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Act 5, Scene 5
Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in If We Were Villains, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
Fate vs. Free Will
Identity and Disguise
Love and Sexuality
Theatre and Corruption
Summary
Analysis
The cast moves through the second half of the play. Oliver notices that James appears urgent and Meredith appears guilty. Oliver goes on stage as Edgar, confronting James as Edmund the traitor. They begin the combat choreography they were rehearsing on the day that James hit him in the face. As they fight to the end of the bridge, Oliver follows James’s gaze to see Colborne standing in the wings with Gwendolyn and Dean Holinshed. Oliver and James continue the scene, but Oliver glances back and sees Meredith whispering in Colborne’s ear. As Edmund concedes, James speaks his line: “The wheel is come full circle; I am here.” Oliver fudges the script, speaking a line to James that was meant to be addressed to Camilo: “Worthy prince, I know’t.”
Meredith’s guilt again suggests that she’s hiding something, and when Oliver sees her talking to Colborne offstage, Oliver seems to realize that she’s figured out that James killed Richard and has gone to the police with the information. James and Oliver both understand that James is caught and that these moments are likely to be their last together for a long time. Edmund’s line about the “wheel” underlines James’s understanding of his situation in terms of fate: the wheel of fortune has caught up with him. Oliver’s misplaced line betrays his true feelings toward James, whom he still admires despite everything. To Oliver, James is still a hero.
Themes
James stares at Oliver and pulls his head down. Gently, he kisses him. The crowd whispers, confused. After a long silence, Camilo and the second-years pick up the rest of the play, with Camilo speaking Edgar’s final lines. The stars on the ceiling go dark and the audience applauds. After their bows, the cast walks offstage, and Colborne meets them. He looks at James and asks if he’s ready to tell him the real story. Before he can say anything, Oliver butts in: “Yes,” he says, “I am.”
James appears moved by Oliver’s estimation of him, and it stirs his feelings. Perhaps with the threat of prison just offstage, he feels he has nothing left to lose—or perhaps he can’t contain his love or attraction any longer. The audience is disturbed because Edgar and Edmund, the characters Oliver and James are playing, are half-brothers and enemies; their characters should be doing the furthest thing from kissing. But the truth trumps the disguise, and Oliver and James finally break free of their roles to openly demonstrate their feelings for each other. With the stars overhead, the scene offers a final interpretation of fate: that human will and passion are stronger than the pull of destiny. Oliver demonstrates this principle when he takes the responsibility for James’s crime.
Themes
