Lost Labours of Love

as i mentioned in this post
i was very excited to go see the play
of Love's Labour's Lost

Overall I really liked the play
I thought they did a terrific job of
adapting it to the stage
and adapting it into the 40's era
(it made me wish i was in the 40's)

As for my thoughts and critique on it

the first thing was that is was way too long
i felt like it dragged on
and they made some of the scenes
unnecessarily long and boring

i thought that this was interesting and
semi related to my final project topic

the cast did a good job drawing in the audience
and making everyone engaged
but had they just shortened the play
and made thing a little more accessible
that it would have made things better

i felt like that there were a lot of
"non shakespeare folk"
that where asking their shakespearean friends
"what just happen, what is going on, etc"
and then people explaining the entirety
of the play as they were leaving the theater

this leads me to the idea that no matter
how accessible and exciting and hip
your content may be
you still cant tackle huge boring things

even as a "shakespeare folk"
i felt like they talked really fast
and sometimes it was hard to follow
one thing that made things hard to follow
was that i was unsure who some of the cast was supposed to be

some people in our class mentioned
this may just be because we were
 looking and knew the characters better

I asked my husband what he thought
and his smartypants self said,
"it was kinda racy for BYU"
(he's a BYU hater)

over all i thought it was a good production
the set was amazing
the live band was amazing
it was pretty awesome production

my sister is in town
and i almost want to go again
so she can go

The Comedy of Errors

I am planning on and excited to go see "The Comedy of Errors"



Wednesday Mar 28, 2012 7:30PM tickets are only $3 !

lodge you in the field!

Elizabeth E Schuch 

I agree with everyone that

i am enjoying this play tremendously

i am so excited to go see it on the 24th!

which have you seen the pre production pictures?
and the video?

theres also a study guide

looks fabulous!

i found this article that discussed

the relationship between men and women

in the context of this play 

now that ive looked at this and found this

i would have loved to look into this

for a research project

its is intriguing!

i also found this activity 

that has students act out 

the "Winter's Song" poem from the play 

i love this activity because it focuses on 

what i have been looking into with my research

this idea that students should look 

more in detail at smaller chunks of the play

and this is exactly what it is doing

and it is a really hands on activity which is good too

obsessed.

some times i feel like i can take
things that i really like to "a whole nother" level

like this shakespeare class

we have had a love hate relationship these last few weeks
because of the research paper
but things are better now

and i bought tickets to Love's Labor's Lost today

and i shouldve picked up my The Comedy of Errors too
but i didnt realize they were so close together!

so excited!!!

i also want to go to the Utah Regional Ballet-A Midsummer's Night Eve
which is a ballet based on Shakespeare's A Midsummer's Night Dream
but tickets are a little more spendy :/

Scotland, PA

first off.. spoilers. i do warn you where and when they are over though.

I watched Scotland, PA
I ordered a copy of the DVD

I love this movie
it is just so funny to me

but it is a modern adaptation of Macbeth from Sundance Film Festival

it is pretty much the story of Macbeth set in modern times
at a 70's burger joint
it is really genius and one of my most favorite movies

I think that this was a really interesting to take this story and make it into a modern interpretation
the writer did an interesting things in keeping with the plot line but changing little details to make it interesting

First i love the way they incorporated the names in with "mac" and "banko"
it is so funny when the stoner hippy fortune teller is talking about seeing someone named "el banko"
i like how the adaptation found a way to keep the witches by making them into these like stoner people
the sons also were written in really well to match their characters in the play with one son who wants to be in a band and the other who wants to leave and go do play stuff

One thing I wanted to look and mention was the casting of characters
because i think that this is such a big part of film adaptations
First off, i loved Maura Tierney
i grew up watching her in ER and she does a really good job at Lady Macbeth
I also feel like the other characters are played very well
Mac and Pat's chemistry works well for what you expect out of Lady Macbeth and Macbeth

this is where the spoilers begin.

I love the incorporation of the famous "out damned spot"
it is so funny and ironic the way they work it in with Pat's burn on her hand
and how she tries to get it to go away but cant
and then she finally cuts her hand off

end spoilers. that wasnt so bad

I liked the transfer of the plot from a kingdom to a burger empire
i feel this is ironic in how Mcdonalds almost owns America these days
it surprisingly works well for the plot

the film is rated R, so this definitely gives it an edge
you couldnt ever use it in a classroom
but perhaps parts of the scenes or get it editted
it really just has some sexuality and language

but that was one of the other things i wanted to bring up and talk about
is how Shakespeare is till made accessible for adults
many people watching this movie may have not read Macbeth in 10 years
so this is just a small thing to get them back into the play
that why i really like this film is because it is so updated and accessible for people like me

i think that if adults are more into Shakespeare
there is a better chance for children to get into Shakespeare
because it will be cool and popular and the thing you cant wait to do when you are old
.....just like alcohol in a way haha and all things "adult"

Digital Media: Shakespeare in Bits

So I previously mentioned that I found Shakespeare in Bits

which is an awesome company that is making these interactive programs for Shakespeare!

It is funny because I had mentioned it in my last post and the creator commented on the post giving me his information to get a hold of him directly!

I went ahead and downloaded all of the trials.

and i love them! i think that is it such a cool thing for students to use!

you should really download it for yourself just to see how cool it is 

here are some screen shots of the Macbeth version

Each play has an animated clip and text to follow along with
the text in annotated with  important things students may need to know
it also has note on the acts and a synopsis

It also has an analysis section with all sorts of key important things for students to know

there is a "cast" section that goes through each character and gives you important details

this is also great for a play like Macbeth where everyone is name Mac-blahblahblah

with in the cast section there is also a character interaction section 

i absolutely love this creation.

in a future classroom where students will probably have Ipads or tables or computers

a teacher could use this to make the text interesting and approachable

and also be able to use all of the text rather than having to trim it!

I then think the teacher could supplement this with hand on activities. 

go download it now!! and tell all your friends :)

i emailed the creator and am anxiously awaiting a reply because this is so awesome!!
another one of those things that makes me want to go teach shakespeare right now.

Shakespeare's Hamlet as a Diagram

I am so excited!
I heard back from the graphic design artist on etsy that I talked about in this post
and I got a response back from her!

As she described herself on her Etsy description

"I’m a graphic designer and photographer living in Stockholm, Sweden. After a little more than a decade focusing on commercial work, I have opened my mind again towards the artistic side of myself. I’m educated at Forsbergs School of Design in Stockholm, Sweden, and I also hold an MA with Distinction from Central Saint Martins, London, UK."

So I have been interested in adaptations
and have considered this for my research paper somehow
but when I found this piece I was interested in her work with the play
and how she made it
and her take on it

My original letter was:

"Hello,
I am studying English at Brigham Young University in Utah. Currently I am taking a class about Shakespeare. We are studying Hamlet specifically right now. As I was doing some research about the play, I ran across your diagram and was interested in it. For my class, we have been looking into unique adaptations and modern usages of Shakespeare. If you have time, I was hoping that you could answer some question to help further my research for my class. How did you go about creating this diagram? Are you a big fan of Hamlet or what drew you to using this play in particular for your creation? How is the diagram organized? (it is hard to see what exactly it all is in the pictures) How did you decide what to include?
Thank you so much for your time! I look forward to hearing from you!
-Tara"

She very promptly replied:

"Hello Tara,

I did it over ten years ago as a school project. Then I had it in the drawer for several years before I thouht it was too good to stay there. I’m not sure I remember all thaughts I had when I created it, but I borrowed the play from the library, read it, and made my interpretation of it into the diagram format. I’m not specifically any Shakespeare fan, it was more that I wanted to find a story that a lot of people are familiar with. At the moment I work on a new piece, just made a first draught to turn Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita into a diagram, at the same time my contribution to ”The Sketchbook Project”:www.arthousecoop.com/users/wah/artwork
Hope this anwered your questions… Good luck with your Shakespeare studies!

Helena"

I think her response shows how much Hamlet transcends and how important Shakespeare is in literature.
I think it is very cool that
she specifically chose it because wanted something popular that people would know
so that goes back to showing how import and transcending Hamlet is

and if you want to take it another level how important and transcending the stories
from the "Saxo Grammaticus’ History of Denmark or as it is properly called Gesta Danorum"

So this is what I am think about working into my paper somehow
I am struggling to figure out how though
and what
and how
haha

i obviously just struggle some times


but with all of that i thought that her adaption was cool
and even taking it back to teaching as always....
if students were looking at the diagram or even creating one for themselves,
this type of visual could be so helpful for students in grasping plot line!


I also would have posted this all sooner
but, i was in Moab for the weekend.

However, i found something really cool
and I wish I could have looked at it more
but check out these beauties:

(if you click on the picture, it makes them larger!)

while i wish i could remember the dates on them
they were old book in a rare book store
that had been bound hundreds of years ago
with print of the folios in them

they were so cool!

if i only had the money to buy them.

that just add to the many thing i wish i had the money to buy

but if you are ever passing through moab
you should stop in and see them
whether they are anything special or not
they were cool!

and on a super side side note just for your interest
they have a replica first edition book of mormon
that was made to look exactly like a real one
and some guy brought it in a tried to sell it off as an original one
so that was also cool to look at.
$500 to own but cool.

Shakespeare's Hamlet: The (not really) Manga Edition

I chose to look at the manga version of Hamlet for my comic book

while i am not a huge comic book reader,
i thought it was really cool.
and i think the art is very well done and beautiful
---i do wish it was color

I was really excited to purchase a copy
just to have in my future classroom

i could see students loving something like this
and perhaps
I think it would be a wonderful first approach
for students to read Shakespeare

we are back to scaffolding
you could have your students read the comic version first
they get used to the story
get used to the language
see it in a format they already like
and see the pictures with the language
and then students could read the actual play
you could even structure this scene by scene
and you could work in the audio book even.

have students read the comic
listen to the audio book
read important scenes alound

this may take twice as long in a classroom
but i think if students were enjoying Shakespeare
and understanding it
then it would be worth it

and they would all think you were the coolest teacher.

i love this idea

and where many teachers may be dreading it,
this makes me so anxious to get out and teach
and teach Shakespeare!

Hamlet Blitz. Life Blitz.

I have been horrible about posting this week.
I am fighting a sickness I think, and my birthday is Saturday.
So between the two and the increase in homework,
I have found myself not blogging

however I just wanted to show two really cool things
i found when we did the Hamlet Blitz in our class on Wednesday
(the top of the document talks about what it is)

The first is just cool
and it is probably just because i am an english major
and like quirky things

this shop on etsy makes "novel soaps for a BA(th) in literature"
i just thought it was so cute and quirky
and i wish i was as clever as her
you have to go look at her facebook page too
and look back at the past soaps
because she is so funny (english major humor)
and clever! love it!

BUT! the big cool find that i am looking more into is this:

this print is Hamlet put into a diagram form

it is hard to see it all in the small picture 

but i am going to email the seller for more information

i wish i had an extra $230 to buy it 

but it looks like a really interesting and creative adaptation

so! cross our finger to hear back from the creator

also, I emailed Elizabeth E. Schuch --the painter of all of those wonderful water colors

i just asked her about her process and the use of the plays in her creations

but still waiting on her to email back as well 

so! double cross our fingers

The Merchant of Stratford?

I have just gotten back from BYU Young Company's production of "The Merchant of Venice"
Over all I really loved the adaptation
It was an adaptation for children
They preform at BYU
and then they travel and perform it for schools as well
They had the children sit down on the floor
and also had children play some of the minor parts like Nerissa

The play was held in Margetts Theatre
This was a very interesting set up
They called it a "round play" if i remember correctly
because it was a big room with tier seating set up on all four sides
and then in the center there were floor seat with "aisles" for the actors to walk
so the audience was all around
in the four corners, props were kept and costume changes and everything took place
so there was no backstage either

this set up worked particularly well for what the play was trying to accomplish
being a child's adaptation, the cast was trying to get the audience and the children
as involved as possible
the only down fall that i noticed was that
at times i felt the actors had to go out of their way to get around the children on the ground
which made it feel awkward because of the lack of space

this was bearable, but what was not is that i felt lines got lost
some lines would not get spoken loud enough
when the actor had their back to my side
so the "round" set up made it hard to hear at times
or i could also be deaf....

Like I said, I really enjoyed the play
I thought they did a wonderful job
and it makes me wish I had children of my own to bring to it

to make it a children's adaptation
they changed a few thing about the original script

to start off the actors asked the audience
what they wanted the names of things to be

so they changed:

Audible and Hamlet and a Facelift

So I have started listening to the audio version of Hamlet

I did the month's free trial membership to Audible

What i did find out is you get two free book downloads just for trying them out

and you get to keep the down loads even after you cancel your membership if you would like

I was a little confused when I started to try to listen

You down load two files that are named "Part 1" and "Part 2"

That was 11 hours total. I have to say this idea was very over whelming that it would take 11 hours

so i was trying to figure out how to "turn off" the commentary

but part 1 is simple the files with the commentary 

and part 2 is with out the commentary

--i dont know what they dont just title the files that way....

however! I have listened to about 10 minutes of the commentary 

and still have not gotten to the play itself....

it is all interesting though and gives you a feeling of being there in Shakespeare's time

I still havent decided if three extra hours is worth the commentary though

and just a funny side note

my cat is scared to death when i play the audio book

something about the old lady who does the narration must frighten her haha

with a start of a new play also means a face lift for my phone

i am kind of sad to get rid of my Portia background though

because it has been my favorite one so far

so i guess its almost cheating
because i really didnt really find a new background

i just found Elizabeth E Schuch's Ophelia water color 

it is beautiful

she also has a beautiful Hamlet watercolor as well

i really love her work 

and i want to order some of her print

as well as i wish i was as talented as her.

I did look for other backgrounds and came across this humorous picture

It is "Hamlet" by Stevyn Colgan

haha witty literature humor. 

in response to kaleigh

while searching youtube for interesting things about shakespeare
i found this video:

it reminded me of Kaleigh Jean Spooner's "'Words, words, mere words...'-Grammar and Shakespeare".
now i know it isnt the corpus... but they are scuffing on the idea :)

in which tara takes on her mind.

I always seem to struggle with hearing other people's ideas about their research
and then i get more excited about what they are doing than my own idea.

For my research paper, I really love Macbeth.
It is just a strange passion of mine.
and that should be obvious from my blog title and stuff
so i have thought about focusing specifically on this play
--i dont know how though

but i have done a little bit of research with the last few plays about
the play sources and where Shakespeare seems to be getting his ideas and plot lines

I like this idea for a research paper
but i am struggling narrowing it down and making it work
(of course that is hard when i dont know the specifics even of the paper yet haha)

i also am kind of interested in the sexuality within the plays ---also very broad...yet very racy and interesting!
or adaptations... who doesnt love adaptations..
maybe shakespeare and teaching?

i am just really fighting my brain in a thumb war
of coming up with something really edgy and obscene
and something that interests me and seem as cool as everyone else's ideas

or maybe something with the modernization of shakespeare?
what if combined my ideas into one?

this may make something entirely all too huge
but maybe i could focus in more on one thing or one play
i have an idea of perhaps looking at how plays are modernized with:
-"translating" them into modern english ie No Fear
-changing the plot lines into modern stories with looking at movies like Scotland PA and Macbeth
-maybe working in Shakespeare's sources with how he rewrote known stories with plays to begin with

 this feels like an all too large and wild of an idea...

but, in continuance of this source research i have been doing

The Trader of Italy: The Merchant of Venice

Thus, far I have been reading online with No Fear Shakespeare. I really enjoy reading this way digitally because it breaks the text up on the page that for some reason is appealing to me-- not sure why. They just seem to put the perfect amount of text on the page. And when I read on the computer, I have to be able to physically/digitally highlight the text which this site allows; so it is perfect for my weird necessity to be able to follow with my eyes. But what I like about the No Fear is that it has what they call their modern translation side by side. This is nice for when i read the same lines seven times and dont know what i just read and then i can read the "modern" right to the side.

But this post was originally one and has turned into two. While researching for my next post (which i am really excited about), I found Mike LoMonico's blog post "Shakespeare…in other words." 


Mike talks about the use of "translated" Shakespeare sources and their use specifically in a high school setting. The first thing that he points out that I think is so true and so interesting (and which may be something interesting to research) is why Shakespeare is so commonly translated but not other complicated, thick language literature like Dickens, Hawthorne, Melville, or Fitzgerald for example. 


He then goes on to say that students shouldn't have need for a translation if Shakespeare is taught in "in an active, performance-based approach." Which I think this is so true and takes me back to my Macbeth vs my Romeo Juliet experiences. 


The most interesting and true thing that he pointed out is the fact that the translations take away from the beauty of the language. You lose all of the things that Shakespeare is known for and why he is famous when you straight read the translations. 


I think that yes Shakespeare's plots and complexity of the stories are very amazing and definitely admirable but  I feel like he is really known for his language and the actual words and that is what people think about with him.  


So that brings up the question if these translations should completely be done away with? Should annotations be the only source for better understanding in reading? 


I personally feel like the modern texts can be a great resource. But if you read all of the comments with the article about how it is good for students to get the idea when they dont understand the language but then students should have Shakespeare scaffolded (broken into baby steps for better understanding) to them --everyone makes wonderful comments and arguments which all are very valid. 


For now, this almost makes me want to completely not use the translations as a help but then i feel like if you use then as an annotation of type of resource it is good. 

I dont know. This feels like an English teacher's moral battle. I probably should have made a vlog of this topic and I still may. So be on the look out for that. 

Portia Watercolor

So with every new play we read, 

I try to find a wallpaper for my phone to coordinate.

For the Merchant of Venice, I found this

beautiful water color by Elizabeth E Schuch

I really love it and think it is very beautiful.

She also has many other water colors that she has done for

most of Shakespeare's plays here.

They are all so beautiful; 

I really want to buy some prints for my future classroom

or even just for my home!

She has an Etsy shop where

she has but the paintings on some cool items

or just to buy the prints!

pretty cool!

interesting and lost imagination

So i have to say I am highly struggling with our chap Henry.
I just cant motivate myself with it

i was pleased and surprised to see that the movie is on netflix!
(which means we dont have to worry about Sopapilla lol --SOPA PIPA and torrentz... for now or my husband doesnt have to worry about them.)

so maybe i need to watch the movie and then hope my interest is re kindled.

i know it has been said many a times in class
but i just want to reiterate how interesting the idea of not having an elaborate scene is
it is interesting how specifically in this play we have the Chorus to set all of the scenes
i wonder how Shakespeare's people reacted to it
if it was a pretty common thing (since we saw it in the tempest now as well)
or if it was something new to his people
and whether they thought it was good or bad

it also makes me think that perhaps we are a people of lost imagination
we rely on the coolest special effects and the best computer graphics
so that makes me think that in our digital era and age of digital literacy
that we are more un imaginative than ever
we expect more things to keep us entertained than ever before
i am sure if something came out that was very minimalist
and required you to create the scene with your imagination
that it would not do very well and get bad reviews

just something interesting i thought about as always

King Henry the Moewth.

I figured since I had such a cool background for The Tempest, I needed a cool one for Henry V. So I give you Henry the Meowth by Susan Herbert.You have to check out her other renditions as well because they are hilarious.
Pretty funny. I may have to buy her books and the Shakespeare one for my future classroom...

Complexity of Ariel

I chose to try and look a little deeper into The Tempest. I didnt really have a path that I knew I wanted to take, so I just searched randomly for articles. I came across an article by Katherine Steele Brokaw titled "Ariel's Liberty."


I found the article rather interesting of how it discusses the "preformed Ariel." It goes to describe the different portals and how the role really allows for each actor/actress to portray her completely different. It was also interesting to read that s/he is such a dynamic character that often directors will chose to cast several actors/actresses to preform Ariel so that they can full capture all of the aspects of her/him. 


The article then goes on to state how most of Shakespeare's characters are very specific on how to be played, yet Ariel has a million possibilities of how it could be pulled off. I find it interesting that Shakespeare chose to do this for Ariel and it seems to be because s/he is not "real." He seems to have wanted Ariel to be very ghost like and un real. The name Ariel may have been a play on "aerial" further emphasizing this idea of an unreal spirit. 


This article makes me want to watch a performance of the Tempest which I play to do this weekend. I will have to focus specifically on the portrayal of Ariel. It also makes me want to go back and pay more attention specifically just to Ariel and the vagueness and where there is the room for interpretation. I wish I had access to several adaptations so that I could compare them. Perhaps I will try to find some different You Tube clips.

This was pretty interesting and something I hadnt thought about.


Brokaw, Katherine Steele. "Ariel's Liberty." Shakespeare Bulletin 26.1 (2008): 23-42. International Bibliography of Theatre & Dance with Full Text. Web. 13 Jan. 2012. <https://www.lib.byu.edu/cgi-bin/remoteauth.pl?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ibh&AN=31603658&site=ehost-live&scope=site>.

Pops, if you caused this storm with your mad skills, knock it off!

I would like to thank the "Book Phantom" for the modern Miranda quote  that I used for my title from the line " If by your art, dearest Father, you have Put the waters in this roar, allay them." While doing some brief looking into quotes originating from Shakespeare, I ran into that site. Let me just say I laughed for some time. Husband didn't think it was near as funny as I did.


I started reading The Tempest today. During church. I will admit. I have only read the first act thus far... and need to read more... but I am enjoying it thus far. It is a little romantic-y, but that would make sense since we are reading this for our romantic breadth.


While trying to do my homework during church, I was searching for an e-reader for my phone. I wasnt having the greatest of luck, but some how i ran across this interesting app that had all of  these illustrations that you cans set as your background--i dont quite understand "background" apps but i suppose its convenience. But the illistrations are by Edmund Dulac from around 1908. I thought the pictures were pretty, so when i turn on my phone I first have the awesome reminder of my VIP experience and Chino on my lock screen and then the ever impending doom of reading The Tempest  and Miranda as my background. At least the doom is pretty right?

Blogger confession #1: Does anyone else feel weird randomly posting on all of these blogs of people we dont really know yet? I mean I know we have had 2 class periods together, but i go to blogs and look at the "author" and think 'are they really in my class... I dont even recognize them." So mainly I just feel like a weird stalker creeping on your blogs and like i am leaving creepy unwanted comments haha

Blogger confession #2: while creepily commenting.... I hate your captcha forms.  like really. it would make my life 100% easier if i could just click "comment" with out having to verify an ink smudge of a word.

/rant.

BYU Shakespeare Plays Winter 2012

Upcoming plays on campus this semester.

Merchant of Venice: Jan. 25-Feb 4, 2012

Love's Labor's Lost: March 14-30, 2012

The Comedy of Errors: March 28-29, 2012

Something to look forward to!