Shakespearean London ~ Looking for Shakespeare: Day 6

March 15

Lloyd Trott at RADA… Rambled. A lot. He never got around to discussing ‘Hamlet,’ and it sounded like what he was going to say would have been interesting. Oh well. His stories of life in the theatre were interesting enough! He made me want to work at the Globe (though of course that wouldn’t take much convincing!) I was uncomfortable with how derisively he spoke about Paganism, though. Besides the fact that I follow the belief system, I think Paganism and mysticism are very valid themes in Shakespeare’s works… It is not “unusual,” as he said. He mentioned ‘The Tempest’ and ‘Macbeth,’ but I would also add ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ and any play that includes a member of the Greek pantheon. Because Christianity was so prevalent in Shakespeare’s time, myth, magic, and gods rather than God were certainly a point of interest in his audience. (Goddesses were as well, since they combine myth and the role of the strong female.) Overall, this was not my favorite lecture.

HOWEVER, I went to see the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre’s production of ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream.’ I am sure that it was the best decision that we made on the trip. It was far better than the National Theatre’s ‘Comedy of Errors.’ Besides the fact that it’s my favorite play, it was brilliantly done. It was certainly off-beat and unique, but that’s partly what made it so successful. If Shakespeare is going to be updated, it absolutely should be done this way rather than the National Theatre’s approach. Oberon was a hipster-superhero with asthma who had to make his own sound effects—perfect for a faerie king who tries to manipulate his wife (perhaps out of insecurity?)! Titania of course was a sex-starved rock star, while Puck was a lazy carpenter, which makes perfect sense since he takes orders while being mischevious. The players were great; they were the only characters to stray from their Shakespeare lines. Even then, it fit with the text since those characters speak in prose rather than verse and serve as comedic relief, so the humor was appropriately updated so that the audience was in stitches, just has Shakespeare’s would have been. It felt like the most genuine Shakespearean experience that I could have had, even though it was far from the traditional take. One of my particularly favorite scenes was when Demetrius and Lysander chase each other through the forest. They were video game players while Puck held the controller! Perfect. Oberon flew on a crude harness (like Shakespearean actors who would’ve been lowered down through the trap ceiling) and a roll-y desk chair. The faeries were just high voices and zooming sounds (which made them far more magical than if we had seen them!), characters walked through walls (surprisingly effective), they fell through the stage, and the famous cat fight scene resulted in an epic food fight (in which the audience participated). Pure hilarious brilliance. (They also made references to the Royal Weddings, the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee, and Qaddafi- they kept it current just like Shakespeare did!)