stand-out technical side of the production provides a sense of renewal to the timeless play. The characters adorn contemporary costumes that break from the grandiosity of the period in which Shakespeare initially wrote the play, but they connect the audience to the story surprisingly well. The set design also follows this trend.

"We were going for something simple but effective, wanting the set to bring out the intensity of each individual scene," Updike said.

A single throne is present for virtually every scene, drawing attention to the power struggle that transcends both plotlines.

The music also focuses the sense of modernism on the play. The pieces each reflect the tone of the scene, from a guitar and vocal piece to canned scene-change music. The audience is on the edge of its seats as the battle unfolds to the pacing rhythm and intensity of live drumming.

The true source of delight in "Henry IV," is the splendid acting from both the principle and supporting cast members. The four most complex characters, King Henry, Prince Hal, Falstaff and Hotspur, function to tie the text into a masterpiece on stage.

King Henry IV (played by senior JJ Marler) is a static force that is torn between the conflicts facing his kingdom and his relationship between himself and Prince Hal. At times, he can retain his composure and provide a firm but rational response or course of action to his visitors. However, his son pushes him to the edge as the reign of his dynasty is at stake.

"The King wants to show Hal the nature of a leader," Marler said. "His biggest problem isn't Hotspur, but his strained relationship with his son."

Marler keenly plays up the harsh confrontation between the king and the prince. The powerful scene rips at the audience's emotions as the two forces struggle to coexist.

Prince Hal (played by junior Chris Nygren) is the young man struggling between his inevitable reign and youthful urge to enjoy life to its fullest.

"Hal is the paradigm of any 20-something," Nygren said. "He's going through the process of maturation, struggling to assert himself, but because he's royalty, the struggle is even more intense."

Truly, Hal knows where he is and where he will be, so his only outlet is rebellion and the domain of the tavern. Nygren has other opinions regarding the character, particularly when he realizes the gravity of his unruly behavior.

"A lot of people try to present Hal as heroic, but he feels as much anguish as anyone because of his lifestyle," Nygren said.

Jack Falstaff (played by sophomore Mike Federico), complete with fat-pads, is the most delightful stage presence in the play. In an early scene, he and his bumbling criminal companions are duped into robbing three wealthy travelers, but ultimately lose their bounty to Hal and Poins (played by senior Kathleen Lane), another companion of the prince. Federico performs Falstaff's ensuing explanation of the events with a twisted rendition of the story. The character also competes as the father figure of Hal, who requires a guiding force in whichever lifestyle he chooses. Falstaff remains true to the prince through the last battle.

"He's lovable but also keeps a lot of vices," Federico said.

Hotspur (played by sophomore Adel Hanash) is perhaps the most complex character in the play. He initially appears to be hot-tempered and a clear antagonist in the story, but his nature is wider. His view of the world is terribly idealistic, but he recognizes his fault.

"I've fallen in love with the character because he's so real, so essentially human," Hanash said. "I wanted to bring out his innocence because it's very easy to play him as fiery, but that takes away from his essence."

Bringing every element together was the show's director, junior Dan Fisher. His intricate vision for the play was fully understood by every cast member.

"A good director knows what he wants but lets it evolve and get better and that's what Fisher did," Hanash said.

Fisher had equal praise for the cast.

"They're all young, but they offer a degree of professionalism that is very reassuring and helpful for the creative process," Fisher said.

With an immense understanding of the text, Fisher sought out to represent the central ideas of the play.

"The lines between good and evil are nebulous and virtue is defined by each of the individual characters, so there's an element of ambiguity that speaks of all humanity," Fisher said. "If you hold a mirror up to nature, as this play does, you will see that idealism doesn't always win in the end."

Entertainment value in the show is present with flying colors. However, perhaps the greatest measure of a play is the thought and self-reflection it provokes. In this case, the show also succeeds as a combination of acting, directing and technical effort. The show astounds and enlightens from beginning to end as the NSRSC once again produces a success for the stage.

"The History of King Henry IV, part I" opens tonight and runs until Saturday at 7:30 p.m. and on Sunday at 2:30 p.m. in the Hesburgh Center for International Studies auditorium. General admission is $7 and $5 for students. Tickets are available at the LaFortune Student Center box office and standby seating will be available at the door. Due to limited seating capacity, ticket holders not in the theater at the scheduled showtime may have their tickets resold to standby seating. Visit or call the box office at (574) 631-8128 to make reservations.

Contact Bill Rinner at rinner.2@nd.edu.

• The Not-So-Royal Shakespeare Company presents William Shakespeare's 'The History of King Henry IV, part I'