This is a printer-friendly version of an article from Zip06.com.
10/18/2017 07:00 AMThe renowned Edinburgh Fringe Festival is billed at the largest arts festival in the world. This year, on its 70th anniversary, there were 53,232 performances of 3,398 show in more than 300 venues. There was theater, comedy, dance, circus, cabaret, children’s shows, musicals, opera, music, exhibitions, events, and more, resulting in sales of more than 2.5 million tickets. The program itself, which was originally launched as an anti-establishment alternative to the Edinburgh International Festival, runs to more 450 pages.
On page 382, there is this entry: “Shakespeare on a Shoestring: Cymbeline! a performance by the Hopkins Drama Association, which includes a group of 16 students and two chaperones from Hopkins School in” ...a “fast-paced and irreverent take on Shakespeare’s most troubled play. Theatrical magic and good family fun!”
Among the festival performers, who hailed from more than 60 countries, were Sam Jenkins of Branford and Leigh Meillo of North Branford. They both said it was an amazing experience, from having to hit the streets with flyers to drum up an audience for the play, to the actual performance itself.
For five days they performed in front of an international audience their production of Shakespeare’s Cymbeline. Meillo said it wasn’t just the chance of performing as part of the festival which was so exciting. For the senior who is interested in majoring theater, it was also the opportunity to see numerous productions.
“I saw six shows in one day,” she says.
Overall many of the students saw 29 or more productions, some of them twice.
On the Value of Just Showing Up
She says “the horrible shows sparked the most conversation, a lot of ‘if only’ talk among the students, like ‘I knew what the wanted to do, but if they had done...’” She also said she was delighted to see some “very strange shows” that were experimental theater, her particular interest.
Jenkins agreed. He says the various shows he saw “put ideas in my head.”
The group took one day off to tour some of the other attractions in the Edinburgh area, as well, to round out the trip.
The Festival does not invite productions to perform. All it takes, according to drama teacher Mike Calderone, is to find/rent a venue, find lodging, and then show up. The only caveat is that scenery, costumes, props must be easily transported, and easily set up and taken down.
The students performed at 10 a.m., and only gained access to the theater 20 minutes before curtain and had be out 20 minutes after the curtain fell. Their theater, which Calderone had located on a trip to the Festival last year, was Paradise in Augustines, which is actually a church. The group had three hours on Sunday afternoon to “load in” the production before performances began the next morning.
So how did they do it?
Students carried their own costumes in their luggage and the props, which were minimal, were split among the students. The biggest piece were the percussives used in the performance, but even those were distributed in various pieces of luggage.
This production of Cymbeline is part of Hopkins’ Shakespeare on a String group, which adapts the plays, while keeping the original intent of them. It is, as Calderone said, “minimalist theater.” Not only do actors play multiple roles, but they often become parts of the scenery. The students initially took this approach with A Midsummer Night’s Dream, then A Comedy of Errors. In 2015, Cymbeline was performed for the first time. Next up is MacBeth, later this year
This year when Calderone was planning the trip with Hope Hartup, the other theater teacher, and the students, they decided to revive Cymbeline, in part because this difficult Shakespeare play is not commonly performed. Their thinking was that, that being the case, it might attract larger audiences. It’s such a complex play that scholars have argued about how to classify this play—is it a tragedy? A romance? A comedy?
Certainly the students gained a deeper understanding of the work. Jenkins wonders whether the play was written “as a dare” because it contains all of the common Elizabethan tropes, common theatrical devices, motifs, and clichés.
Although every Fringe production is listed in the huge program booklet (imagine a telephone directory for a small city), it is really up to each group to market itself.
A Decent Audience, and a Review
That meant the students were frequently out on the streets of Edinburgh with flyers.
Often audiences aren’t large simply because there are so many productions going on at any one time. Jenkins was proud the troupe’s audiences always outnumbered the cast, and that audiences grew during the week.
Meillo usually worked behind the stage handling sound effects and percussion while Jenkins was on stage playing the title character.
Hopkins provided financial aid for many students so that they could participate. The group set its own ticket prices (under $10) and made $800, which will be used for future trips.
The play even merited a review in the FringeReview, which bills itself as “the reviews publication that actively seeks out good theater,” deigning to review only a “considered selection” of work.
Of this production of Cymbeline, reviewer Tim Wilcock wrote in the FringeReview, “As with all Shakespeare plots, it’s complicated, but clear and concise narration was provided throughout, either through a character stepping out to enlighten those watching or, mid-piece, a rather effective and engaging ensemble summary.” He added, “A lot of very well-choreographed physical theatre was also deployed, providing effective illustration to the text. Some clever lifts, mime, and body shaping created props, oceans, caves, and a variety of other effects.”
He made it a recommended show to see, saying, “This team used the script, some good physical theatre, and their obvious joy of being on stage to produce an uplifting example of Shakespeare on a shoestring.”
And the high point of the festival for the players? Perhaps it was the comment from one self-described Shakespeare fan, a scholar from England, who proclaimed the production “his favorite show.”
Read more here: fringereview.co.uk/review/edinburgh-fringe/2017/shakespeare-on-a-shoestring-cymbeline/
Hopkins has a full schedule of theater productions coming up this year. Peter and the Starcatcher will be performed, Thursday, Oct. 19 through Saturday, Oct. 21. Dec. 7 to 9 will be Canterbury Tales, followed by the next Shakespeare on a Shoestring production, MacBeth, Jan. 4-7. The spring features Heathers-the Musical (high school edition), March 1-4 and Once in a Lifetime April 26-28 and Seussical, Jr. May 11 and 12. Information is available at Hopkins.edu