Last call for “A FOOL’S PARADISE” at The Shakespeare Centre in July! 

We have a special treat lined up for the July 19th class! Between that night’s scene work, Christopher Gaze will pay the class a visit to briefly share some of his insights re the playing of Shakespeare’s fools – always entertaining, charismatic and informative, we are so  excited to welcome him as our special guest that night.

  Deadline for registration is Saturday, July 1 – all class details pasted below.

7:00– 10:00 PM WEDNESDAYS, JULY 5, 12, 19 AND 26TH

  “Better a witty fool than a foolish wit.” - William Shakespeare In many of Shakespeare's plays, we find characters referred to as "fools" or "clowns." There are probably many readers or viewers of Shakespeare who disregard the fools, because they think these characters do not play a significant part in the plays. But Shakespeare used his foolish characters in his plays to make points that he considers highly important. Consider the power of some of our modern day equivalents, Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert, for example. 

It is true that some fools are more influential in some plays than others, and it could be argued that he wrote “wise fools” and “foolish fools”. As examples of wise fools, there is Feste in "Twelfth Night" and the fool in "King Lear." An example of a foolish fool would be Dogberry in "Much Ado About Nothing." "Wise fools" are intelligent, they can move among any social group, their humor lies in their wit, and they act as a guide by pointing out human weaknesses. They are also capable of possessing and developing deeper human traits. "Foolish fools" also love language, but they are comic because of how ridiculous their words and actions are. They can move among different social groups, but they are not given any respect by the gentry.

 

Shakespeare was a gifted writer who had a penetrating understanding of the condition of humanity in the world and sprinkled his plays with jokes meant for the common man as a way of conceding to his audience's intellectual level. Or, as Walter Kaufmann said in his essay "Shakespeare: Between Socrates and Existentialism," Shakespeare "came to terms with the obtuseness of his public: he gave his pearls a slight odor of the sty before he cast them." Kaufmann continues his essay by saying that Shakespeare, unlike many modern artists, "turned the challenge of a boorish, lecherous, and vulgar audience to advantage and increased the richness and the subtlety of drama." (Kaufmann 3)

The “Fool” played a peculiar and interesting role in the English court system around the turn of the 17 th century. Generally speaking, the Fool was the court's entertainment. Stereotypically, the Fool ran about in quirky checkered hats adorned with bells and played the role of clown in the middle of lavish ceremonies put on by the nobility of the court. Shakespeare, however, skewed this very archetypal characterization of the Fool and glorifies his unique place in society. The Fool was an integral part of the court system, loved by the monarchs as a form of entertainment. This entertainment served as the link between the royalty and the commoners, giving both the nobility and the people equal doses of humorous tomfoolery. He was essentially a social construct meant to intertwine the masses to the polished and refined life of the nobility with his crude antics. Realizing the potential of this place in the sociopolitical chain, Shakespeare often used his fools as the “wise men,” or those that, although foolish and irrational, often spoke words of advice to the downtrodden. This level of access the Fool had within the ruling parties of England intrigued Shakespeare. Since most of Shakespeare's work revolved around the aristocracy, there was no better character but the Fool that had the power and contact to break the social hierarchy and infuse it with reform.

Huh, now how much does THAT sound like Stewart/Colbert and Bush???

“A FOOL THINKS HIMSELF TO BE WISE BUT A WISE MAN KNOWS HIMSELF TO BE A FOOL” – William Shakespeare

“IF YOU MAKE A FOOL OF YOURSELF, YOU CAN DO IT WITH DIGNITY, WITHOUT TAKING YOUR PANTS DOWN. AND IF YOU DO TAKE YOUR PANTS DOWN, YOU CAN STILL DO IT WITH DIGNITY” – William Shatner - LOL

WELCOME TO THE SHAKESPEARE CENTRE  ONGOING PROFESSIONAL TRAINING IN SHAKESPEAREAN TEXT AND SCENE STUDY This course will demystify certain aspects of Shakespeare that tend to intimidate actors, such as: 

-the antiquated language

-         the rhythm

-         the long soliloquies and speeches

-         the historical context of relationships

-         differentiating between the epic, the comic and the everyday-         unearthing the hidden patterns that provide clues to finding your character-         bridging the gap between the character’s truth and your truth-         the use of passion versus detachment-         discovering the path towards relating Shakespeare to contemporary experience, resulting in audience accessibility AND MOST IMPORTANTLY… HOW NOT TO BE BORING AS A SHAKESPEAREAN ACTOR! 

“Instead of waiting for a rich TV job, you should get into the theatre and work hard. Call it the Bard’s blast furnace. Actors who tackle Shakespeare will be steeled to handle every challenge they encounter. Because if you can do Shakespeare, you can do any modern play they throw at you. But if you do TV for years, you cannot necessarily do Shakespeare” – celebrated actor John Neville

  THE INSTRUCTOR Donald Adams has been an actor and teacher for over twenty  five years. He has performed Shakespearean roles across Canada and the U.S. for the Stratford Festival, The Canadian Stage, The Playhouse, The Citadel, The Arts Club and Bard on the Beach. Donald has taught acting at The Stratford Festival, The Maggie Bassett Studio, University of Waterloo and Sir Wilfred Laurier University, as well as six seasons on the faculty of The Young Shakespearean Training Program at Bard on the Beach. A two time Jessie award winning actor, Donald’s credits are too numerous to list but he was particularly honoured to play the title role in Bard on the Beach’s production of “Macbeth”. He is also proud to have co-produced and co-directed the critically acclaimed “Shakespeare Centre’s One Year Birthday Celebration” at Christ Church Cathedral, as well as premiering  “The Capulet Family Album” at The Firehall Arts Centre’s Spring Buds Festival May 21-22, which he directed and dramaturged. This past summer, Donald taught at Bard on the Beach’s Young Shakespeareans’ workshops and, most recently, starred in Touchstone Theatre’s  “Little Mercy’s First Murder” – voted one of the top ten plays of 2005 by numerous critics. Having just filmed a lead role in Pale Christian Thomas’s independent feature film, “Quest for Samurai”, he recently appeared in Touchstone/Pacific Theatre’s co-production of  “The Prodigal Son” and is looking forward to playing the title role in “The Agammemnon” to be directed by Torquil Campbell. He is also excited to be playing the role of  Robert Underwood Johnson in “the Electric Company’s” cross Canada tour of  their hit show “Brilliant” this Fall. 

WHO: EXPERIENCED ACTORS ONLY PLEASE – LANGARA, UBC, SIMON FRASER AND OTHER STUDENTS WELCOME - APPLICATIONS DUE BY JULY 1 FOR JULY SESSIONS AND SUBJECT TO INSTRUCTOR APPROVAL – 10 STUDENTS MAX

 WHEN: 7:00– 10:00 PM WEDNESDAYS, JULY 5, 12, 19 AND 26TH WHERE: CRICHLOW ACTORS’ STUDIO – 24-2414 Main St. (just north of Broadway – east side) 

HOW MUCH: - $200/MO

 

NON-REFUNDABLE DEPOSIT OF $125 DUE UPON ACCEPTANCE INTO CLASS IN ORDER TO HOLD SPACE – REMAINING BALANCE DUE FIRST NIGHT OF CLASS. IN THE EVENT THAT A PARTICIPANT MUST CANCEL, DEPOSIT CAN BE APPLIED TO A FUTURE CLASS.

 CONTACT JO BATES AT 604-739-7829 OR jobates@excite.com FOR ENROLLMENT INFORMATION.