| Virginia Shakespeare Fest takes us to Illyria | | Print | |
| Written by David Springstead | |
| Saturday, 15 July 2006 | |
.jpg "Image") This past Thursday my massage therapist, while digging her elbow into my lower ribcage, said, "I just don't understand Shakespeare. The language makes no sense to me, and after about three minutes my brain shuts down." Well Robyn, I've found some Shakespeare that you just might understand.
What PDQ Bach is to Classical music this Briggs and Frampton adaptation of Twelfth Night is to Shakespearian theatre. This musical, wait... musical comedy, no that's not it either... aha! musical farce does resemble (somewhat) the comedy of mistaken identities and mis-directed love written by the Bard. If there were an advisory board that gave ratings to live stage shows this one would be rated PG-13, a very HARD PG-13. The comedic elements include B-R-O-A-D comedy, quite bawdy (bordering on raunchy) sexual innuendo, a running fart gag, and a suitor who never 'suits' the fair Olivia and that comes across not as a fop but as a flaming homosexual. This Virginia Shakespeare Festival production, directed by co-author JOHN R. BRIGGS, opens with the familiar story of the twin brother and sister that are separated by shipwreck and assume each other to have perished in the sea. Told by Feste the fool, (JACE SMYKIL) the show opens as a production number where the ship breaks apart and is then transitioned into the land Illyria. Set Designer J.DAVID BLATT has once more brought to the stage a wonderfully functional set that allows freedom of movement to the performers, with multiple entrance and exit points that allow scenes to flow from one to another with minimal effort. The set is dressed during this number by the company while singing the song that tells us (over and over and over again) that we're now in Illyria. To look at the colors one gets the sense of almost watching a cartoon, the backdrop is set with what appear to be Eastern Orthodox Church spires with the onion dome quite visible.  The costuming (PATRICIA M. WESP) of the twin brother and sister suggest traditional Greek, which make sense of the Orthodox reference, but the remainder of the cast seem to have stepped out of 1,001 Arabian Nights. That's fine, but later in Act II we are shown a "pastor" who breaks out into a gospel song complete with "Amen Choir" backing him up. And then we have what is obviously an Orthodox priest (even though singing in Latin) conducting a wedding ceremony. In reading the directors program notes he states that he wanted, "Illyria to be a magical, almost mythical place, not unlike Disney's animated feature, Aladdin." Well, if it's going to be like Aladdin then follow through and allow the show to be placed in Arabia. All in all it was confusing.The company of players makes a mighty effort at this three ring circus of a production. Notable mentions include the previously named JACE SMYKIL who takes stage with great confidence, often strumming a guitar as he sings his songs. AURORA NESSLY (Viola), LENNY BANOVEZ (Sebastian), STEVEN BREEZE (Orsino), APRIL WOLFE (Olivia), JOHN AMMERMAN (Sir Toby Belch, who looks like an escaped pirate from Disney's ride), and KARL KIPPOLA (Malvolio) lead this cast with singing, dancing, and the bulk of the dialogue. Those who stand out in the singing department include MR. BREEZE, MR. KIPPOLA, and MS WOLFE. Matter of fact, proving that there are no small parts, MR. KIPPOLA stole the show. And speaking of the songs in the show, I must frankly state that the many different styles of music do not help the setting of the production. About the only style they missed was grand opera. There's Folk, Rock and Roll, Blues, Jazz, Ballads, Gospel, Reggae (which sounded more Calypso to me) and just about everything else in between. At times I was reminded of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Pippin, and Moulin Rouge. At the keyboard was music director TIM ROBERTSON. Assisted by an accompaniment track, he tried his best to keep the company onstage in time to the music. With a soundtrack this is not always possible. At times it appeared that the cast could not hear the music being played, and this occured throughout the show. The sound board operator had their problems, too. The cast was wearing body mics, which is fine if they are used consistently throughout, but it became obvious very quickly that they were only being turned on when the actors had to sing. As a result, dialogue leading into a song often sounded thus, "Well, I can tell you whERE WE HAVE TO GO..." Distracting at the least, infuriating at most. Shakespeare when writing his plays had to be aware of the groundlings, the common people who only wished for entertainment. As such he tried to include things within his plays with which they could identify. If they didn't like a show they let you know, often flinging spoiled food upon the stage and howling actors off. This production has made an effort at reaching the lowest common denominator of theatre goer. Is it Shakespeare? Barely. Is it an evening of frolic, fun, and fart gags? Yes. Will the average audience member enjoy it. Most likely. In the midsummer of Tidewater this isn't a dream. Turn your mind off and just be entertained. After all, isn't that why sitcoms are so successful? |