Happy Shakespeare Day!

Is it that time again already? I think I’ve been celebrating Shakespeare’s Birthday almost as long as I’ve been celebrating my own children’s birthdays. Luckily, I don’t spend as much on gifts for him 🙂

Happy Shakespeare Day!

It’s going to be a quiet year for us. In past years, I’ve had days dedicated to Shakespeare, where I’ve done marathon posting or spent the day on social media. But, as long-time readers know, I’ve been out of work for 8 months and only recently started a new job! So, naturally, my focus is now (and has been, for the last few weeks) on that. I hope I’ll be forgiven.

That doesn’t mean I’ll let the day go unmarked, though. I’ve got a few ideas for posts. I’ll keep an eye on social media and stay as active as I can.

What’s everybody else doing? Who’s got big plans??

Not Everything Is Shakespeare, White Lotus

This post is full of spoilers for White Lotus Season 3. You have been warned.

So Season 3 of the hit Max show White Lotus aired its finale this week, and everybody’s talking about how Shakespearean it was. I … didn’t see it. I mean, I saw the show, we were riveted to the show. But at no point did I think, “Oh look, I think that’s a Shakespeare reference.” And I mean come on, we *look* for stuff like that.

AI-generated white lotus

Just for something to work off of I’m going to use this article from USA Today which claimed that the finale featured “several plot lines mirroring Shakespearean tragedies,” and how “fingerprints of English playwright William Shakespeare are all over” it. You decide.

Not All Poison Is Romeo and Juliet

A family having a “run-in with poison” is not something that “could be seen as a callback to Romeo and Juliet.” Literally nothing lines up. Father can’t stand the idea of his family’s unhappiness when they learn he’s lost everything, so he tries (and fails) to poison them in a murder suicide situation. It’s like Romeo finding an alive Juliet and poisoning her because he can’t think of a way out of their situation. Not how the story goes. Father character also changes his mind and nobody dies, definitely not how Shakespeare’s version goes.

Nothing From Nothing Equals King Lear?

The show ends with the soundtrack song “Nothing from nothing leaves nothing,” which, of course, must be a deliberate King Lear reference, right? Does it matter that it’s set to a woman who has just come into possession of five million dollars seems to be sailing off to her happily ever after? Sure, she abandoned love (and any sense of moral code she may have had). But how, other than the words, does that say King Lear? Does literally anyone walk away from that play with even the illusion of a brighter future?

No One’s Father Died Before Hamlet

Lastly, we can talk about the one that seems to have the most claim to a Shakespeare connection. Rick is looking for revenge for his father’s murder. Foul and most unnatural murder? We never find out. There’s no brother/uncle. Rick knows who killed his father because his mother told him. Oh, and he’s indecisive about what his revenge will be. So … Hamlet?

While Hamlet carries out his revenge plot to fruition, he dies in a duel just like Rick, with both of them throwing away the love they had to avenge their father.

Uh, wow, hold on. Rick dies when he’s shot in the back, trying to flee the scene and save his girlfriend, who may or may not still be alive, I’m not sure we know for sure. How does either of them throw away the love they had? It’s not like Rick pulls Chelsea in front of him as a shield. Once he knows she’s done, in fact, he immediately stops shooting and tries to get her to safety. Hamlet, on the other hand … Ophelia’s dead and gone when he finally gets his chance for revenge. It’s actually his mother’s death that spurs him into action.

Rick and Ophelia end up in the water, which is supposed to mirror the famous Millais portrait of Ophelia. Visually, sure. Except it’s Hamlet/Rick who gets the visual shot, not Ophelia. And neither of them drowns, both of them had been shot. Rick’s still floating, so he’s hardly the case that the poor wretch was pulled to his muddy death by his heavy soaked garments.

Maybe It’s Me

Like I said, I normally watch tv with my “Shakespeare radar” turned up pretty high. When I saw the new Snow White movie I spotted some As You Like It parallels. But I understand what I’m looking at — just because *I* see it, doesn’t mean the creators intended it that way. If you reach far enough it’s easy to turn anything into Shakespeare.

A Well-Timed College Geeklet Story

These are so few and far between now that they’re older, I must post them when they appear!

My daughter was convinced to stage manage her college theatre production because she would share the duty with a friend as co-managers. As the weeks of rehearsal went by, we didn’t hear much about the co. As they approach production this week, they’re in something called “cue to cue,” which is apparently a grueling amount of work.

“Weren’t you supposed to have a co-stage manager?” I asked.

“Funny story,” she said, “turns out she had an operation on her knee. So she, like, basically can’t move.”

Now, you might think you know me, and you might think my following line as a Dad indeed had to have been, “Tell her that’s not what break a leg means.”

But that’s not what I said! Mostly because I thought of it too late. What I said was this. I took the Facetime call from my wife’s hand, turned the screen to face my geeklet, and said, “Well, you tell her that in the 1935 Max Reinhardt film adaptation of A Midsummer Night’s Dream, a 14yr old Mickey Rooney played Puck with a broken leg and had to be wheeled around the set!”

I got back a blank stare. “Why,” she said, “do you just know that off the top of your head?”

“I didn’t,” I say, “I just watched it this weekend.

Why Do I Hate This David Tennant As Macbeth Video?

Ok I was excited at a chance to see some footage of David Tennant’s Macbeth (coming soon to a theatre probably not near you). If you’ve never seen Mr. Tennant play the villain, go check out his turn in Marvel’s Jessica Jones series. That recognizable accent that can so readily make ’em all swoon can easily switch to something more Satan than Seyton. Can’t wait to see what he does with the Scottish Play.

Ready?

I Hate It

I try very hard to find something to love in all Shakespeare performances, and I’ll probably watch this 12 times and find something. But on the first watch? I’m bothered by it, and I figured out why.

He’s looking at the camera, and I want him to stop.

It’s often asked about Shakespeare’s soliloquies. Who is the actor talking to? We know that the point is to share information with the audience, to get at the character’s inner thoughts in a way not otherwise available. But eye contact turns that from “we happened to overhear something we maybe shouldn’t be privvy to” into, “You’re in the story now, and I’m deliberately telling you this.” That makes you Macbeth’s confidante. And I think that takes away from his character. I want an insane Macbeth, someone paranoid with no idea who he can trust. I don’t want to be some trusted friend.

Maybe it will be different. Who knows, perhaps this is a little featurette they made just for this purpose, and it’s not actually in the play this way. That’d be annoying for different reasons, We all hate it when the trailer contains scenes or soundtrack that aren’t in the final product. Or maybe it’s there, but its limited, so Macbeth talks to us in the first half, working out the plan and telling us his fears because clearly he’s afraid to voice them to his wife, but then after the murders he just kind of forgets we’re there. That might be able to work.

When does it work?

Bardfilm and I were discussing this morning about when and how this technique can work. In live theatre, it’s possible for the actor to pick out a specific seat in the audience and direct a whole speech at them. This probably works for the rest of the audience, since they still get the same experience. But what of that person? I think I’d want that to stop immediately. I don’t want to be part of the show.

It came to mind that Hamlet might be fun to add this element. Hamlet’s famous opening line is one that only we hear, “A little more than kin and less than kind.” Imagine he said that looking directly at you. So now you’re basically Horatio, you’re the witness to what’s going on,. Now it’s different. I don’t want to be in on it with Macbeth. But I want to be there for Hamlet. Does that make sense? If Hamlet knows I’m here, Hamlet’s not alone.

What do you think, do you want to be pulled into the play like this?

Macbeth Videogame? TAKE MY MONEY

https://www.whatsonstage.com/news/rsc-announces-new-video-game-inspired-by-macbeth_1661745

Ok, this is the kind of story that makes me want to blog again. The actual RSC – you know, the Royal Shakespeare Company – is getting behind a Shakespeare videogame project based on Macbeth.

There have been a lot of Shakespeare video games strewn throughout our history: point-and-click adventures, space shooters, and massive online role-playing games. Sadly, I’m unsure I can point to any that still exist. I always have a notebook of ideas that, should I someday win the lottery and have infinite time and resources at my disposal, I will absolutely bring into reality.

That doesn’t mean we can’t keep hoping, though.

Set in contemporary Iran, the game features Cannes Best Actress winner Zar Amir as Lady Macbeth. This marks the RSC’s first venture into video gaming, with the game co-produced by Zar’s Paris-based Alambic Production.

Lili is a screen life thriller that allows players to access Lady Macbeth’s personal devices, blending live-action cinema with interactive gameplay. The game immerses players in a stylised, neo-noir vision of modern Iran, where surveillance and authoritarianism are prevalent. Players will make choices that influence Lady Macbeth’s destiny, with Macbeth’s witches reimagined as hackers.

Well, I hate the “blending live-action cinema with interactive gameplay” idea. That reminds me of many failed attempts to integrate laser disc and similar technologies where basically all you got was a jumpy “Cut scene … menu of choices … cut scene …. menu of choices…” and under the covers it’s little more than a “choose your own adventure” book.

AI generated Shakespeare playing videogames

But, we’ll reserve judgment. What I love (and I think my daughter will love too) is, “make choices that influence Lady Macbeth’s destiny.” In my old age I’ve become a fan of Lady Macbeth, and see all kinds of interesting interpretations of the play from her perspective. When did she have the baby, was it long ago or recently? As a married couple, are they still trying, or have they given up (or possibly been told it can’t happen)? What was her relationship with her father? So much backstory to fill for her.

Setting it in Iran brings all kinds of new gender issues to the story. Lady Macbeth’s whole thing is “I can’t do that because I’m not a man.”

I’m excited for a new videogame to try, though I have to admit it looks like a fancy interactive theatre experiment. We’ll have to see how it looks when it’s finished!