Othello at the Hall!!

I won't pretend to know much about Shakespeare, but I loved what was created today at our Community Hall.

Opening day jitters and cordless mic tweaking aside, there was some serious acting and singing that put a smile on my face the entire time.

Obviously there are some major -isms running rampant through Shakespeare's canon, and seeing them performed live today both undermined their likely previous force and highlighted the fact that many (all?) still persist.

But for me, this play was all about the actors, and the cross-dressers definitely stole the stage!

Chaya started the prose with a wicked soliloquy and truly embodied her dastardly character to the core.

Laine warmed up to her obedient charming princess-like role after opening the show (with Emerald) with a contemporary dance she choreographed herself.

Emerald had the challenge of playing the title character and found her courage as her character devolved into despair and desperation.

Cage double-billed and was a strong presence who even defied her owner/husband at the end...surely a shock to the original opening matinée audience!

Maggie brought Cassio to life with a convincing display of drunkenness (and I thought she didn't usually attend our Hall parties:)

Noah also filled two roles and learned the skill of quick costume changes!  His Bianca was especially convincing.

Eli nobly performed two roles and defied his nerves by reading a script alone on stage.

Nevaeh astounded me with her memory and played two separate roles!  Brava!

And Sierra and Ella were like waves dancing on the ocean...

The costume design was also fabulous despite the fact that this is not a theatre company!  Only Ollie's bathrobe seemed out of place while the evening gowns were gorgeous.
 
Consider this: there are 3323 lines of dialogue in Othello, memorized and acted by a mere 8 actors, the average age of which is at most 11?!  Bravi!

Then add 3 original songs, 2 written by Maggie, Cage, Laine, Chaya & Emerald and another written by Laine.

And no doubt that Marilynn, Shari, Penny, Ollie and others put in countless hours to help these actors shine with material that is challenging to read and understand, much less act and embody.

Inevitably, the moral of this story will vary by viewer, but for me these actors showed the folly of trusting your brain over your heart...and in Shakespeare's time, that meant lots of blood spilled.

Thankfully today on the Rock, that might result in a conversation that causes pain and sorrow and a matinée that was bereft of colour.  I know I'm not the only one who wishes for tomorrow night's closing to be even darker than it was today.

Bravo to the whole cast and crew!

PS.  And if that wasn't enough, the lead actors magically transformed themselves into quick and efficient servers for our lunch (and tomorrow's dinner), keeping the show on track, on time, and the audience sufficiently sophonsified.

Catch it one last time at 7pm at our Community Hall.