Hello
all,
I
had the opportunity last week to participate in one of the best theatrical
experiences of my life. As most of you know, I am currently studying at
Oxford University for a term. I have been living in a house with about
thirty other students participating in the same program. Last week, two
of my fellow students performed, for the rest of the house, Tom Stoppard's play
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead. The two young men filled the
title roles, while the audience was able to participate in the play by reading
the lines of the remaining characters. The show ended up being one of the
most enjoyable I have ever attended.
For
those of you who are not familiar with Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead, the play is based around the
story of Hamlet,
following minor characters Rosencrantz and Guildenstern as they attempt to
understand what is going on in the royal court at Denmark and to fulfill their
roles within the play. The work is fascinating because it wrestles with
many of the same themes as Hamlet: death, fate, purpose, and the motif of the play
within a play, but in a humorous manner as the two heroes, who do not even know
their own names, bumble through some of the most recognizable and well loved
scenes from Hamlet in
their attempts to figure out what is going on.
Let
me, for a moment, separate myself from my role as a critic. There are
far better actors, far better venues, and far better performances of Rosencrantz
and Guildenstern than
the one I saw last week. As this is my review, however, I reserve to
myself the right to enjoy and applaud those efforts that might, in more
strictly critical circles, be regarded as lacking. The enjoyment of
partaking in the common experience of an excellent play with good friends is
something that transcends the common critical questions of quality. The unintended moments of humor that
arose from the fact that oftentimes the audience did not know what was going on
any more than the characters did added to the experience in the play by drawing
the audience into the plights of the characters by allowing them a similar
experience of confusion in their participation in a work with which they were
unfamiliar.
The
two young men who played Rosencrantz and Guildenstern did an excellent
job. They were reprising the roles
from an earlier performance, and I could tell that they were familiar with the
lines and the story, and they were obviously quite comfortable working with
each other, which made for a very dynamic show. Their performance took advantage of the stage they were
given, the common room for the house, by moving in around and through the
entirety of the space, including the audience, and this interaction with the
people and the space heightened the sense of inclusion for the audience. The performance was thoroughly
enjoyable, and both young men were able to convey the darker themes of death
and futility without lapsing into pomposity or despair.
Because
of the relatively short amount of time for preparation that the two actors had,
they kept their copies of the script with them through the performance, and had
to occasionally check their lines.
Otherwise, they worked without props or scenery, except for whatever
they could derive from the room and the audience, but in such a situation, the
imagination easily filled in the required set pieces.
If
you are familiar with Hamlet and Rosencranzt and Guildenstern are Dead, then take this piece of
advice: find a copy of the play, get a group of friends together, dim the
lights, and read through it, acting out as you think necessary. It is well worth the time, and ends up
being one of the most fun experiences ever.
Well,
back to reality (although, right now the difference between reality and fantasy
seems to be a bit blurry… everyone here is a bit crazy).
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