Twelfth Night

We braved the cold air and newly falling snow last night to go to Grace College where the Actors From the London Stage were performing Twelfth Night by Shakespeare.

Five actors portrayed 15 different characters, assuming the role of various characters by wearing a hat, taking off a coat, putting on a apron, changing a collar, etc. Sometimes the actor's character talked to his/her other character, quickly switching roles with a flip of a wardrobe prop and turning the other direction. It was quite humorous at times.

We attended Measure for Measure last year. I do think the quality of acting was better in Measure for Measure. Twelfth Night had more puns and bawdy jokes which I didn't always understand, though mainly because some voices projected and enunciated better than others, not because of naivete. Measure for Measure had a more serious story. Twelfth Night mostly centered around romantic infatuations. It was just silly in some places.

I found it more difficult to understand the words this year than last. The lines seemed rushed and not easily discerned, especially those of Olivia/Maria and the fool.

You can read the synopsis if you want to know the plot. There were characters who pretended to be someone different or masked their identities in the play; that made it harder to follow the story since the actors were already flipping from character to character. 

The small theater was almost full. We saw several people we know, though most of the attenders were college students. It was a pleasant night away from home.