Shakespeare’s King Lear is not for the faint of heart.

Cruelty, despair and madness anchor the play. Fond and foolish Lear may bring on his own fate, but the treatment the aging king receives from two of his three daughters and his descent into unreality devastate us. Gloucester, Lear’s faithful supporter, gets his eyes gouged out. And when Cordelia, Lear’s only loving child, dies, it’s as though all that was ever good and sane and hopeful has been extinguished (no wonder Samuel Johnson said he could never read the final scene again). Plus, it’s a really long script.

All that to say that successfully mounting the play demands extraordinary reserves of acting, directing and every other kind of talent. Bear & Co.’s production at The Gladstone deserves applause for its ambition, but falls short in its execution. …

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