By William R. Wineke
Special to Channel 3000

SPRING GREEN, Wis. -- American Players Theatre's production of "All's Well That Ends Well" combines a pretty good cast with one of William Shakespeare's pretty confusing plots and the result is a performance that's pretty OK, not spectacular like last week's "As You Like It," but OK.

The play, written in approximately 1600, involves an orphan, Helena, taken in by the Countess of Rossillion. Helena is hopelessly in love with the countess's son, Bertram, but knows she doesn't have a chance because he is nobility and she isn't. The countess doesn't think this is a problem, but Bertram does. He goes to the French court to be with the king, who is on his death bed.

Helena follows, carrying with her a medicine kit owned by her late father. She gives the king a potion, he recovers and offers her any man in the court. She picks Bertram, who responds in horror and flees the country accompanied by a roustabout, Parolles. There's a lot of plot shifting, but everything turns out fine in the end.

A typical Shakespeare plot. You're either dead in the end or OK.

It seemed to me that the second act of the play was head and shoulders more enjoyable than the first act.

In the first act, Shakespeare sets up the storyline, improbable as it is. Actors Tracy Michelle, the countess, Ally Carey, Helena, and Matt Schwader, Bertram, all performed adequately, but nothing rally sparkled.

The second act was a different story -- well, the same story, but you know what I mean.

Here two iconic APT players, James DeVita, Parolles, and Sarah Day, a widow whose daughter also win's Bertram's heart (Bertram is no prize) come into their own. DeVita turns Parolles into a slim Falstaff character and brings down the house. Day, who in previous years sometimes seemed to be playing Sarah Day on stage, gives up her comic personality to bring a hopeful widow to life. It works.

Jonathan Smoots as the king of France, gains power as the performance continues and seems quite credible by performance end.

One has to give APT credit for bringing some truly talented performers to Spring Green and then making use of them. Hillary Clemens had the lead role of Rosalind in "As You Like It," and turned in a star performance. Ally Carey made a touching Helena in "All's Well That Ends Well." Each of the actresses is making a debut performance at APT this summer.

Finally, reviewing is a matter of one person sharing his or her experiences at a theater. We -- and our other readers -- would also be interested in your opinion of "All's Well That Ends." Write your own thoughts on "All's Well" in the "comment" box below this review and we'll be glad to share it on Channel 3000.