A band of merry wives has invaded Tufts' Balch Arena Theater, and will be available for viewing at 8 p.m. both this coming weekend and the weekend of Nov. 2-4. Directed by Artist in Residence Anthony Cornish, these young Tufts actors will perform Shakespeare's The Merry Wives of Windsor.
The cast understands that - with the possible exception of a Shakespeare class - most students do not want to spend time out of their weekend watching some archaic English piece with hard to understand language. Addressing this issue, Cornish has separated his version Merry Wives from typical Shakespearean productions by bringing the play into a more familiar setting. The antique garb has been expelled, and the play's setting has moved from an English province into a modern New England town. With these changes, Cornish hopes that it should be easier for everyone to relate to and understand.
"I think in a way, when [Shakespeare] is taught academically, people get lost behind the language," remarks Cornish. "In theater, it gives the piece a sense of immediacy that liberates the language." The play becomes more an experience of entertainment and enjoyment rather than something to be discussed in a classroom.
The cast feels that there need be no debate over whether this classifies as a long, drawn out piece of traditional theater; the common consensus is that it is "light, comic, brief and enjoyable." Indeed, as one of Shakespeare's shortest pieces, it can remain exciting all the way through. The play has everything, from the expected acting and performing to music and singing - even cross-dressing finds its way into the action.
Unlike more widely-known Shakespeare, this is a play concerned with domestic life. This means that Merry Wives lacks many of the aspects that often make Shakespeare confusing and instead focuses on entertaining the audience. "There are no kings and queens, lords and ladies," says Cornish. These are real people, "revealed in modern dress."
This does not make the characters any less exciting, however, especially for the actors who portray them. Perhaps the modernity of the play has been one of the factors that has excited the actors into the frenzy visible in their rehearsals (or maybe they all just love acting). Whatever the reason, the cast exudes enthusiasm and excitement, and looks forward to showing off its talents. As an ensemble piece, the play has a fairly large cast with equal footing in the performance. Most all of the performers have been a part of Cornish's Drama 12 class and range in experience on the Tufts stage. Six of the cast members are freshmen performing here for the first time, while others are familiar sights to Tufts community. Tim Nelson comments that it has been a wonderful experience as a freshman getting to "be a part of a really prestigious group, with drama majors" and all.
Whether new members or old, the cast abounds with energy. During rehearsal, they talk animatedly amongst themselves, gesturing wildly to make points, fighting to be heard above the generally high level of noise that accompanies the group. As Cornish directs them to "sing grand opera," they jump into song, complete with arms gesturing toward the sky. As soon as the direction changes to "sing very sad and beautiful grand opera," their faces drop to tearful grimaces as each student loses him or herself in the activity.
They have been rehearsing together since mid-September, sometimes staying for four or five hours at a time to work on the production. As opening night draws near, the enthusiasm is growing and will surely be evident in the performances. Balch Arena should be filled with theatergoers, for, as sophomore Melissa Holman asked rhetorically, "How often do you get to see Shakespeare set in small town America?"
'The Merry Wives of Windsor' opens this Thursday at the Balch Arena in the Aidekman Arts Center. The show runs at 8 p.m., Oct. 26-28 and Nov. 2-4. Tickets are $5 with a Tufts ID, except for the special rate of $1 for the Nov. 2 performance.
