Friday, February 11, 2011
I Am Classy
I saw As You Like It at the Shakespeare Theatre the other day. I really enjoyed it, although not as much as some other things I've seen there. As You Like It just isn't my favorite Shakespeare play, although it has the advantage of not being Measure for Measure or the vast majority of the history plays. It has too many songs, which always seem awkward, and a definite surplus of random characters who don't really seem to belong there. In fact, the last time I saw As You Like It, I totally hated it, because it was a student production that ran about four and a half hours and had a cute directorial concept that involved bubble wrap everywhere. I'm not an opponent of clever staging; I just don't really think packaging materials should ever enter into the picture.
Anyway, this version was quite fine. The case was excellent as always, although I felt the Jacques gayed it up a bit more than was strictly Elizabethan. Speaking of which, they set it in the Victorian era, which I suppose is preferable to setting it the future or on a pirate ship or something. It did allow for some nice looking costumes, a special benefit of which is that any unplanned pregnancy among the cast could be easily concealed. I also liked the set, which was very green and leafy, and also involved a giant swing. I really think they should let people ride it afterwards for a small donation.
I saw As You Like It at the Shakespeare Theatre the other day. I really enjoyed it, although not as much as some other things I've seen there. As You Like It just isn't my favorite Shakespeare play, although it has the advantage of not being Measure for Measure or the vast majority of the history plays. It has too many songs, which always seem awkward, and a definite surplus of random characters who don't really seem to belong there. In fact, the last time I saw As You Like It, I totally hated it, because it was a student production that ran about four and a half hours and had a cute directorial concept that involved bubble wrap everywhere. I'm not an opponent of clever staging; I just don't really think packaging materials should ever enter into the picture.
Anyway, this version was quite fine. The case was excellent as always, although I felt the Jacques gayed it up a bit more than was strictly Elizabethan. Speaking of which, they set it in the Victorian era, which I suppose is preferable to setting it the future or on a pirate ship or something. It did allow for some nice looking costumes, a special benefit of which is that any unplanned pregnancy among the cast could be easily concealed. I also liked the set, which was very green and leafy, and also involved a giant swing. I really think they should let people ride it afterwards for a small donation.
