Lady Macbeth: Scheming to Insanity

Here are the recordings by Abby and me. We chose to do different monologues by Lady Macbeth, and there is some slight narration to direct where these monologues fit in.
You may have to turn up the sound a bit on the monologues, my camera did not record sound nearly as well as it has before.
Enjoy our video!

Scotland, PA

So, when I was kind of rambling about the various movies that can update Shakespeare, I mentioned this particular version of Macbeth. The title should be a link to the IMDB page about the film.
While I haven't seen the movie, my aunt recommended it, and since she heads a college theater department, I take her word on it.

Happy pondering,
Mary

Tragic Heroines

Mary again:
I sort of realized that my assessment of Shakespeare's male characters was a touch harsh. This does not mean I condone their behavior, since anyone with common sense would have acted differently than those mo-rons, but in the name of fairness, I'll post a short list of flaws found in tragic heroines:

• They love the idiots in the plays.

Ok, that's not all, but I really do question these women's enchantment with the goons that run their worlds. Here's a list that is more in seriousness:

• Juliet: Doesn't realize that forever loving someone at thirteen means more like five months. She made some pretty unthinking moves on her own.
• Cordelia: still loves her father, though he treats her like crap.
• Ophelia: same story with all the men in her life, but doesn't lash out at her brother when he tells her to watch herself while heading out to go whoring in Paris. Her father is a jerk as well.
• Lady Macbeth: trusted her husband to get the job done.
• Desdemona: should have upped and left for safety when her husband began acting erratically.

That's the list for now. More to come, I'm sure.

Hamlet, Romeo, and Shakespeare's other "heroes"

Mary here:
As most of you probably picked up from my opinions voiced in class, I think most of Shakespeare's great tragic heroes were complete jerks. Lets do a rundown on the great characters and why they are definitely not role models for young men of any generation:

• Hamlet- Five acts of a possible nuts guy ruining the lives of everyone around him by not doing anything.
  
• Romeo- He is nineteen, which could explain away some of his impulsive behavior. Does it make him getting it on with a thirteen-year-old redeemable? Not so much. Think about who you were in "love" with when you were thirteen. Was getting married really the best idea?
• Othello- All he would have to do is ask Cassio where he got the handkerchief. Then he would not have been driven insane and thus Desdemona wouldn't have had to die.
• King Lear- Please. He asks his children to go on about how much they love him. It is like a six-year old demanding attention.
• Macbeth- All I can say: he admits to everything he does. No trying to blame fate or someone else.

That's my major list. Why does Shakespeare glorify these men, who objectify the women in their lives and cause havoc to the world around them?

Midsummer

Mary:
So, I totally recognize that we started with Midsummer, and are now way past the play, but I just have to talk about it. It has been one of my favorites for a really log time, and was one of the first plays I read. I have also been involved with two separate versions, one at my high school, one at Iowa Western. I was makeup assistant for the first, Hermia in the second.
One thing that is so incredibly cool about the play are the opportunities to set the show in different times and places. My high school director modernized the show, making Athens into a bistro and the woods into "Club Wood." (I'll wear the shirt sometimes, so watch for it.)
Iowa Western's was set in the 1960's, with the fairies acting like hippies and the Athenians being students, "mod" fashioned, or military. It set the idea of defiance in a new perspective.

In response

Mary...again.
So I just figured out how to look at the comments people have put on the blog, and now I can start commenting on other people's stuff. Not my bright-shiniest moment, but I figured I could use this chance to respond to some of the comments.
1-Some people have signed their comments, some haven't. This is true on everyone's posts as well. Since there are two people to every blog, can you please, pretty please sign the comments and posts? That way I know who I'm talking to.
2-I didn't say the music from my sister's production was annoying. I just got sick of hearing it after a month of them practicing it a cappella.
3-The website for the NSF (which was the first thing on the Google search) is www.nebraskashakespeare.com
To access every part, you might need to sign up for the newsletter. I think it is free, so you may want to think about signing up.

That's all the responses I have for the comments on the page. Thanks for watching...reading...whatever...!

Nebraska Shakespeare Festival

Mary again.
Every year the Nebraska Shakespeare festival holds Shakespeare on the Green. For those of you who are not familiar with this event, it is held at Elmwood park, just off the UNO campus (you actually have to use UNO parking, but whatever). They put on two plays, usually a tragedy and a comedy, but this past year they did Henry V. It was extremely well-done.
This year's plays are Much Ado About Nothing and King Lear. Google the topic and look at pictures and information about the plays and the organization.

Another way to get materials

Mary here.
If you click on the title of this entry, you will find yourself at the Gutenberg Project website, which has the largest collection of eBooks available (or something like that). This can be handy if you want to make an argument based on another of Shakespeare's plays that are not included in the text. The site is relatively easy to navigate, and downloads are FREE! This way you have another way to get materials, like other plays, without having to go out and buy them. The site won't have everything, but it does have almost everything that is in the public domain.
If the title clicker doesn't work, the website address is www.gutenberg.org

The Merchant...

Hey there, it's Abby. I think it's about time that I start to contribute to the blog...

While reading The Merchant of Venice, I notice how well the banter between characters flows. One of my favorite examples of this is in Act II, Scene 2. This is where we first meet Lancelot and Gobbo. Because Gobbo is sand-blind, he does not recognize his own son. However, Lancelot totally does not help the matter by basically messing with Gobbo. Towards the end of this exchange is one my favorite quotes of this play. Lancelot finally tells Gobbo who he is and Gobbo does not believe him.
To this Lancelot replies, "I know not what I shall think of that, but I am Lancelot, the Jew's man, and I am sure Margery your wife is my mother."
Gobbo states, "Her name is Margery indeed! I'll be sworn, if thou be Lancelot thou art mine own flesh and blood. Lord worshiped might he be, what a beard hast thou got. Thou has got more hair on thy chin than Dobbin my fill horse has on his tail."

The text in color is the quote that I remember most after reading this scene. Thus, being my favorite quote. I have a favorite quote for every play that I read. There is always that one line that catches either my breath or my eye. In Midsummers Night's Dream, the most memorable line that caught my eye was spoken by Lysander. It is, "the course of true love never did run smooth." Every person who has been in love, knows how true that line is.

This is Mary again:
So here is a collection of pictures set to the music the chorus sang. This was one of the most powerful productions of Macbeth I have ever seen. I'm not just saying that because my little sisters were involved, it really was that good.
Frankly, the eerie music drove me nuts. They practiced it for a month straight.

Okay, so maybe it's not quite Shakespeare...

For anyone who is not familiar with The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), this is by the RSC (Reduced Shakespeare Company), and is possibly the funniest version of Macbeth one could ever find.
For those who are familiar with the play, the original company performance is probably one of the best versions to watch.
Copy and paste the following into the address box dealy, and watch the video.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pQk4Y6Q69u8

Our first image about the play!

Mary speaking (so to speak):
So, my little sisters were in a version of Macbeth about a year ago. Their one-act placed second at districts, and was selected to go to the International ITS Festival. This is a shot of the "Weird Sisters."
Debbie, my youngest sister, is on the right. She played the First Witch. My other two sisters were members of the chorus that helped set the spooky tone for the play.