Playing Catch Up - Shakespeare & His Contemporaries - Session 2

Rubrics:
1. Intro to Twelfth Night, or What You Will
2. Introduction to Iambic Pentameter
3. Name Game
4. Discussion of Shake-A-Day and Scholarship

The PostGrads started our session an hour into class and Mick began by reading to us one of the earliest reviews of Twelfth Night. In it the writer focused much more on the Malvolio subplot that the main love triangle (or quadrangle as it were) of Orsino, Viola/Cesario/Sebastian, and Olivia (quadrangle and a half?). Mick commented on that Twelfth Night, the date itself stands on the day when festivities are coming to a close and people are getting back to business after the Christmas celebrations. He mentioned this idea encapsulated by the painting below - Peter Brueghel’s The Battle Between Carnival and Lent. Things are pulling in different directions, it’s Hendenism versus Rationality, embodied perfectly in the play between Malvolio and Sir Toby.



Mick then led a basic intro to Iambic Pentameter which was fun. Always good to have a refresher in these basic principles. He broke us up into groups and had us create first just basic iambic pentameter lines and then insults. When he had a member of each group stand up and hurl the insults at another it was quickly clear those who have experience speaking the iambic pentameter text. He mentioned a great quote that I’m still trying to find by Ted Hughes, saying something to the effect that Shakespeare wasn’t super difficult but rather super simple. Shakespeare goes straight to the point whether the language takes him there or no.

We then did some basic getting to know you things. Mick split us up into groups to talk about what ‘Theater Games’ we knew and liked. I’m am pleased to say that they know Big Booty over here as well. Awesome. We also play a Name Game and some Hugging Name Tag. Yes, it’s pretty much exactly what you are thinking.

We ended class by taking about the Shake-A-Day project, basically 24 Hour Theater but with Shakespeare and the Edwin Rudd Scholarship. Definitely participating (Shake-A-Day), definitely applying (Scholarship).