It took an American to create this reconstruction of the Globe--I'm not sure what that means, but it's pretty cool. We're seeing Merry Wives of Windsor here later today.
We also saw the site of the actual Globe:
It's not the most inspiring sight, I guess, and it doesn't do a whole lot for the imagination. But somewhere underneath this building, concrete, and 400 years of history, we were literally standing in the footprints of Shakespeare. And that, friends, is something to think about.
It's like that everywhere here--you can't move three steps without encountering ghosts.
Later that night, C.P., B.L., and I journeyed to Regent Park to see Romeo and Juliet in a gorgeous outdoor theatre. It was...okay. They set it in the fifties and had pretty sweet dance-fights with knives, but it really took me out of the show when they threw in the Fonzie "Heeeeyyy" amongst the antiquated language of Shakespeare.
Yesterday, we took a tour of the National Theatre and saw a wonderful production of Harper Regan there:
This space is like fantasy land for theatre. All of their production is done on sight in shops (which is unusual for a theatre this size), and they hold three different theatres, all of which house two or three shows in rep. It is a massive organization that is known for producing only the highest quality of work, and--are you ready?--they actually get money from the government to do it.
A group of us also went to the Psycho Buildings exhibit. It was weird:
They had these rooms set up to stimulate your senses in three dimensions, not just two. These pictures, besides being stolen from Google, are two of the exhibits. They also had a mini-pond thing you could row out onto, a maze-esque thing of colored paper, and a creepy city made out of empty dollhouses. It was okay; it's just not my thing. I would walk into a room and think, "Wow. This is cool. It took a lot of work from the artist. ... Now what?" I think I'll stick with theatre, thanks.
After the show at the fake Globe, I think we're going to try to catch another show at the National. It's called The Revenger's Tragedy, and apparently the violence is such that they have to mop the blood off the floor at intermission. Now that's theatre!
Tomorrow we're capping off Shakespeare Week with a pilgrimage to Stratford-upon-Avon to pay homage to good ol' Bill. Pictures to follow.
3 comments:
i do wish you would stop calling it the fake globe... it hurts my heart everytime. I know it is the fake globe but... anyway I probably would have cried. have fun in stratford!
Hi, Blakey---I, unlike Jule, had to laugh when you said The Fake Globe because it sounded so Blake. You are doing a great job with the blog....I picked mine up again this week....I will keep up with your great adventure.....Have The Time Of Your Life!
It is SO the fake Globe. But awesome all the same. This makes me so jealous! Let me know how the Revenger's Tragedy was! And see God of Carnage if you can. Although not as bloody as it would have you believe.
Have a blast!
Post a Comment