measure in love
You know, the more I see the LJ Christmas banner, the tackier it grows in my estimation. Frank as Scrooge, however, gets a solid thumbs up.
But yes! Sorry about the overdue, post-Philly update. In matter of fact, there have been quite a few updates, but all posted privately- nothing but reviews of 'Measure for Measure' archived here for my own, fangirlish purposes, I assure you, so you've missed out on nothing that a little patient Googling wouldn't grant you. ;)
Because, yes! Meg greeted me with tickets to M4M, and was rather amused at the ecstasies into which I was catapulted. The spring in my step was more like a rocket engine, as I bounced around first her house, then the streets of Philadelphia. (NO SINGING THE SONG)
Well, OBVIOUSLY, I enjoyed myself. If you'll allow a brief seventh-grade flashback, DUH. :-p Here are some of my random observations, as I recall them now...
- This company NEEDS a thrust stage. A real one. They made do as best they could in the theatre at Penn- wooden screen at the back, and a wooden rectangle to simulate the Globe stage for the playing space (sadly, no pillars). Some seats were set up on the stage, on either side, but dude. Not the same. I felt so removed from the actors, and I felt like they missed the energy of performing from their home stage. Even with the house lights on dimly, they aren't surrounded on three sides by a sea of faces, hanging onto their every word in full view. Ah well.
- Let me state from the getgo- I love Mark Rylance dearly. That being said... I just don't think that his conception of the Duke quite gels with mine. While I suppose it's a valid reading of the character, it's not one that really excites me. Maybe when I see him AGAIN THIS WEEKEND (HEE!), it'll have had time to work its way into my head and make itself comfortable. There are many wonderful things about his Duke, but... yeah. Oh, and ix-nay on the eard-bay, Mark. *shudder*
ETA: Now with pictoral Evidence!
GOOD MARK!
BAAAAD MARK!
See? SEE???!
- Liam Brennan's Angelo, however, was incredible. I had heard a lot about his interpretation going in, and have always been intrigued by the idea- seeing it in person was a marvel. The audience fell in love with him, and were then duly shocked by his behaviour- it's a delicious move to watch unfold, especially when you know what's coming.
- Ed Hogg. Didn't know what to make of his Isabella for a long time. His manner of speaking actually grated on my nerves for most of the play (the quality of mercy may not be strained, but surely, his vocal cords are at this point). But the more the Duke manipulates her (more on this later), the more sympathetic a character she becomes; EH did let me feel that in the end and I warmed up to her at last.
- Michael Brown. In a dress! *swoons* And out of one*, apparently- my contacts dried out early in the evening, and since I hadn't realised that MB had three other parts besides Mariana, he slipped right past me in the smaller roles. Erm, whoops? Despite such evidence to the contrary, my adoration of him surpasses all bounds, truly- I was enraptured by his Mariana. How I longed to see him as Isabella, but I'll take what I can get. ;)
- All this being said, I love how proprietal I am about the actors from the company of 'Twelfth Night.' They are very dear to my heart. My boys. :) They created the best night of theatre I've ever been to, so how could I not adore them unequivocally?
- I love the way the play drifts into its opening, sidling into character before the audience, blithely chatting in its seats, realised what was happening. Ditto to the ending- what a fantastic way to slip into the jig. Beautiful. When my contacts are working, I can't wait to closely watch everyone's faces. :)
- Most of all, I love that three times, the Duke goes down on his knee to Isabella, and there's NO REAL RESOLUTION. WOO! Totally digging that.
- Still not amused, however, by the endless scene with Elbow and Pompey before Escalus. Jeez LOUIS, people. How many penis jokes can you put into one scene? (Meg's response: Never enough.) To me, it drags the movement of the first third of the play to a crawl, and it doesn't really pick up to my satisfaction again until we start to focus on Angelo and Isabella's interaction.
- Thing is, I don't like this play. Never have. In no small part, I believe, because of the WANKEROSITY of the Duke as the play speeds towards its conclusion. Is there any real reason to TORMENT Isabella as he does? If so, then I must have missed it. My heart broke for Isabella just as the Duke seemed to not really be in control of why he was doing it, either. But I want to KNOW. If we love the Duke for his sweet bumbling, as Mark's performance seems to invite, and even sympathise as we realise together what a complex sitatution he's brought down upon everyone, then HOW can we reconcile his horrible manipulation of EVERYONE? Very frustrating. Is there an answer? Or is this just one of the big problems of a problem play? If it's up to each production to suggest an answer, I'm not sure that this one rises to the occasion. A colder Duke could more coherently tie it all together, I'm pretty sure.
*shrugs*
- Mark during the last scene really does crack me up, however. *giggles in remembrance*
- Another thing- the dancing. Sure was a lot of it in between scenes. It's not that I think it's a bad thing- it's just that when I saw 'Twelfth Night,' I had no clue that the jig was coming, so that when the company came out in their lines with the kickstep, I thought that I had died and gone to Shakespearean heaven for the umpteenth time that night. I hope that feeling isn't lost to others by making it clear from early on that dancing will be par for the evening's course.
* Not naked. Perv. Wearing whatever passed for trousers in Elizabethan England.
So yeah. There are faults, but many of them just lie with the text, for me. The production got a lot of things right on, so I came away very pleased on the whole.
As for the rest of the weekend, so lovely. :) Meg and I have so many things in common, it never ceases to astound me. I never have to be anything but entirely myself with her- there's no fooling someone who's known you since you were 5. We ate pizza and watched football, baked late night cookies while swigging apple juice straight from the bottle and laughing over tales of professor crushes, walked through Rittenhouse square in the cold, ate Cosi bread, and I ate my first TastyKake. Almost too lovely for words. (Meg, more than the TK)
In other news- cards have begun to go out! Very exciting. :) It's not too late to request one- just go a few entries back and send a comment along.
Also, Sister has taught me how to knit once more. I finished my first project- a pair of legwarmers- the other night. One is slightly too big, so it falls down when I walk, but on the whole, they ROCK. My legs have never been so toasty during recess since it turned cold.
*is smug and crafty*
ETA: Have just listened to the jig from the Globe's 'Twelfth Night' VERY LOUDLY, because there is no one home. My heart just may burst from unadluterated GLEE. I love the Globe. I love that I love the Globe. And you know what? I think the Globe loves me back.
*GREAT BIG GOOFY GRIN*
But yes! Sorry about the overdue, post-Philly update. In matter of fact, there have been quite a few updates, but all posted privately- nothing but reviews of 'Measure for Measure' archived here for my own, fangirlish purposes, I assure you, so you've missed out on nothing that a little patient Googling wouldn't grant you. ;)
Because, yes! Meg greeted me with tickets to M4M, and was rather amused at the ecstasies into which I was catapulted. The spring in my step was more like a rocket engine, as I bounced around first her house, then the streets of Philadelphia. (NO SINGING THE SONG)
Well, OBVIOUSLY, I enjoyed myself. If you'll allow a brief seventh-grade flashback, DUH. :-p Here are some of my random observations, as I recall them now...
- This company NEEDS a thrust stage. A real one. They made do as best they could in the theatre at Penn- wooden screen at the back, and a wooden rectangle to simulate the Globe stage for the playing space (sadly, no pillars). Some seats were set up on the stage, on either side, but dude. Not the same. I felt so removed from the actors, and I felt like they missed the energy of performing from their home stage. Even with the house lights on dimly, they aren't surrounded on three sides by a sea of faces, hanging onto their every word in full view. Ah well.
- Let me state from the getgo- I love Mark Rylance dearly. That being said... I just don't think that his conception of the Duke quite gels with mine. While I suppose it's a valid reading of the character, it's not one that really excites me. Maybe when I see him AGAIN THIS WEEKEND (HEE!), it'll have had time to work its way into my head and make itself comfortable. There are many wonderful things about his Duke, but... yeah. Oh, and ix-nay on the eard-bay, Mark. *shudder*
ETA: Now with pictoral Evidence!
GOOD MARK!
BAAAAD MARK!
See? SEE???!
- Liam Brennan's Angelo, however, was incredible. I had heard a lot about his interpretation going in, and have always been intrigued by the idea- seeing it in person was a marvel. The audience fell in love with him, and were then duly shocked by his behaviour- it's a delicious move to watch unfold, especially when you know what's coming.
- Ed Hogg. Didn't know what to make of his Isabella for a long time. His manner of speaking actually grated on my nerves for most of the play (the quality of mercy may not be strained, but surely, his vocal cords are at this point). But the more the Duke manipulates her (more on this later), the more sympathetic a character she becomes; EH did let me feel that in the end and I warmed up to her at last.
- Michael Brown. In a dress! *swoons* And out of one*, apparently- my contacts dried out early in the evening, and since I hadn't realised that MB had three other parts besides Mariana, he slipped right past me in the smaller roles. Erm, whoops? Despite such evidence to the contrary, my adoration of him surpasses all bounds, truly- I was enraptured by his Mariana. How I longed to see him as Isabella, but I'll take what I can get. ;)
- All this being said, I love how proprietal I am about the actors from the company of 'Twelfth Night.' They are very dear to my heart. My boys. :) They created the best night of theatre I've ever been to, so how could I not adore them unequivocally?
- I love the way the play drifts into its opening, sidling into character before the audience, blithely chatting in its seats, realised what was happening. Ditto to the ending- what a fantastic way to slip into the jig. Beautiful. When my contacts are working, I can't wait to closely watch everyone's faces. :)
- Most of all, I love that three times, the Duke goes down on his knee to Isabella, and there's NO REAL RESOLUTION. WOO! Totally digging that.
- Still not amused, however, by the endless scene with Elbow and Pompey before Escalus. Jeez LOUIS, people. How many penis jokes can you put into one scene? (Meg's response: Never enough.) To me, it drags the movement of the first third of the play to a crawl, and it doesn't really pick up to my satisfaction again until we start to focus on Angelo and Isabella's interaction.
- Thing is, I don't like this play. Never have. In no small part, I believe, because of the WANKEROSITY of the Duke as the play speeds towards its conclusion. Is there any real reason to TORMENT Isabella as he does? If so, then I must have missed it. My heart broke for Isabella just as the Duke seemed to not really be in control of why he was doing it, either. But I want to KNOW. If we love the Duke for his sweet bumbling, as Mark's performance seems to invite, and even sympathise as we realise together what a complex sitatution he's brought down upon everyone, then HOW can we reconcile his horrible manipulation of EVERYONE? Very frustrating. Is there an answer? Or is this just one of the big problems of a problem play? If it's up to each production to suggest an answer, I'm not sure that this one rises to the occasion. A colder Duke could more coherently tie it all together, I'm pretty sure.
*shrugs*
- Mark during the last scene really does crack me up, however. *giggles in remembrance*
- Another thing- the dancing. Sure was a lot of it in between scenes. It's not that I think it's a bad thing- it's just that when I saw 'Twelfth Night,' I had no clue that the jig was coming, so that when the company came out in their lines with the kickstep, I thought that I had died and gone to Shakespearean heaven for the umpteenth time that night. I hope that feeling isn't lost to others by making it clear from early on that dancing will be par for the evening's course.
* Not naked. Perv. Wearing whatever passed for trousers in Elizabethan England.
So yeah. There are faults, but many of them just lie with the text, for me. The production got a lot of things right on, so I came away very pleased on the whole.
As for the rest of the weekend, so lovely. :) Meg and I have so many things in common, it never ceases to astound me. I never have to be anything but entirely myself with her- there's no fooling someone who's known you since you were 5. We ate pizza and watched football, baked late night cookies while swigging apple juice straight from the bottle and laughing over tales of professor crushes, walked through Rittenhouse square in the cold, ate Cosi bread, and I ate my first TastyKake. Almost too lovely for words. (Meg, more than the TK)
In other news- cards have begun to go out! Very exciting. :) It's not too late to request one- just go a few entries back and send a comment along.
Also, Sister has taught me how to knit once more. I finished my first project- a pair of legwarmers- the other night. One is slightly too big, so it falls down when I walk, but on the whole, they ROCK. My legs have never been so toasty during recess since it turned cold.
*is smug and crafty*
ETA: Have just listened to the jig from the Globe's 'Twelfth Night' VERY LOUDLY, because there is no one home. My heart just may burst from unadluterated GLEE. I love the Globe. I love that I love the Globe. And you know what? I think the Globe loves me back.
*GREAT BIG GOOFY GRIN*