Saturday was a busy day! It started out for me with the Splash n Dash here in BYU campus. This was followed by a trip to the annual Festival of Colors! From there, I was planning on rushing to get cleaned up and then head to rehearsal for the Richard III production. That's how it was supposed to turn out anyhow. A friend of ours got pretty badly hurt at the Festival, and I got busy helping with first aid till the paramedics arrived! (I'm happy to report she is alright, she suffered a concussion but no broken bones.) I was running late for play rehearsal, but decided to stop by on my way home to see if they still needed my help, or if they had already reassigned the part. I walked in covered from head to toe in colored chalk, and talked to the directors of the production. They were ecstatic that I had come, because they were in sore need of more participants. So I told them great! I'd go home and clean up, and come back in about half an hour. Reasonable right? Wrong! They needed the rehearsal time so badly, they pleaded that I stayed as is. So...yes. I did in fact perform in the Richard III production covered in colored chalk. Head to toe. Needless to say, it was an experience. Since we didn't have many props, I'd say I probably brought the most color to the stage that night! Perhaps that's why they didn't want me to change...hm.But on to more scholarly topics! One of the biggest things I noticed from doing the production in this manner (very little to no rehearsal) was that the play took on a completely new life. Each part was completely up to the interpretation of the actor that played it. This was even more sharply contrasted by having each part played by multiple actors. I was able to see how each different individual interpreted and acted out the role of Richard, or Lady Anne, or Buckingham, or Hastings, etc.
Each production of Shakespeare can be entirely different based on these interpretations. One actor even took the character of Tyrell, and changed his part into a modern day "ganster" persona. This was completely different than any interpretation of the part that I'd imagined while reading the play myself.
