Contributed by: Chandler Barton, literature and education major
The opportunity to see live Shakespeare—and cheap, at that—is always one I’m willing to take advantage of. However, the appeal that drove me most to go out and see the performance of Romeo and Juliet by the Actors From The London Stage this past weekend was the unique element of cycling character roles between a cast of five actors: filling and acting the whole R&J lineup with practically half of the DP, if you can believe it.
I’ve had a soft spot for this sort of thing ever since Dr. Clody did a workshop during one of his Shakespeare classes last semester. As students, we had to work in small groups to act out scenes from Twelfth Night and Hamlet, some comprising as many as ten characters. Experiencing first-hand the complexity and difficulties that go into a limited-cast staging routine greatly increased my own enjoyment of the R&J production, not to mention gave me a deep appreciation for the technical aspect of the art, because I know just how much of a headache it can be coordinating and putting such a thing into practice.
The attention to the minute details that make such an act not just function but also enjoyable to a viewing audience is immense, and in every aspect, the Actors From The London Stage did a wonderful job. Even the least of the difficulties that go into this routine, like coordinating the costuming, can still present some hassles—having to keep track of the clothing and articles, changing, and even being sure to not accidentally mix them up—but in this regard, the actors had little trouble keeping up ‘appearances’. In fairness, the props and costume details used to differentiate the characters during this production was minimal, but that doesn’t completely remove the impressibility of the feat.
The real accomplishment of true artisanship however is the ability of an actor to switch and maintain multiple different roles and characters at whim during a stage production, and it could very well be argued that the true hallmark of an accomplished performer is their aptitude in this regard. Anyone who has done any sort of acting or experience in coordinating these sorts of productions knows how much goes into ‘making’ a character: everything down to the tone of speech, mannerisms, body language, and even the way one delivers their lines. These details, big and small alike, are what truly captures the essence of a character, and it is especially paramount when reciting Shakespeare to perfect these subtle details to give life to a role; otherwise, the poetics and genius of the text risk being utterly lost, and such classic moments as Hamlet’s soliloquy or Romeo and Juliet’s balcony exchange would not carry the same weight they otherwise would. While watching the London Stage Actors, I felt no lack of power or emotion of their delivery or of the characters themselves, and even in the scenes where one actor was reciting the lines of two characters back to back, there was a real sense of a full cast at work.
Now, while I feel the actors did an outstanding job in nearly every regard of execution and performance, I do have to make a few minor complaints; firstly, the physical staging itself could have been a bit better. It is completely understandable that such a production—given the faster speed at which it must move and the inherent nature of the actors having to fill multiple roles—will be lacking in scenery, it felt at times that there was a bit too much license being taken in the imagination department. Granted, this in and of itself is not a bad thing, and sometimes Shakespeare’s work carries heavier weight and meaning when some of the details are left to interpretation and the imagination of the viewer; but at a few ‘key’ points—at least those scenes and exchanges that in my opinion make Romeo and Juliet what it is—it felt that the bare-bones nature of the stage hindered the impact of the text more than empowered it (or in the case of the balcony scene where the lack of lighting adjustments was more to blame.) That’s not to say that this made the production bad—by no means—or that Shakespeare requires ornate or elaborate accommodations; but maybe a few ‘space fillers’ on the stage or lighting preparation next time could make all the difference during these crucial moments.
My second and final complaint regards the total lack of graphic detail in the way of death and violence. Personally, I found the complete absence of gore to be entirely uncivilized. To stage a production of Shakespeare and not have at least one fake limb, dummy corpse, or fake blood pack explosion is border-line criminal, and disallowing the audience the chance to see a frothing, convulsing Romeo in the painful death throes of poisoning with the self-eviscerated corpse of Juliet slouching over as burial shroud is a direly missed opportunity. The 21st century is really no place for such barbaric practices as a ‘clean show’, and hopefully productions will conform to more modern and proper standards befitting the dignity of the stage in the future.
These two points notwithstanding, I would consider the show to be a resounding success, and the packed auditorium on all three nights—with standing ovations to boot!—should attest to this. The UHCL community sends our deepest thanks and love to both the Actors From The London Stage and Dr. Elizabeth Klett for making both these productions and in-class workshops possible. The Class of 2017 certainly appreciates it.