In people-who-need-to-go-away news, the alleged Shakespeare thief appears to be milking his fifteen minutes for all that they are worth. As mentioned in a previous blog, amateur collector Raymond Scott was arrested on suspicion of having stolen a copy of the First Folio from a university a decade ago. While he has maintained his innocence throughout, he does not seem to be bothered by the notoriety it is offering him. In fact, the media’s desire to paint Scott as an affected kook has received no greater supporter than Scott himself. Indeed, the man seems to delight in the revelations of his peculiar behavior because it affords him the opportunity to explain it away.

Truly, I cannot imagine why this man is getting the attention he so desperately craves, even in the age of anyone-regardless-talent-or-appeal-can-be-famous-for-a-nanosecond. Still, here I am writing about him, aren’t I? Paris Hilton must be fuming mad right now. Why go to the trouble of leaking a tacky sex tape or getting arrested for a DUI when all she had to do was toss a Folio into her Prada bag next to that obnoxious dog she carries around everywhere and run to the police saying, “Look what I stole!” In the mean time, we’re stuck with this Howard-Hughes-by-way-of-Crispin-Glover weirdo engaged in an ongoing audition for a reality show that could be titled The Shakespeare Borrowers. Even if he didn’t take the book, can’t we arrest him for being annoying?

Marin Shakespeare Company is tackling history this season, but not in the ways you might expect. There are no Henrys to be found nor any Richards nor Johns. There are no speeches about English wars that have been reinvented as some kind of commentary on current events. Instead, the company has chosen two plays (one Shakespearean, one not) that both use history in different ways as inspiration for their dramatic plots. Though you might not initially think of Shakespeare’s category-defying The Winter’s Tale and Peter Shaffer’s intense, twentieth-century drama Amadeus as companion pieces, it turns out that the two have some striking parallels.

Many people have long speculated that, happy ending aside, The Winter’s Tale is a kind of allegory of Henry VIII’s disposal of his eleven-fingered second wife, Anne Boleyn. Indeed, a jealous king’s claims of adultery followed by his wife’s death seem to support this notion. Where the play differs is in its marked shift in tone in the second half of the play (which famously jumps sixteen years). Amadeus is also based on historical figures, albeit more directly. The fictionalized tale of the personal and professional relationship between composers Mozart and Salieri won Tonys and Oscars aplenty in its stage debut and subsequent film version. Where people take issue with Amadeus is in the accuracy of its portrayal of the animosity between the two men (who may have been friendlier to each other in real life) and its suggestion that Salieri murdered Mozart. While it makes for a nice Othello-ish plot device, it may not have really happened. The question is if audiences know to take these plays with a grain of salt, how much does historical fidelity really matter?

Having a photographic record of your rehearsals and performances will be so meaningful to you and your cast, not to mention the extremely proud parents and grandparents who will want to show everyone and their dog pictures from the production! The only thing I want to warn you about is using a professional photographer. Keep in mind that any pictures a photographer takes become their “intellectual property.” Now, I’m sure there are exceptions, and contracts can be drawn up, etc., etc., etc. But to save a great many headaches, it might be nice to ask a student photographer or willing parent to do it for you. This year, the father of Petruchio and Grumio is doing our photography, and let me tell you, I know these are going to be great pictures. He took a ton of pictures last year of the kids backstage, and then of the performance, and honestly, his pictures were of equal or better quality than those of the professional photographer we had there. So I’m thankful he is willing to do all of it for us this year!

Be sure that you get a list of pictures you want taken to your photographer. This year, we are including pictures of every cast member in our playbill, so John will be taking head shots of all 24 kids, which will be condensed to 1″ or so size to fit in the playbill. He’s doing these on Monday, so I’ll have a checklist of all the kids for him to follow. Then he’s coming to the two dress rehearsals to take pictures. Of course, I want him to wander around and take lots of great candids, like he did last year, but I will also have a list of the groups I want to have pictures taken of. For example, I want a picture of Petruchio and Grumio together…Petruchio and Kate together…Hortensio and his Widow together…all of Petruchio’s servants…the Christopher Sly framework actors…Baptista with Kate and Bianca…you see what I’m getting at. Have it all typed out so that your photographer can just call names, go down the list, and get the shots you want. And stick to your guns - If you have a certain grouping of actors that you want, but the photographer says, “You know, it would look better if we did this,” listen to his/her suggestions, but be sure you are still getting all of the kids in the photographs you want. Last year I had my list typed up, but the photographer decided to switch some people around without my knowledge. Turns out that I now have no picture of one of my actors from last year in her small group shot like I wanted, all because the photographer thought he knew better.

I know that there are wonderful professional photographers out there who will listen to what you want and work with you regarding costs, usage of the photos in the future, etc. It was unfortunate that my first experience with a professional photographer was a negative one. I would just suggest that you get references from his/her previous clients, as well as a very clear contract so that there are no questions or problems in the future.

If you plan to record your play, watch out for copyright issues.  One example is music.  Using music that is not public domain, then recording your play with said music in it can lead to headaches that a school or amateur theatre company really doesn’t need.  Personally, I don’t know enough about copyright law to give much advice in this post - just be aware that you need to be careful about what you use in your production if you plan to record your performances…and especially if you are going to be selling your DVDs.  But we have all very much enjoyed having our copies from last year, and I do plan to have Shrew recorded.  I think I had about 20 people buy copies of the DVD for Much Ado, as they make great Christmas gifts for proud relatives and friends of the family.

Definitely take pictures (include rehearsals, if you can - those can be super fun to have!)…definitely record your performance(s)…these will be treasured keepsakes for years to come!  Just be smart about it - get references for your photographer and videographer, and make your expectations very clear up front - and do be sure to check into possible copyright issues.

Fernando Meirelles is part of the recent Latino auteur boom in Hollywood. Along with contemporaries like Alfonso Cuaron and Guillermo del Toro, Meirelles has made his mark in the film industry with two very different, but highly praised movies. In 2003, he was a surprise nominee for Best Director for the vivid City of God. Two years later, his adaptation of the novel The Constant Gardener was also lauded (and earned Rachel Weisz a Best Supporting Actress Oscar). Now Meirelles is setting his sights on Shakespeare.

Meirelles is involved in two projects related to The Bard. The first is a television series about a Shakespearean acting company based on the Canadian series, Slings and Arrows (I have mentioned S&A several times in this blog, and it ROCKS! If you haven’t seen it, it’s reason enough to get a Netflix subscription). The other Shakespearean cinematic outing for Meirelles is Brazilian version of Love’s Labours Lost. This film will be loose adaptation of the play in a modern setting , thus distancing itself from the other film version of the play, Kenneth Branagh’s commercially unsuccessful 2000 take.

In discussing the projects, Meirelles stated, ““Shakespeare is a heavy drug. The more you read, the more you want to read. Each line has poetry, philosophy, a deep understanding of what we are.” While Shakespeare fans rabidly await these projects, Meirelles’s latest film, Blindness, is making the rounds on the festival circuit building up to a fall release.

Every major media outlet regularly runs pieces about the iffy state of the economy. Cable news stations, with their twenty-four-hour stream of talking heads, have supplied endless experts in every imaginable field giving their take on the country’s (and the world’s) financial woes. Depending on whom you ask, different culprits are to blame, but the usual suspects tend to show up. For many, the skyrocketing fuel costs are blamed for having a ripple effect on other products whose creation and/or delivery are sensitive to energy costs. As a result, consumers are backing off certain goods and services in an attempt to conserve, which is further stalling the economy. Others point the finger at the real estate market or other sources, while some analysts see these disparate areas as interrelated.

Regardless of the source or the severity of the issue (which is also debated), the impact has even been felt in the world of Shakespeare. Shakespearience, an attraction in Stratford-upon-Avon, has seen a severe drop in attendance. The downward turn is part of a larger trend of reduced tourism to Stratford and the U.K. as a whole. Since many of these tourists are Americans, the reduction could easily be attributed to increased travel costs as a result of gas prices. Until money matters improve (or perhaps if news outlets stop keening over the death of the economy for a few minutes), it seems some Shakespeare fans will have to put part of their passion on hold.

Nope, not doing Hamlet either! The title of this post was inspired by the fact that several cast and crew members, families and friends, all went to see the Idaho Repertory Theatre’s production of Twelfth Night yesterday. What an amazing show it was! Set in the 1980s, which was MY decade of adolescence, the IRT included tons of great 80s music, hairstyles, clothes (including the IZOD alligator on boatloads of polo shirts), and even Duke Orsino holding a boom box up at Olivia, a great reminder of John Cusack/Lloyd Dobler in Say Anything!

Considering the fact that I prefer Shakespeare set in more “traditional” times and places (yes, I know that “traditional” has a billion different meanings when it comes to adapting Shakespeare, so it’s not really necessary to correct me or tell me that when Shakespeare was around, plays weren’t set in “traditional” settings either. I’m just saying what I prefer - you know, my opinion!), some of my students and even my husband were all surprised that I enjoyed this “painfully 80s” version of Twelfth Night. I’m sure a lot of my enjoyment came simply from the fact that it was a walk down memory lane for me. Had it been set in the 60s or 70s, I probably wouldn’t have enjoyed it nearly as much - those decades don’t mean anything to me, personally.

But beyond the setting, what I enjoyed about it is that the actors had a wonderful grasp of the language, which was something my actors needed to hear for themselves. I can tell them, over and over again, to slow their lines down, enunciate more clearly, project, play up the antithesis and imagery, etc., etc., but what was more meaningful for them was to watch a professional group of actors speaking Shakespeare…and doing it really well!

In addition, the IRT company of players makes Shakespeare FUN! How can a female Feste, dressed as a cross between Madonna and Cyndi Lauper not be fun, especially when she’s partying with Sir Toby Belch and Sir Andrew Aguecheek (who, remarkably, did his entire character with a hilarious Ricky Ricardo Cuban accent, wavy blonde hair, and made his first entrance onto the stage on a motor scooter!) to tunes like “We’re Not Gonna Take It”! I realize that everything I just wrote sounds oddly heretical, and I hope the Bard isn’t rolling over in his grave (honestly, I suspect Will would have encouraged the insanity, saying, “Couldn’t he ride the motor scooter through the audience instead? That would be awesome!”). But wouldn’t Shakespeare want his plays to be enjoyed by teenagers in the 21st century, rather than dreaded? I know that when the younger kids that saw the play get to our 11th grade World Literature class and “have to” read Twelfth Night, they will say, “That was great - remember when Malvolio came out in yellow cross-gartered parachute pants, dancing like Michael Jackson???” They’ll actually know the plot and the characters because the IRT did such a great job of showing them that Shakespeare can be fun.

So if you decide to direct a play someday, whether it be Shakespeare or another playwright, try to arrange a trip to a local theater to see a play. Maybe you won’t luck out and get to see the exact same play that you’re directing (last year we saw Much Ado…the same summer we did Much Ado…talk about perfect timing!), but it really doesn’t matter. What’s important for your cast is that they get the chance to see professional actors (or good amateurs) doing what they themselves are trying to do. Talk to your cast after the show or at your next rehearsal and ask them what they noticed about the performance. All of my cast noticed what amazing projection Sir Toby had - good heavens, I think people across town probably heard him! And he wasn’t screaming or yelling…he was projecting. There’s a big difference, and it’s hard to teach, so look for opportunities to show rather than talk about it. The other thing that is helpful for them to see is comic timing. Good timing in comedy is essential, and the IRT actors were amazing, particularly in the scene where Sir Andrew is supposed to be challenging Cesario/Viola to a duel, but he doesn’t want to fight anymore than she does. I wish everyone out there could see that scene - it was hilarious and it was such a great example of awesome comic timing.

Good DVDs of the plays are the next best thing…but not necessarily the movie versions. I adore all of Branagh’s films, as well as other Shakespearean plays that have been turned into major motion pictures, but the problem with those is that they aren’t stage plays. They’re good and exciting and fun to watch, but you’re trying to get your cast to think like stage actors, not film actors, and there is a difference, particularly when dealing with Shakespeare. So look for the Plays of William Shakespeare series, or the BBC-Time-Life Films series, The Complete Dramatic Works of William Shakespeare. Those are excellent substitutes if you don’t have a local university, college, or community theater available. No matter what, though, make it fun for your kids…show them that Shakespeare is still considered amazing and great for a reason!

Titus Andronicus is rearing its bloody head again, this time in a production in Illinois. A recent write-up on the show mentioned that the production will (natch) lean heavily on the grisly, gory elements of the story. It is unsurprising, as the play tends to yield interpretations in the Hostel vein. What was also interesting about the article was its mentioning of a film called Theatre of Blood, a horror film from 1973 starring Vincent Price.

The connection? The film features a mad, bad actor who dispatches critics one by one to get his revenge. What makes the murders novel is that each is based on a scene from Shakespeare, including one from Titus Andronicus (I’ll spare you the gross details. Let’s just say, be careful what you eat). In addition to recreating the stage scenes in order to kill his victims, Price also gets to recite some of the great soliloquies from the plays.

Aside from the obvious jabs at critics, Theatre of Blood is also oddly Shakespearean in its own right. In particular, it parallels the often operatic level of excess employed in performing Titus Andronicus. In the play and in the film, people don’t just die, they are devoured (literally, in some cases). Yet amidst all of the beheadings and disemboweling, there is poetry. It is what Shakespeare does best: mixing together high art and low art so seamlessly that you cannot tell the difference between the two.

A recent news item offered suggestions for alternatives to New York’s Shakespeare in the Park. As part of the pitch, the article noted that getting tickets for SITP has become increasingly difficult. While the company itself has a strong reputation, part of the issue is that it is a venue that books high-profile actors to perform in its productions. The article certainly highlights the idea that Shakespeare is everywhere, especially this time of year. Given the warm (in some areas, very warm) weather, Shakespeare is performed outdoors in virtually every major city. Even when the festival season closes in early September, there is still plenty of Shakespeare to be found in national, regional and local theatres during their traditional seasons.

Still, the article made me think about how Shakespeare, like anything else (artistic or otherwise) is a business. At different levels, how does the business of Shakespeare work best, and what impact does it have on the productions? For Shakespeare in the Park, selling out is virtually guaranteed, particularly when film and stage stars populate its shows so consistently. For other venues, when name actors are less frequent, what do the theatres rely on to help fill seats? In these cases, the play might actually be the thing. Part of the reason A Midsummer Night’s Dream is the Oklahoma of Shakespeare (i.e. in near-perpetual performance) is because it is a known quantity. A local or regional theatre can choose to perform one of the problem plays, but they’d better have someone famous in one of the lead roles if they want to hedge their bets.

Jukebox musicals are second only to Disney musicals in terms of popularity within the last ten years. The premise is commercially sound: take the catalog of a famous and successful pop act and build a story around the songs. This way, audience members will know they’ll enjoy the music before they’ve even seen the show. The mother ship of this trend is Mamma Mia, based on the songs of Scandanavian pop divorcees ABBA (a film version of this show is about to disco its way into theatres this Friday). Since then, hordes of pop solo and group acts (most of whom have, ahem, seen the glory days come and go) have attempted to duplicated Mamma Mia’s incredibly massive success, some with less success than others.

One that falls somewhere in the middle is the Elvis jukebox musical All Shook Up, which borrows a considerable portion of its plot elements from Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night. All Shook Up wasn’t the Broadway smash that Mamma Mia was, but it seems poised for moderate success on the regional, community and high-school circuit, where nostalgia sells big. A new regional production of the show is being mounted in Maine and the parallels to Shakespeare are quite prominent. Most notably, the central plot conceit involves a young girl masquerading as a man. While you might not initially pair The Bard with The King, All Shook Up does precisely that.

Did he or didn’t he? That’s the question facing authorities about a man who might or might not have stolen a copy of Shakespeare’s First Folio. The man was recently arrested in Washington after inquiring about the authenticity of a document he believed to be a copy of the First Folio. The issue is whether or not this copy is the same copy that was stolen along with other precious documents from Durham University ten years ago.

As the man maintains his innocence, the media is already eagerly portraying him as a wack-job. Among the personal tidbits included in the article about his arrest are that he lives with his aged mother (gasp!), he is fond of wearing silk pajamas and gloves (freaky!), and he drives around in said regalia in his Ferrari (oh! the horror!). The article makes frequent references to the gentleman’s eccentricity, giving him a Norman-Bates-by-way-of-Howard-Hughes kind of vibe.

In the mean time, whether or not he is a superfreak, this is his story: he bought the copy of the Folio at an auction in Cuba and brought it back to the U.S. to authenticate it. If they can confirm it as a genuine Folio copy, then the next step will be to prove it is the stolen Durham edition. Given the high value placed on Folio copies, the sentence for such a crime might be fairly steep. If that’s the case, Shakespeare could end up sending someone to jail for a very long time.