Friday, July 09, 2004
SHAKESPEARE AND YOU
I hope nobody minds my blogging about blogs, but today I'm finding inspiration everytime I read one. Gotham Gal mentioned her trouble accessing the language of the Bard. Well she's certainly not alone. It's a major concern; how can we get people to spend three hours watching something they barely understand? You can tell them that it's good for them, but that doesn't work with vegetables, so why would it work in the theater? I suggest passive listening. Let the langauge flow over you, and let Jimmy Smits (or whomever) do the work. The actor is the only one who truly has to understand every word, it's their job to convey that to you using all their tools; body language, inflection, ect. That being said, the plays are still too long. Hamlet in it's entirety should last a cozy four hours. Directors have to trim. Purists will squirm, but screw them, we're not worried about their attendance. It's strictly a necessity these days. As a culture were tuned in to a different pace, it's gotta move. The movie of Richard III that Ian Mcellan starred in a few years back is a prime example. They cut nearly a third of the script, and it worked well. Ken Brannnaugghghgh's Hamlet, though a visual masterpiece was simply a valium on celluloid, whereas Franco Zeffirelli's version (Glen Close, Mel Gibson) kept me riveted. Again, Zeffirelli made cuts. "You better start swimming, or you'll sink like a stone, for the times they are a changin'"
I hope nobody minds my blogging about blogs, but today I'm finding inspiration everytime I read one. Gotham Gal mentioned her trouble accessing the language of the Bard. Well she's certainly not alone. It's a major concern; how can we get people to spend three hours watching something they barely understand? You can tell them that it's good for them, but that doesn't work with vegetables, so why would it work in the theater? I suggest passive listening. Let the langauge flow over you, and let Jimmy Smits (or whomever) do the work. The actor is the only one who truly has to understand every word, it's their job to convey that to you using all their tools; body language, inflection, ect. That being said, the plays are still too long. Hamlet in it's entirety should last a cozy four hours. Directors have to trim. Purists will squirm, but screw them, we're not worried about their attendance. It's strictly a necessity these days. As a culture were tuned in to a different pace, it's gotta move. The movie of Richard III that Ian Mcellan starred in a few years back is a prime example. They cut nearly a third of the script, and it worked well. Ken Brannnaugghghgh's Hamlet, though a visual masterpiece was simply a valium on celluloid, whereas Franco Zeffirelli's version (Glen Close, Mel Gibson) kept me riveted. Again, Zeffirelli made cuts. "You better start swimming, or you'll sink like a stone, for the times they are a changin'"
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