Spotlight: Dion Johnstone is an Othello you don’t want to mess with
Six years ago, while Dion Johnstone was rehearsing a duel for a production of King Lear, the show’s fight choreographer told him his moves were too stiff and precise—no one would buy him as the scheming, lance-wielding bastard, Edmund.
So he started practising Krav Maga, an Israeli martial art. He also hits the gym six times a week and skips the traditional post-show booze-ups. Mixing a little MMA with his method acting helped him in Stratford’s hit production of The Tempest, where he furiously prowled the stage as Caliban to Christopher Plummer’s Prospero. This month, Johnstone goes into the ultimate fit of jealous rage for Othello. As the murderous Moor, he is all tightly wound menace, and when he finally explodes, it’s with an unleashed aggression rarely seen on a Stratford stage. Iago should start worrying now.
Othello Starring Dion Johnstone Avon Theatre, Stratford Aug. 4 to Oct. 19
Simon Lewsen is a feature writer and a regular contributor to Toronto Life, Maclean’s, the Walrus, Report on Business, and the Toronto Star. He writes the monthly City Beat column on art and architecture for Designlines, and he teaches writing at the University of Toronto.
