and some have greatness thrust upon them".
It may or may not be obvious, but I love William Shakespeare. And I don't just mean the deliciousness of his prose, but his style, his manner, his humour, his pain, his intrigue and his honour. I love the period he lived in, his world, his peers, the food for his works. I've loved his work since first I read it, back in the first year of high school, aged 11. The first play I read was A Midsummer Night's Dream, which I have seen several times over the years, more than any other of his plays, despite it being far from my favourite. Interestingly, my favourites over the years have been the great tragedy Hamlet, and the quirky fantastical Tempest. And the productions I have seen tend to be large stage plays, at Shakespeare's Globe in London, and various other theatres around the country. So I can honestly say that I have never been as pleasantly suprised by a production as I was last week.
The Lord Chamberlain's Men, a travelling all-male troupe are currently touring East Anglia, playing in the grounds of several stately homes, and I managed to get tickets for one of my favourite houses, Blickling Hall. Worryingly it absolutely poured down with rain for most of the afternoon, including on the drive to the Hall, but we rallied together, armed with raincoats, garden chairs, picnic and, in the true spirit of Shakespearean merriment...wine. We arrived very early, managing to pitch our chairs right in front of the stage, and dug in to our delectable feast! Sadly, it did rain on us a little and by the end we felt the chill in the air, but the production was so entertaining that none of that mattered one bit. I do not think I have laughed that much since the second half of the excellent A Midsummer Night's Dream production at the Globe several years ago. The Lord Chamberlain's Men beguiled us with their wit, charm, singing and wonderful portrayal of Shakespeare's female characters, especially the lovely Olivia.
So I am excited. This appears to be turning into a year of Shakespeare for me. I already have tickets to both Much Ado About Nothing and A Midsummer Night's Dream (there it is again!) being performed in the cloisters of Norwich Cathedral in three weeks...and you all know how much I love the Cathedral! This year is also the love season at Shakespeare's Globe, with several plays I have not seen in a long time, if ever: Love's Labour's Lost, As You Like It, Romeo and Juliet and Troilus and Cressida. And (oh yes!) the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival begins soon with six plays between now and October, so the anticipation is really getting to me.
And so I must apologise in advance, that this blog may be barraged with all things Shakespearean over the next few months...you'll just have to bear with me! Enjoy...
Waiting with our picnic!
Blickling Hall at dusk
The cosy stage
The Lord Chamberlain's Men
The drunken Sir Toby Belch and devious Maria
The lovely Olivia!
9 comments:
I'm taking a Shakespeare course at uni right now and, as a result have been reading more Shakespeare then usual! I didn't think I'd like it, but my favorite newly read Shakespeare work is Henry IV: Part 1, mostly because of Falstaff.
Cool photos, looks like lots of fun. Bring on the Shakespeare :)
That does look very enjoyable.
My favourite Shakespeare play is probably Macbeth. It has a lot to do with it being the first play I studied in school. Plus it's a brilliant play.
By all means, bring on the Shakespeare! I took my daughters to see that same play this past winter (I took them out of school to see a matinee, so we had a very fun day together) - and they loved it! I was glad because it's one of my favorites. Your all-male troupe looks like they put on some wonderful performances!
xalwaysdreamx - I'm quite envious of you doing a course. I've often contemplated doing a course in english literature now that I am older and can appreciate it more. I love Henry IV!
Rhinoa - we're heading to the globe to see As You Like It in August, you should come!
damnedconjuror - I love that memory of first falling inlove with shakespeare at school. Macbeth is fantastic. I've always longed to play Lady M!
Darla - I think all children should have a chance to see shakespeare performed on stage, how it was meant to be seen rather than read, and especially outdoors! The language can be offputting otherwise. Glad your girls liked it! We were lucky too, this was a really talented company.
Outdoors would be fabulous - I hope we'll be able to see an outdoor production at some point. In the meantime, keep us posted!
Oh that looks like so much fun! I have always like Shakespeare, although I'm not quite a fan girl. I sometimes still get a little lost in his prose. Although this year for Valentine's day, I got to see a production of Two Gentlemen of Verona which I very much enjoyed. I wish I had a cool outdoor show to go to like your's!
Great photos, it looks like alot of fun. Romeo and Juliet has always been my favorite.
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Darla - Will do! More shakespeare this weekend...
Kim - I confess to being a fan girl! Never seen Two Gentlemen before though, I have the envy...Glad you enjoyed it and I can't recommend outdoor theatre enough!
Naida - Thanks. Romeo and Juliet is a wonderful story, I vividly remember reading and falling in love with it at school.
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