Timeless Shakespeare

When we select our season each year we look at a number of factors.  One of them is pedagogical:  what kind of work have we not done in a few years?  We want a student who is with us for four years to experience as wide a range of shows as possible.  

The last time we had Shakespeare on our schedule was for the spring of 2020, whe we were going to perform Much Ado About Nothing.  Though the pandemic kept us from presenting it live on our stage, we were able to put together two livestream performances on YouTube from each cast member's house.  

So believe it or not, what you are seeing today is the FIRST production of a Shakespeare play on the MHS stage!  So why The Merry Wives of Windsor and not something audiences are more familiar with like As You Like It, The Taming of the Shrew, or A Midsummernight's Dream?

What sets Merry Wives apart is the almost slapstick comedy featured in this play.  A story about relationships and how committed couples interact when an outside force tries to get in between is relatable to audiences today.

My choice to set the show in 1940s America connects in a couple of ways.  First, as this show features strong female characters, they tie in nicely to the empowerment many women felt having to work in the factories during WWII. And many were not happy to just return to the home when the men came back from the war.  The characters of Mistresses Page and Ford epitomize those women.  Additionally, the economiy in the mid-1940s was quite healthy, with plenty of jobs available for those who wanted them.  Which makes the disgust and hatred over Falstaff more meaningful.  He could have gone out and gotten a job to get himself out of the jam he finds himself in at the beginning of the play. But he choose to leech off of others.

I am very proud of the work our cast and crew have done on this show.  They have worked hard to understand Shakespeare's use of language, learned how the meaning of words has changed over the last 400 years, and how to make a centuries-old play relevant to today's audiences.

I also want to thank Ms. Peggy Matanic and her Technical Theatre classes.  They have worked hard this semester to build and paint our set, as well as work on some of the props and costumes for this show.  Ms. Matanic's empahsis on experiential learning helps more students appreciate what it takes to put on a play.

Thank you to them, to our parents, and to you, our audience members!  We hope you enjoy the show, and we hope to see you next month at our contest-bound one-acts!

--R. Palasz