| A sweet tale of the needlessness of isolation, and the comfort one gains by opening their heart. Although that heart may undergo trials, the power of love ever persevears. |
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Cast: [top] The King (Ferdinand) - King of Navarre Berowne - Lord Longaville - Lord Dumaine - Lord The Princess of France Rosaline - Lady Maria - Lady Katherine - Lady Boyet - Lord from France Armando (Don Adriano de Armando) - A braggart A Boy (Mote) - Armando's page. (Mote?!?) Jaquenetta - Wench. Town bycicle, everybody's had a ride! (Yeah, Baby!) Costard - Clown, idiot, whatever other name please you. Dull - Constable Holofernes - Schoolmaster, friend to many. Nathaniel - Curate Forester - Guy who chops stuff Monsieur Marcade - Messenger (which imop should be nameless) Lords, Musicians, and assorted extras. In my own words... [top] 1 : 1 The King and his three followers are discussing and signing a pact that they will undertake for the betterment of themselves. They plan to seclude themselves in the King's court for three years, devoting their time only to academic studies. They will not venture into the outside world, and most importantly, never consort with the likes of a woman. One then remembers that the Princess of France will be coming over soon, and their pact will have to be rescinded for a bit. The constable arrives with news from Armando that the King's servant, Costard, has already shattered the sanctity of the pact. Costard admits to his consortium with Jaquenetta, the woman he loves. Everyone wonders what to do with these problems. 1 : 2 Armando and his page exchange blows in a battle of wits, and Armando loses bitterly. His attitude is somewhat rare form, and he admits to loving Jaquenetta. Dull the constable then hands over the prisoner, Costard, to him. Jaquenetta meets with the four, and kinda blows Armando off. After all, he's not the greatest guy. He ponders over what to do with Costard, and in the meanwhile ponders what he will do to win Jaquenetta. 2 : 1 The Princess, her three ladies, and an accompanying lord arrive near the palace of Navarre and bid for entry. The King and his three followers do not admit them, but do come out to meet them. They are quite cordial, and will set up a splendid array of tents for them to live in in a field near the gates. As the plot would have it, each lord takes a secret admiration in each of the ladies, and run poor Boyet (Lord accompanying the Princess) ragged with their romantic queries. (Wow! I never thought I would ever get to use a quote from the Ladies' Man! [SNL]). As the plot would also have it, each lady takes an interest in each lord. Poor old Boyet... 3 : 1 Armando and his page have another skirmish of wit, the boy once again proves victorious. Feeling generous, he lets Costard go and gives him a love letter he is supposed to deliver to Jaquenetta. Costard goes, and along the way, meets up with Berowne, one of the King's lords. He gives Costard a love letter to be delivered to Rosaline, the lady he loves. Costard then goes off to complicate everyone's lives. 4 : 1 While hunting, the Princess and her entourage are visited by Costard. Being the fool that he is, he mistakenly gives them Armando's letter. Thus, so many secrets are betrayed. 4 : 2 The constable, Curate, and the Pendant are all standing around talking and bickering about the deer (or whatever) the Princess killed. Costard and Jaquenetta then meet them with a letter. In their opinion (supported by little wit), led them to say that the latter was for the King when, in fact, was meant as a love letter to Rosaline. Thus, more secrets are betrayed. 4 : 3 In succession, each lord enters the stage and confesses their love of the ladies. Under a complex plot of eavesdropping, their secrets are uncovered. They make fun of each other, but are discovered hypocrites. They then decide to cast away the pact and win their beloved ladies affection. 5 : 1 Armando, ordered to provide entertainment for the ladies, consults the Pendant. With superfluous exchange, they decide on a kind of performance called the Nine Worthies. In which, the players act like various rulers or heroes. 5 : 2 (Longest scene ever made) The King and his lords approach the ladies dressed as Russians, for no reason I can see but to test the waters (so to speak). The Princess and her ladies are informed before he arrives, and decide that the guys need to be taught a lesson. They exchange gifts (which each guy bestowed on them), and donned masks, thus fooling the men into thinking their identities not as the true ones. The guys then woo the wrong ladies, and when they come back in their regular garb, the women make fun of their foolish attempt at love. After that mess, Costard enters to herald a new mess. The performance of the Nine Worthies thus begins. The players blunder amongst the contradictions they spout. That is, until, Costard accuses Armando of getting Jaquenetta pregnant. In fear of losing his reputation, he challenges Costard to a duel. As they are preparing to fight, a messenger enters. He tells the Princess that her father has died. The guys, finally being straight, confess their inclination towards the marriage to the ladies. Grief stricken, they choose to postpone everything. The Princess and her ladies will be mourning for a year, so they offer the guys a proposal. The Princess tells the King to become a hermit for the year. Katherine asks Dumaine to be a true and kind man. Maria asks pretty much the same of Longaville. Rosaline asks Berowne to bring happiness to the suffering. If all wish, a year from now would be a day of great marriage. Armando says he will take care of Jaquenetta, and announces a final song. All listen to this song, as it is about a few seasons. (As if the actual passage of time. And they play ends with the assumption of a happy ending). In my humble opinion... [top] [Tap. Tap.] Is this thing on? OH! Well, I guess I'm expected to say something about this. Sure, here goes... I liked it. It wasn't great, super, or even swell, but I did like it. The plot is fairly gossamer, but what plot lacked, wit introduced. The exchanges and sarcasm exchanged in the play was no short of brilliant. The ending was really not one, in my opinion. Its similar to my thoughts of the movie Starship Troopers. The ending really isn't one because so few things are resolved. Its as if Shakespeare were late to class and had to truncate the end of his essay test. I'm sure we can all feel his pain, and therefore forgive the less than adequate ending. Everything else was very clever. I really enjoyed myself while reading it. So, read it. Ok, I confess that I'm gonna go on a little tangent here. Ya know the song "Pretty Fly (for a White Guy)"? Well, I just want to point out the lyric 'player straight'. (As in swinger kinda playa). That's just cool. 'Jeff, a player straight'... Yeah... As for listening material, I gotta give my props to the Beastie Boys' Hello Nasty. Track 14 got me through it. Damn that CD kicks ass. Anything but Metallica or something like wise depressing is great for the visual consumption of this play. Jeff ; - ) More... [top] The movie - Branagh is doing another Shakespeare!!! F-YEAH! Get the rumor here. I didn't find much else, but I'm sure the KB film rumor will surely be enough to spark your intrest. Some crew list - I thought this was funny because they spelled Shakespeare wrong (at the bottom).
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