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Directors' Shakespeare Approaches to Twelfth Night
Michael Billington discusses the various aspects of Shakespeare's wonderful comedy, Twelfth Night, with four Royal Shakespeare Company directors who've produced the play, in some cases more than once.
The book is presented as a kind of round table discussion, almost like a script.
The book is presented as a kind of round table discussion, almost like a script.
137 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1990
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December 3, 2014
A very interesting insight into the thinking of four men who've directed the play (as well as many other Shakespeare plays, between them). What they think are difficulties in the play are explored at length in a two-day recorded conversation, as well as thoughts of different productions they've seen (including each other's), and comments about how to enable actors to find the best things to bring out. There are a good number of bypaths explored, and Michael Billington, as a kind of moderator of the conversation, has to bring them back to the point more than once.
In the end the directors all agree on one thing: the prime way to work on the play is to read it and read it and read it before rehearsals start, so that it becomes something utterly familiar. This, more than researching background and history and theatrical traditions, is the most important thing. It's a lesson a few producers I know could well learn!
The format of the book is that of a recorded conversation, almost like a script (except, of course, all the stuttering and stammering and filling-in of normal conversation has been edited out). However, this means that you often have to go back and check which director is speaking, and I found in the end it was just easy to read it and not worry too much about who said what. What they said collectively was of most value.
In the end the directors all agree on one thing: the prime way to work on the play is to read it and read it and read it before rehearsals start, so that it becomes something utterly familiar. This, more than researching background and history and theatrical traditions, is the most important thing. It's a lesson a few producers I know could well learn!
The format of the book is that of a recorded conversation, almost like a script (except, of course, all the stuttering and stammering and filling-in of normal conversation has been edited out). However, this means that you often have to go back and check which director is speaking, and I found in the end it was just easy to read it and not worry too much about who said what. What they said collectively was of most value.
Displaying 1 of 1 review