"It Is Required You Do Awake Your Faith..."

We went and saw “The Winter’s Tale” also while we were in Stratford. I thoroughly enjoyed this production. The first half was hard to watch because I was so squished and sitting next to an old lady who kept shushing everyone who moved. But at the interval one of the girls on my trip had scoped out seats on the 3rd row! So we moved down there! I was fascinated with the use of the set. The opening set was a black floor with gold swirls throughout it, a hanging light, and two giant bookcases flanking the back of the set with a door in between them. The bookcases set up a very academic and strict atmosphere for Sicilia and the home of Leontes. The coolest part of the entire play was near the end of the first half when the bookshelves fell in and the books fell everywhere with papers flying everywhere as Leontes left the stage between the falling bookcases. It was utterly breathtaking. Definitely one of the coolest if not THE coolest moments I’ve seen onstage.

I liked the connection with the falling bookcases and the preceding events in the play. As Leontes loses his family starting with Mamillius and then Hermione, his actual home is also falling apart symbolizes the destruction of his line as his heir is dead. The only thing I was disappointed with was that the bookcases stayed collapsed the entire time. I really thought that when Hermione came down from being a statue that the chandelier and bookcases would return to their upright position at the beginning of the play to show the restoration of the family. Perhaps they were left down to show that it was an entirely happy ending because their son Mamillius is still dead.

Right after the bookcases fall, the setting switches to the seaside in the country of Bohemia. So the books that had just fallen down were used as the surf and waves on the seashore. So cool!

The set for Bohemia was really a contrast to Sicilia. It was brighter and definitely more colorful with pages strewn everywhere. Even the tree that came out of the ceiling had pages from books for their leaves.

The set was also cool because of the way the idea of the “tale” perpetuates throughout the play. The second act begins with a stage covered in book pages, the tree leaves are leaves of paper, the bear is made of book pages and the goats are made of book pages. It reminds the audience that they are watching a fairy tale. Which The Winter’s Tale is totally a fairy tale, although I rarely think of Shakespeare as writing fairy tales. This picture is of Time in the like bubble thing and then Perdita in the tree. She was in that tree for like 10 minutes just hanging above the stage. And the personification of time was cool because it was very Dickensian. It kept that "tale" feel as you began the second half.

One of the most famous things about "The Winter's Tale" is the stage direction Shakespeare gave to the character of Antingonus, "exit, pursued by a bear". Shakespeare rarely gave stage directions, so when you do have one in his plays, it must be really important. This bear was freaking cool. It was a giant puppet that was also made out of pages of books. My only problem with it was that Antigonus wasn't pursued by the bear, it just kind of devoured him. But on the plus side, he died defending the baby Perdita.

For those who aren’t familiar with the play, it hinges on Leontes belief that his wife is cheating on him with his best friend Polixenes. In this production, Hermione and Polixenes relationship was almost too flirtacious.

Greg Hicks made a fantastic and paranoid Leontes. He makes his character exasperating and cruel to the audience, but yet you are drawn to feel sympathetic towards him when he realizes his faults and his life falls apart.

Also Greg Hicks just reminds me of like a Mel Gibson or Russel Crowe. He commands the play like that. And he may be old, but I think he is quite good looking. Especially when I saw him at the pub after the play…We got to have a question and answer session with the actress who played Hermione, Kelly Hunter. She played a very emotional Hermione. Not how I pictured the character but it made her a ver strong character who evoked sympathy from the audience. She was a great actor opposite Greg Hicks. And she was a remarkable statue.

Polixenes was played by Darrell D’Silva. This guy is a ridiculous actor. I saw him as Marc Antony, Polixenes and then a hilarious Russian weapon-obsessed corrupted ruler. Three totally different characters, three totally different performances, but all three were ridiculously amazing.

I thought this was some of the best music that I had heard so far. The quiet and chilling music of Sicilia highlighted the uneasy and confining atmosphere that was present. Then in Bohemia the musicians were onstage playing light folksy music, which helped to emphasize the great differences between the two countries. This picture is of Antigonus, the thief/fool, as he emerges into Bohemia with the musicians behind him.

The costuming and coloring reflected the atmospheres of both countries. Everything was tailored and dark in Sicilia while Bohemia was filled with color and more flowy costumes. Perdita became the link between the two countries both literally and through the costumes.

She literally brings the countries together by her return but she returns wearing a pink dress that brings color back into the country of Sicilia. I was a little disappointed with Samantha Young’s Perdita. She was exactly like we saw her in another play, which I’m not sure if it was a character thing or an acting thin. Perdita is a very important character when you read the text, but this Perdita seemed timid and shy where she needed to be bold and confident.

The little boy Mamillius was so cute! I’m always amazed when these 9 and 10 year old kids can act in professional productions. He was adorable.

Paulina seemed to command the play to me. One of the themes I’ve noticed about Shakespeare is that he has a high respect for women. While there are some flighty women, he makes many of them intelligent who run the action of the play and are really the heroes. Paulina had a very commanding presence over all around her. She has more guts and courage than any of the men around her but is still confined to the position of a woman.

One of my favorite Shakespeare lines is spoken by this character when she says, “It is required you do awake your faith”, or something to that effect. That’s the point in the play where I started to lose it. I find it so interesting how this line applies to the entire play of “The Winter’s Tale” and not just the scene with Hermione’s statue. I think it would be interesting if that line was said at the beginning of the play or printed in the programs or put up around the theatre. “The Winter’s Tale” demands the willing suspension of disbelief and tells an unexpected fairy tale.