Happy Birthday, Edward De Vere!

Today is Edward De Vere's 462nd birthday! 

Who is Edward De Vere?  Well, for starters, he was the 17th Earl of Oxford.  He was an Aries.  And oh yeah, he may have written all of the plays popularly attributed to William Shakespeare!

In honor of De Vere's birthday (and his distinct mustache and eyebrows), I post the following YouTube clip about evil children:

I will be celebrating De Vere's birthday by watching the Cincinnati Reds destroy the Washington Nationals.  How will you celebrate?

Julius Caesar - "Et Tu Obama?"

The Acting Company - GMU Fairfax, VA
April 1, 2012


Brad - A
Chelsea - B-

So! After our excursion to Washington and Lee (which Brad won't let me talk about...I have no idea why, I think I am an amazing critic and I have important opinions about that one!) we spent our Sunday with a much closer trip. First, we got the pleasure of seeing these cuties!

Brad's sister, brother in law, and nephews spent the weekend in DC and we got to go to some museums and, for Brad, the zoo with them!

It was really great to have some visitors to so we could play tourist in our town. After seeing every dinosaur bone in the world we heading to Fairfax about 20 minutes away to see Caesar. It was a traveling show from a company in NYC so we were really excited for it to be great! It was at the George Mason Preforming Arts Center which is an impressive theater.

As you can see it was set in modern day and used a bunch of backgrounds of the capital building and Washington Monument. The set was a minimal with a set up of 8 TV screens that were constantly changing backgrounds. For a traveling show that seems like a great idea. They could change places and moods without any movements of set. We tried to sneak a pic but Brad is not the best secret agent photographer.

Here the plot, and yes, I know we all already know this one:
Caesar has returned for war and is gaining public support. All of his senators conspire to overthrow him and spend the first half convincing his most loyal follower, Brutus, to be part of their conspiracy and kill the brute! Caesars wife has a dream that something horrible is going to happen to him and tried to convince him to stay home. It almost works but then like most Shakespeare plays he calls her a silly woman and heads to work. He is also warned by a soothsayer to "beware the Ides of March." I'm pretty sure that term was stolen from the Ryan Gosling movie. He is brutally murdered by a whole slew of senators including the conflicted Brutus. Mark Antony is not involved and is disgusted with what is done. He gives an AWESOME speech at Caesars funeral to rally a rebellion of the people against those who killed Caesar. A war breaks out and the chaos of Rome ensues!

Story: timeless, so well written. Production: not so much. Brad and I left thinking that the company may have taken the easy way out. They played up the politics and had the cast in the slick modern suits of "The Hill" but it just didn't have that kick it needed. The play lends itself so much to modern and political that it was just kind of predictable. The cast was amazing and it was good but it just didn't grip us. The Antony speech is so good, everyone should go read it out loud to themselves. Yep, that was a lame suggestion but hey, you may be that bored some Tuesday night. The dialogue was also a bit too grandiose for my taste. I'm pretty sure one of them was channeling William Shatner.

But, all in all. It was good. I see why Shakespeare (cough, De Vere) is a master. This had master writing all up in it!

I also tried to take a picture without multiple chins but that did not work out in my favor.

We also explored and Brad made me take yet another picture with a statue

Chels
Play photos from Fairfax Station Review

King Lear: Never Have Kids

Washington and Lee Shakespeare Society Lexington, VA
March 31, 2012


Brad: A
Chelsea: *-



So, during my internet hunt for all of the Shakespeare plays, I just barely came across this production. Washington and Lee's Shakespeare Society produced it. It was student funded, directed, and acted. And it only ran for one weekend. It was definitely a project of passion for the actors and director. The theatre was small and the set was minimal . . .

BUT the cast's energy, effort, and ambition were enormous (though it doesn't appear that they used spell check on their posters (goverment?)).

This production reminded me of my short (thankfully) college acting career. My biggest role at C of C was that of Freddy the Bar Tender in Picasso at the Lapin Agile -- if your character's name is always accompanied by his occupation, you know it's a good role. I had to fake a Boston accent and grow mutton chops. I barely succeeded at either task. But I loved it.

Similarly, you could tell the folks in King Lear loved what they were doing too.

So, King Lear is about ingrate children.  At the outset of the play, King Lear gives his two sycophant daughters his kingdom, but he disowns his third daughter because she refuses to lie about how much she loves him simply to get a piece of the pie.   Meanwhile, Edmund the Bastard --- note: role with name tied to occupation --- the illegitimate son of Gloucester, a wealthy noble, devises a plan to turn his father against his brother, Edgar, in order to acquire his father's favor and wealth.  As the play moves forward, Lear's two daughters, who now own the kingdom, decide they don't babysit King Lear who is slowly succumbing to dementia and going crazy. Since there are no good nursing homes near, the sisters fight over who will take care of him until Lear runs away during a bad storm.  As the french attack King Lear's kingdom, the two evil daughters get caught up with Ed the Illegitimate.  Through lies, deception, and trickery, the three plan to kill off the King, the good daughter, one of the evil daughter's husbands (so she can take a shot at Edmund), and anyone who gets in their way.  By the end, Gloucester loses his eyes, all of the daughters are dead, Lear is dead, and Edmund is dead. 

Note: a lot of dead bodies on stage. This summary gives no justice to the strength of this story, but  the need for brevity is to blame for this loss, not me.

So, in this production,  there were two stand-out actors: Gloucester and Edgar, though Edgar occasionally slipped into a Jack Sparrow imitation.  I didn't really understand the set, but at the talk back after the play, the director briefly explained it.

YES, we stayed for the talk back, and I even asked a question. My question was this: where did the actors stand on the authorship question? My question immediately got a response from the cast. A majority of the cast ascribed to the Stratfordian theory, though two members confidently rejected it. One actress, the girl who played an excellent Kent, explained to me that the answer didn't matter.

Hmm... I guess I disagree...

After the play, Chelsea and I wandered around Washington and Lee.

We tried to see Robert E. Lee's grave in this church, but it was locked.

We had to settle for seeing his horse's grave instead.

And yes, they buried the horse upside down. Then we saw a statue of me.

We also found the Virginia Military Institute.

Just for the record, that is a stunt double-chin. This is Virginia's version of the Citadel. It is directly next door to W & L. Imagine if the Citadel was across Calhoun Street from C of C. That is how VMI and W & L are set up.

Finally, we had a little snacky at a tapas bar in downtown Lexington.

On our way out of the restaurant, a quartet of middle-aged, mid-day wine drinkers stopped us to chat. They were great. We explained our project to them and they loved it. Our brief conversation reminded me how much I miss the friendly folks in the south. The last time someone stopped me in DC to chat I ended up with a ticket for talking on my cellphone while driving.

Brad the Bastard

*At the request of the editorial board (me), this grade has been redacted to prevent a defamation lawsuit by W & L.

Why Authors Change the World

So, I am reposting this from a blog I love because it made me so happy:

Back in 1989, on a rainy afternoon, seven-year-old Amy wrote a letter to Roald Dahl. Using oil, coloured water and glitter, Amy sent the author a personal gift: one of her dreams, contained in a bottle.

Here's Roald Dahl's wonderful response:

I love this! I also had an amazingly long Roald Dahl love that may make this hit close to home. But, after seeing so much Shakespeare I can't help but love the brain of authors! What wondrous caverns and what amazing things they bring out in us.

*This is post is from A Cup Of Jo, the picture is from Pelayo Lacazette, and the letter is from Amy on Twitter.

Chels

The Hank Trilogy: Henry IV Part 1, Henry IV Part 2, and Henry V

Playmakers Repertory Theatre - Chapel Hill, NC
March 3, 2012


Brad - A
Chelsea - C+

Yes, Chelsea struggled with this chair.

So, after our night in Staunton, Virginia, we drove to Chapel Hill to see three history plays in a single day.  Even better, my good friend from high school joined us for the matinee.

I've known Will since seventh grade geometry class with Mrs. Kimbell.  Nowadays, Will is a fancy lawyer for UNC, he plays in a blues band in Chapel Hill, and he has a very cute puppy.  So, Will joined us for the matinee performances of Henry IV Parts One and Two.  We did, however, excuse his attendance for the 7:30 production so he could watch UNC whoop Duke. GO HEELS!

So, a quick summary of Henry IV Part One, Henry IV Part Two, and Henry V:  We meet King Henry IV and he is concerned about attacks from Scotland and other lands.  Having acquired his crown by force, he is concerned about protecting his crown.  His son, Prince Hal, is a goof.  He spends a majority of his time with Sir John Falstaff drinking and "whoring."  As tensions rise between England and its enemies, the King calls for Prince Hal.  Hal eventually agrees to grow up a bit and fight England's enemies with his father.  They eventually defeat their enemies, and during battle, Hal kills one of the leaders of the enemy, though Falstaff takes credit for the kill.  But the King is clearly proud of Prince Hal.  The King then dies and Prince Hal takes over.  Though Prince Hal's former drinking buddies see this as their coronation too, Prince Hal --- now King Henry V --- banishes them from his presence.

One more terrifying rabbit picture just to make sure you are still awake! So, Henry V decides he should take over France.  In the opening scene, a minister goes through an extensive legal analysis of Henry V's claims to all of France.  Then Henry V takes his troops to France to take over.  On Saint Crispin's day, the English troops defeat the French.  Henry V then takes the French Princess Kate as his bride and the play ends, though at the end we are warned that later kings would lose France.

So, a couple of thoughts about the productions.  First, it is awesome to see a trilogy of plays that all involve the same characters played by all the same actors! Usually, you would see three different actors play Prince Hal/Henry V.  But seeing them in repertory like we did, the same guy played Prince Hal/Henry V for each play. Second, these productions were great.  The production was very minimalist given the capabilities of their stage, but the special effects they used were very effective.  For example, when King Henry V gave his famous Saint Crispin Day speech, it had just rained on stage.  Though the on stage rain was over, it really felt like a dreary day that needed an inspirational speech by the leader of the forces.  Finally, Falstaff, a hilarious and lovable character in the Henry IVs, was played by a quasi-famous actor.

Chelsea is pointing at him on the poster, but here is a better picture:

Yes, Chris and John, he is from Gilmore Girls.  Chelsea was star struck, and I thought he was a great Falstaff.  He was funny and memorable.

After 7+ hours of Shakespeare history plays, Chelsea and I were beat.  On Sunday, we drove home, and for nearly two hours of the drive, Chelsea helped me prepare for my appellate argument set for the next day.  All in all, it was a great weekend, and we are now 13 plays in.

Only 24 more to go!

Brad IV Part 1

Richard III -The Greatest Play in the World

American Shakespeare Center - Staunton, VA
March 2, 2012

Brad - A
Chelsea - A

Ok, so let set this up. Brad and I, after a really busy work week for us both, hopped in the car on a Friday afternoon and hung out in traffic for 5 hours when it should have taken us 3. Oh, and we saw a play! We heading to Staunton, VA. Staunton is a small town that neither of us has ever been to, here is some highlights:

This is the view when you enter and yes, that is a giant tea kettle

The main street and the hardware store were really cute, the rain doesn't do it justice. Basically, it's just adorable.

 

Here is the local clock shop. How does a clock shop stay in business? It amazes me.

Here is what BLEW our minds:

 

This is a store of large bunny costumes. I'm not kidding that was the store. We are strolling along enjoying this adorable downtown, look to our right and BUNNIES. It was terrifying.

But, on to the play! We saw Richard III. This is one of Shakespeare's histories. A.K.A. I try really hard not to fall asleep. But, this one proved me wrong! Here is the synopsis:

So, Edward is on the throne. Richard, his brother who is a deformed little man with a hunchback, decides he wants the throne. The play opens with him coming out to the audience and saying I am a villain. I am going to be a villain and kill everyone and boy does he! He kills another king and his son and then convinces the widowed wife of one of them to marry him (because that always happens.) Oh, he then later kills her. He hired assassins to kill his older brother, George, so he can never get the throne. His brother the king dies and he kills his 2 nephews, the heirs to the throne, so they can't be king. He convinces the people of how much they need him to be king and then reluctantly (right) takes the throne. Then he kills his BFF because he's paranoid that someone will take his throne. There is one cousin left that could take the throne and after all of the killing he hears about he decides maybe this Richard is not the best king after all. He starts a war against the king and an epic battle ends this story.

So, basically you spend 2 hours watching this horrible man kill everyone. The actor who played Richard was AWESOME! He looked evil, he acted evil and paranoid, and was also kind of funny.

There was not an actor there that was horrible (usually there is one over the top actor that I can't take, this performance had no one.) They also intertwined modern songs and at the beginning and intermission all the actors played music and sang. I'm talking standing basses and accordions. These were talented people! For a history, this was really great! You could just picture the people of Shakespeare's day booing and cheering. He really pulled out the drama. We also heard the lines "Now is the winter of our discontent" and "a horse, a horse, my kingdom for a horse" so it's always fun to hear lines you know but can't place.

The place was also awesome:

Afterwards, we wandered through Staunton and stopped at a cute restaurant, The Mockingbird, for dinner:

Then heading back to our bed and breakfast. The next morning, Joel, of The Frederick House, our hotel treated us to a full breakfast.

 

 They CUT our grapes and made the melons look like penguins. I was in love!

We also overheard Joel saying that the American Shakespeare Center was "the best Shakespeare in the world." I mean if a man cutting melons into penguins thinks your the best, then you ARE the best!

After breakfast we headed out. With Radiolab on NPR to entertain us, we had a much nicer drive to Chapel Hill where 3 more plays greeted us. Here is a quick pic from intermission of the last play. We were pooped!

Chels

The Merchant of Venice

Chesapeake Shakespeare Company - Columbia, Maryland
February 18, 2012


Brad - A
Chelsea B+

So, the Merchant of Venice, where do I start? Well, unfortunately, we weren't able to get a fancy meal before the show, but luckily, they served wine and popcorn.  So far, so good.

The play was in Columbia, Maryland, which is about halfway between DC and Baltimore.  As we pulled into the venue, we learned that the show would be in a church, what appeared to be the youth group room to be exact.  It was, needless to say, an intimate venue.

So, a 30 second summary of the play:  Shylock, a Jewish money-lender, lends Bassanio some dough and Antonio, a wealthy sea merchant, guarantees the loan.  However, because Antonio had been a jerk to Shylock in the past, rather than guaranteeing the loan with money, he required Antonio to guarantee the loan with a pound of his flesh.  Antonio agreed.  But then none of Antonio's ships made it to port.  And Antonio couldn't repay his debt. And Shylock was determined to get a pound of Antonio's flesh.  The case goes to court, and because I don't want to ruin it for anyone who hasn't seen it, Antonio uses some sleek legal moves to save his flesh.  Shylock ends up losing everything.

I though the production was good.  The staging was tough, but they did a lot with what they had.  But for some reason, the Director had the actors run on and off stage.  Normally, you may not notice this, but when there is very little room between the actors and the audience, it can be unnerving.  You get nervous about tripping the actors or whether the actors may simply run you over.  But I like this play a lot, and I liked the production.

At intermission, Chelsea and I ran into a fellow I've worked with in the past and it turns out he is a theatre critic.  It turns out theatre critics get free tickets... And I think this little blog should count as a critique of sorts (ignore the fact I give all of the plays an A).  Free tickets anyone?

Also, after seeing this play, I am more convinced than ever that whoever wrote Shakespeare had to have legal training.  This is Mark Twain's favorite argument against the Stratfordian theory, and I think I agree with him.

This weekend, March 2-4, Chelsea and I are headed to Chapel Hill for a couple of plays.  That's right, while Duke and the Tar Heels play, we will be in Chapel Hill watching Henry V.

What has my life become?

Brad-Lock.