In Cymbeline, a “problem play,” dream logic saturates numerous scenes that portray sleeping, or partially asleep, characters. These scenes, markedly slower than the absurdly fast-paced nature of the rest of the plot, do less to aggravate that surrounding plot than they do to emphasize and recenter the overarching themes of the play.
The first of these scenes is Act II Scene II, in which Iachimo spies on the sleeping Innogen. The practical (though contemptible) actions in the scene–collecting information about Innogen and her chamber and taking her bracelet as proof of her infidelity–occur much more slowly and with a more loquacious narration (by Iachimo) than many of the other important plot-driving moments of the play. The heightened value of symbolism in this scene, such as Iachimo’s allusions to Tarquin and Tereus, accentuate the fear that Iachimo will assault Innogen. A less gradually paced scene would have lessened this tension. Iachimo’s own sense of guilt and fear in this scene, which he connects with the necessity of re-entering his chest when the clock strikes again, is largely nonsensical given his relative position of power from the perspective of the audience. These two factors allow both the audience and Iachimo to be influenced by nonlinear, dream-like suspicions.
The first challenge in my project was how to depict the second dream logic scene, in which Innogen awakes after a narcotic-induced coma to see Cloten’s beheaded body in Posthumus’s clothes. The issue of creating a convincing forest atmosphere that could easily be swapped for the interior castle scenes was the problem that led me to design a moveable set. In this scene, I imagine the “forest” could be flooded with theatrical fog to give an impression of eeriness as Innogen awakens and gives her monologue, emulating her realization, “Our very eyes / Are sometimes like our judgments, blind” (4.2.303-4). Yet this half-asleep scene again does not involve any supernatural elements.
On the other hand, the arrival of Jupiter in Posthumus’s dream in Act V Scene IV does. The grand arrival of Jupiter on an eagle could easily be accomplished by a dramatic appearance on the balcony of my tower set-piece, which is not used at any other point in the play and could thus provide dramatic effect without creating the technical difficulty of lowering an actor on rigs. The different and adjustable levels of foreground and background, as well as the artificial distance created by my tree/column pieces would allow the ghost of Posthumus’s family to appear on the ground level while still maintaining physical, and therefore figurative, distance from him as members of the afterworld. Across from Posthumus would be the mirror from the set of the throne room, facilitating his introspective discussions on his own behavior towards his wife both before and after Jupiter’s appearance. While he would begin and end the scene behind the bars of the “jail cell” under the tower, his movement throughout his dream upstage could emphasize the power of dreams to transport characters.
The ability of this set to offer simple, evocative symbols in lieu of hyper-realistic forests and chambers creates a distance between the play and the audience’s perception of real life, allowing them to more fully embrace the unreal aspects of the plot rather than trying to justify the more absurd moments with those that are more realistic. With expressive lighting work, it can comment on morality in character’s actions and power dynamics as well as rotate the overarching emotion of the scenes, which, in a dynamic play like Cymbeline, can only enhance the audience’s experience.