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.