Here, in Shakespeare's "The Winter's Tale," now playing at The Theater At Monmouth, we get a potpourri of devices, a dead child, a poison cup, lost friendships, betrayal, court room drama, death by bear? ship wrecks, mistaken identity, (Will's signature device) adultery, revenge, redemption, forgiveness, silliness, and the big surprise ending, all packaged into one three-hour play with a too-long first act. That's a whole lot to pack into one play, and Shakespeare's audiences ate it up. I'm not sure why. Maybe it was the times. I'm a bigger fan of the comedies, especially at The Theater At Monmouth where comedy is king.

Shakespeare always was a supplier of interesting women, and in "Tale," we get three of them: The betrayed wife Hermione (the perfect Jeri Pitcher) who, suspected of fooling around with her husband's best friend, winds up in prison and, thought dead, vanishes for sixteen years. Perdita, the sixteen year old daughter of Leontes and Hermione (a convincing and sweet as fudge, Miranda Libkin) thought by her father to be the bastard of his friend, is ordered to be tossed on the fire. But she is spirited away, much like Snow White, and grows up on the coast of Bohemia, which of course had no coast. Sounds a bit like geography by John McCain.

And then there is Paulina. A fearsome feminist, a combination of Hillary and Camille Paglia. Writer Elizabeth Brunner called Paulina "One who fulfills a multitude of feminist expectations, who defends the sisterhood and memorializes womanhood."

Amen, brother.

Who else to play that but TAM's Janis Stevens, who wears power and strength in every play like exotic cologne. The entire first act of "Tale" belongs to Janis Stevens. Stevens is a category five hurricane, a 7.8 earthquake. In her big scene in act one she owns the stage, reducing otherwise strong actors to trembling in the wings, knowing they have to follow her. Even the scenery shook. Run to see this performance.

Maybe it's not Shakespeare, but Steven's power and range that throws the two leading men of this play off balance, perhaps even weakens them ,but they work hard to survive.

King Leontes is played by a good actor, Dan Olmstead, as a bipolar mess, perhaps even psychotic, torn up with insane jealousy, for which, to this viewer, there is no credible evidence. He suspects his visiting best friend, King Polixenes, (David Greenham,) of a dalliance with his queen. But Greenham plays Polixenes as a huge bear of a good old boy who only plays nice with the queen, thus making Leontes seem even crazier.

We wish it were possible to start this play with the superior second act, which comes on like Saturday Night Live at the Common Ground Fair. There is much flower children dancing, boozing and singing and laughs all around. Two superior actors, Frank Omar and Dennis A. Price, give us two clown princes, and young Carl Johannson, with the 1960 Malibu blond good looks of a surfer has real talent. If he needs an agent, I have one for him.

But despite the plethora of talent, the second act belongs to Dustin Tucker, playing the scoundrel/pickpocket and con man, Autolycus, one of Shakespeare's great rogues. It appears, perhaps I'm wrong, that director Bill Van Horn, who, by the way wired this great second act for neon and Bose speakers, simply put Tucker on stage and stood back. There is vaudeville material injected here that Shakespeare would die for...if he were still alive.

Daniel Bilodeau gives us a clever and imaginative turn around set that works well, and Patti Campbell offers a fabulous wardrobe collection heavily influenced by Charles Dickens and L.L. Bean.

Van Horn's "Tale" is supposed to be set in Maine in the l8th Century which, except for an excuse to slip in some racy limericks and country ballads, really didn't work for me.

Except for the too long first act which sets up everything, "The Winter's Tale" gives a solid platform on which some good actors get to strut their stuff. The legendary Bill Van Horn's masterful fingerprints are all over this production. Bravo.