Seattleplays.com review By Tom Scanlon			Richard III Intiman closes July 15
	Richard of Gloucester put the “evil” in Medieval. At least, the way Shakespeare portrays him, in the delicious “Richard III.”       Richard III is arguably the greatest of Shakespeare’s villains, out-Iagoing Iago, more bloodthirsty than Aaron and Lady Macbeth put together.        In Intiman and Barlett Sher’s electrifying, erratic production, Stephen Pelinski gives a breath-taking performance, lighting up this monster in neon. This is masterful acting, carefully nuanced, filled with great moments yet modulated . . .       Pelinski is so good, so varied, so natural, so perfect, that at times others in the cast seem in far over their heads.       This is hardly always the case, and a handful of others in the huge cast give wonderful performances. Timothy McCuen Piggee is dynamic as Lord Hastings, Michael Winters spot-on as the Duke of Buckingham and young Lenne Klingaman goes toe-to-toe with Pelinski, faring far better than her character, the ill-fated Lady Anne.       That most bizarre of scenes, in which Richard woos this new widow even as he admits to killing her husband (and, by the way, her father as well) is great fun to watch . . . one almost believes he could pull off this most outrageous of romances . .      This production is a mixture of post-modernism and the traditional, mostly a successful mix. The set is highly post-modern/minimal, with a catwalk backdrop – which Sher doesn’t use much, in the first act. In Act II, the catwalk is heavily trafficked, most effectively when a pair of young princes are being led to their beheadings.      The Tony-winning Sher is very likely one of America’s top stage directors, and his vision of Shakespeare is powerful. Unfortunately, here he is at times swept up in that power, allowing a few over-heated performances – notably Kristin Flanders, laying it on thick as Queen Elizabeth – and scenes; every scene and every character simply should not be treated as equals, and to do so verges on the tiresome. Flanders has been wonderful in other performances, but here is as one-note as the production's pounding drums, which also grow predictable and uninteresting.      Fortunately, this production can repeatedly turn to its star, who without fail finds an inventive moment to re-charge the character, the play.