Reviewed by Greg Fiebig, Ph.D., Professor of Communication & Theatre, Indiana Wesleyan University
Why does a book on Twelfth Night commence with a quote from Much Ado Abouat Nothing? Perhaps it is a sign of things to come, for the Book of Twelfth Night, or What You Will: Musings on Shakespeare’s Most Wonderful Play seemed “much ado about nothing.” The book cover promised to present a persuasive argument bolstering a preferred staging of the play, one which favors high comedy over low comedy. In other words, Myer cautions readers not to sacrifice the story of Twelfth Night by employing a slapstick style of physical humor aimed at pleasing the popular audience. The Book of Twelfth Night, or What You Will: Musings on Shakespeare’s Most Wonderful Play begins with a Myers’s argument. The introduction is followed by a brief chapter outlining the Cast of Characters, a less brief, but well-crafted plot synopsis of the story of Twelfth Night, in-depth character analyses of each speaking character from the larger roles of Viola and Olivia to the diminutive roles of Feste and Fabian. The book concludes with Myer’s “Musings” on the comedic styles of production, original performances, Twelfth Night performances in relation to Twelfth Night celebrations at Christmastime and finally with a catchall chapter which addresses a few productions outside the mainstream. And while the book begins with a quote from Much Ado About Nothing, it concludes, as does Twelfth Night, with a song from Feste, “our play is done….”
This book, as promised, is meant for the would-be producer (director or actor) of Shakepeare’s Twelfth Night. Myers’s treatment reads like a dramaturg’s research journal, tracing the history of many previous professional productions in New York and London, among other places, and a few film productions as well. He gleans through a host of nuanced performance to identify a variety of tactics employed by directors and actors alike in previous performances to present a broad variety of staging possibilities. The book would profit a director intent on staging the play to develop a clear vision of the story. Especially helpful are Myers’s discussions of the potential sexual aspects of the show, from innuendo and sexual tension to sexual orientation of the characters. The book would also benefit the actor cast to play any of the roles with character concepts tried and proven, for good or bad, in the past. Beyond its dramaturgical benefit, there is a fair amount of textual criticism as well. Myers approaches a few of the issues related to staging the story of the play, including Malvolio’s entrapment and imprisonment as well as the guised and disguised aspects related to the twins Viola/Cesario and Sebastian.

Myers’s textual criticism, while beneficial, at times progresses too far. He referred too often to other Shakespeare plays (Much Ado About Nothing, Troilus and Cressida, Titus Andronicus, etc.) – beyond simple reference to editorial comments. For example, Myers draws parallels between Othello and Twelfth Night in which he describes the action of Othello in greater detail than the comparative action in Twelfth Night. These comments did little to advance the argument of the book. Myers seems to posit a postmodern perspective of Shakespeare in which the play can and should be rewritten by the current artists, though I could not tell whether he actually favored such staging or just dwelled on those types of productions. For example, staging preferences or directorial visions, such as when Michael Kahn began a production of Twelfth Night with the actual shipwreck rather than the aftermath of the shipwreck or another a production of Twelfth Night which extended the story of Malvolio’s demise beyond the end of the play, were favored over letting the text speak for itself in the manner of the Elizabethan practice of spoken decor when the characters help the audience imagine the world of the play.
I found myself at times bemoaning the seeming misinterpretation of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night text highlighted in the descriptions of productions referenced to in Myers’ book as well as his own biases toward a preferred staging. To presume to know Shakespeare’s mind or intention behind a text, or scene, or line, or word, seems to read perhaps more into the text than the Shakespeare may have written initially. For example, the claim that Viola disguises herself as her brother read far too much into the text to me. If, in fact, she did disguise herself as Sebastian, why did she call herself Cesario? Myers knows far too much about the text and allows himself to approach the early scenes and dramatic action fully aware of things yet to unfold for the audience. For example, to suggest that Viola is setting her brother up to fail with Olivia presumes she knows he is not dead. To be sure, her actions lead eventually to the claim Myers espouses, but he should not superimpose later actions in the story on early action(s)..
Despite its problems, the Book of Twelfth Night, or What You Will: Musings on Shakespeare’s Most Wonderful Play is useful for theatre practitioners desiring a cursory examination of a spectrum of previous productions of Twelfth Night. Having staged Twelfth Night in a University setting myself a few years back, I would have welcomed Myers’s musings with open arms. His work could inform the work of anyone desiring to stage what he calls “Shakespeare’s most wonderful play.”

From Project Explorer website:

“Celebrating history’s most famous writer, students can explore Shakespeare’s life and work, and the country and culture in which he thrived: England from 1564-1616. Topics of study include changes taking place in religion, commerce, art, trade, exploration, and the Plague. The unit focuses on understanding and exploring how the Bard’s work and the work of his contemporaries was affected by these changes.

Shakespeare’s England debuted on September 18, 2006 and features: Simon Hughes (Member of Parliament for Southwark), the Old Vic, The Tower of London, The Royal Shakespeare Company, the National Archives, the Shakespeare Birthplace Trust, the Museum of London, Classic Stage Company, Theatre for a New Audience, the London Underground, British Airways London Eye, and many more cultural and educational organizations.”

Take a look at ”Shakespeare’s England” here.

Philly.com reports on Tony Danza’s upcoming reality show, “Teach,” in which the TV star spends  a year teaching tenth-grade students at Northeast High School in Philadelphia.  The curriculum included a unit on Julius Caesar and a field trip to the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, D.C.

The show is set to premiere on A&E on October 1.

From the A&E website:

“After more than 30 years in entertainment as an actor, talk show host, Broadway star, cookbook author, pro boxer and song and dance man, Tony Danza faces his toughest audience to date – high school students. Long before the launch of Danza’s showbiz career, he hoped to be a teacher and even earned a degree in history to pursue that dream. “Teach: Tony Danza” chronicles Danza’s journey as he returns to his original dream and takes on the role of English teacher for a class of sophomore students at Northeast High School in Philadelphia. Danza must do some learning of his own as he adapts to the demands of teaching two back-to-back 45 minute periods and handling his diverse class of students of varying abilities. He must also learn to manage extra-curricular activities, charity events and to juggle his personal life throughout the school year. Viewers will experience the trials and tribulations of a first year teacher through the eyes of Danza, his peers, school administrators, and most importantly…his students.”

Read the Philly.com article here.

You can visit the show website here.

Actors From The London Stage, whose members include actors from renowned companies such as the Royal Shakespeare Company, the Royal National Theatre of Great Britain and Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre, will bring its talents to Valpo Sept. 13 to 20. Valpo is one of a handful of universities in the United States where the company will serve a residency during its annual academic tour.

Actors From the London Stage to perform 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'

The ensemble will perform “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” Sept. 16 and 17 at 7:30 p.m. and Sept. 18 at 3 p.m. in the Valpo Center for the Arts. A talkback session with the ensemble is planned following the Sept. 18 performance.

Tickets to each performance are $20 for adults, $10 for students and senior citizens, and $5 for local high school students attending as part of a group. Tickets are available by calling the Valpo Box Office at 219-464-5162 or online at www.valpo.edu/vuca/ticket.php.

“Actors From The London Stage is highly-regarded for its performances of Shakespeare’s plays, and we are pleased to add them to Valpo’s theatre season,” said Lee Orchard, professor and chair of Valpo’s Department of Theatre.

Orchard noted that the ensemble’s actors will devote a large portion of the residency to classroom workshops, on stage demonstrations, text readings and informal meetings with students.

“The residency provides an exceptional opportunity for Valpo’s theatre students, as well as local high school students, to learn from close interaction with outstanding actors,” he said. “In addition to honing their acting and directing skills, I think it will shape how our students approach future plays.”

The ensemble’s residency also will be incorporated into Valpo’s Communiversity Day on Sept. 18, a celebration of the University’s close relationship with the Northwest Indiana community. Communiversity Day (www.valpo.edu/communiversity) also includes Valpo’s first night football game at Brown Field, a pre-game tailgate barbecue and carnival games, volleyball game, fireworks show, debut of the new Crusaders mascot and Valpo Day of Caring service projects.

“Valpo’s visual and performing arts programs enjoy strong support from the Northwest Indiana community,” Orchard said. “Bringing Actors From The London Stage to our campus provides another opportunity for the University to contribute to our region’s cultural and artistic vibrancy.”

Other activities during the residency include:

• Sept. 13 – A colloquium session with the ensemble and Valpo theatre students and faculty.
• Sept. 14 – Coaching sessions with Valpo students enrolled in a play directing course and with cast members in the University’s upcoming productions of “Almost, Maine” and “Tartuffe.”
• Sept. 15 – Presentations to Valpo students enrolled in several theatre courses and coaching sessions with cast members in “Almost, Maine” and “Tartuffe.”
• Sept. 16 – Coaching session with Valpo students enrolled in a play directing course.
• Sept. 17 – Coaching sessions with Valpo students enrolled in acting courses.
• Sept. 18 – Workshops with local high school students, Valpo students and others.

Now in its 35th year, Actors From The London Stage is one of the oldest established touring Shakespeare theater companies in the world. Co-founded by the renowned British actor Patrick Stewart, the ensemble is housed and work shopped in England.

Source: Valparaiso University website

“Stratford Shakespeare:

The Winter’s Tale

A very special 9-week workshop at PAMT ~ learn about Shakespeare’s life, times, and language, study and be cast in a role in one of Shakespeare’s most famous works, work with a member of the Stratford Company who will travel to Perth to do some workshops with us, then travel to Stratford on a four day, three night trip of a lifetime to act in the Stratford School Shakespeare Festival on the Festival Theatre stage!  Meet students from other school s across Ontario, participate in various workshops in Stratford, and be adjudicated positively (this is an exhibition, not a competition) by Stratford actors and directors.  Return to Perth with your passions and ideas kindled, and perform in our own version of “The Winter’s Tale” on the stage of the Myriad Centre!  A one-of-a-kind opportunity!  Don’t miss it!  Open to students ages 10 – 18.  Registration limited to 25 students.

Tues/Thurs: 4:00 – 6:00 pm

Workshops:  Oct. 5 – Dec. 2

Stratford Trip:  Nov. 23 – 26

Performance dates:  Nov. 26, 27, 28″

For complete information from the Perth Academy of Musical Theatre, continue to the site.