Getting Even with Shakespeare
Here’s an illustration job I recently completed for a play called Getting Even with Shakespeare. The production is an official selection in the Manhattan Repertory Theatre’s Winterfest 2010. Here’s the premise (from the website):
“Five Shakespearean tragic heroes are in a New York City bar…and they are pissed. According to the laws of metaphysics, Hamlet, Macbeth, King Lear, Romeo and Juliet are required to “attend” every performance of the shows that bear their names. When not reliving their horrible deaths on a nightly basis, the characters spend time at the bar where they drink away their sorrows, settle old scores, and partake in their favorite pastime – plotting revenge on Shakespeare, the man who put them in this very unenviable position. The characters’ four century old routine is thrown into flux when Matt, a 30 year old lawyer and unsuccessful college playwright, enters the bar with an idea that may finally allow them to get even.”
As you might guess, the tone of the play is very light and the hi-jinx of the characters is reminiscent of the follies of Wile E. Coyote trying to ensnare the Road Runner. Therefore, the playwright, Matt Saldarelli, suggested we make strong allusions to the old cartoons by setting the Shakespeare characters in the desert.
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1 Comment
Regina
2009/12/16sounds like loads of fun! Very excited 🙂