Wednesday, July 13, 2005
The beast with two backs, and a new Blogger feature
Hiya. I wanted to see if this Blogger photo dealy is any better than Hello. So here we go, hopefully a picture from the Omaha Shakespeare Festival, aka Shakespeare on the Green.
I have fallen in love with Shakespeare. The Bard. You know, that guy who wrote all that crap that you had to read in school? I hated it then. Now at 30 there is nothing more enjoyable than reading Shakespeare... well, I guess seeing it performed well is more enjoyable.
This year, the 19th year, of the festival saw Pericles, which I know little about, and Othello. Othello is a favorite of mine, so I did not want to miss it. My friend Nancy told me she prefers the comedies, but for my money... you can't beat pathos.
There is art in Shakespeare's tragedies. There is always the best villain, and not a hero in sight. Everyone is flawed, and the villains find a way to play on these weaknesses. The only noble characters usually find an untimely end, furthering the tragedy part of the plot.
This year's Othello was done in WWII European theater dress. Meaning, they wore uniforms and dresses of the 1940's era. This was done to make the play seem a little more familiar, which I was irked by at first, but grew to appreciate. The play itself, all 3 hours of it, was done as written. And the cast was outstanding. Iago was played probably as perfect as Iago can be played.
Did you realize that many of the words and phrases we use every day in English were invented by Shakespeare? Not mention the hundreds of clever plays on words that come so frequently that you tend to miss them. If you were ever soured to Shakespeare and yet still have a love for reading, you should give him a try again. The themes of war, racism, love, the search for meaning, and jealousy are all fit for our modern life.
Here are some of my favorites, some you may want to try. I would reccomend the Penguin/Pelican publications of his works (each between $3.95 and $5.95 US), as they use Orgel's scholarship, which is as thourough and respectful as it gets. If you still struggle with the language, pick up one from the No Fear Shakespeare series, which has the direct writings on one page, and a paraphrase in modern terms on the other.
1. Julius Caesar - political ambitions lead to betrayal and murder, and a needless war
2. King Lear - A king retires, and leaves his kingdom to his daughters, only to watch it all fall into chaos, and his own life suddenly seems a waste
3. As You Like It - A great love story about souls in exile who make the best of the situation
4. Othello - A man with high ambitions manipulates others into creating a conspiracy of murder and slander, which drive a nobel man insane
Horns up.
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