Dame Anu (Sarah Liz Bell) and Cordelius (Jack Sharkey) face off in a friendly spar
“The Duel” pits two cliches against each other. On one hand, we have Cordelius: the cocky man who is invariably put down in a physical confrontation with a more experienced woman. On the other hand, we have Dame Anu: the pompous blowhard who his invariably put down in a physical confrontation with an underdog. It’s a sort-of unstoppable force meets immoveable object situation.
Though short on poison and political intrigue, the Dual also has some parallels with Hamlet’s famous climax: it too is broken into three parts, and it too features combatants who are only pretending this is casual fun.
In addition to good ol’ spectacle, the Duel solidifies each character’s opinion of the other, strongly influencing their future relationship (such as it is).
COSTUMES by Delena Bradley
LIGHTING by Benjamin Dionysus
PHOTO by iNDie Grant Productions