More Shakespeare at Shakespeare & Company!

Tonight we saw a wonderful energetic Comedy of Errors at Shakespeare & Company that was given life as always by the whole ensemble and how they speak the speeches, but especially by the Antipholus (one played two) Ian Lassiter who I'd love to see doing some of the history and tragedy roles as well. He's on the right in the photo below by Enrico Spada:

 What was remarkable was how they all managed to deliver the iambic pentameter in a selection of Fonzie/Grease/Brando-as-Don-Corleone /Real Housewives of New Jersey accents. Dance parties, cross dressing, the usual, in a very fast ninety minutes. Just delightful.

 I also liked Henry V last night but not so unreservedly. It was a stripped down version, Elizabethan clothes and a lot of women doing parts, a danced-battle section with a stunning brief mimed (with mouth sounds) archery passage. Ryan Winkles an everyman Henry, closer to Hal the carouser than to Lawrence Olivier, and of course they played down the patriotism. This year we've also been to a lecture on Comedy of Errors and the two hour back stage tour, and as usual, before and after seeing the productions I skim some of the text, read the summaries in one place or the other, read the chapter from Harold Bloom’s book.
 What a gift to have this available to us.

We've also seen some non-Shakespeare:  The How and the Why and The Unexpected Man.