MANDY PATINKIN’S PROSPERO.

MANDY PATINKIN’S PROSPERO. Hilton Als is right that Mandy Patinkin’s Prospero does not relate to the other actors on stage, but not for the reasons I expected. Patinkin portrays Prospero as an angry and all-powerful wizard, in complete command of his island world. A Prospero this powerful cannot have human contact. Prospero’s isolation results from the choices Patinkin makes and not from any limitations on his acting ability. Is this a valid interpretation? Of course. Prospero is after all in complete command of everything that happens in the play so that a consistent view of THE TEMPEST flows easily from Patinkin’s interpretation.