HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1999-05-19, Page 23THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MAY 19, 1999. PAGE 23.
E ntertainment Movietime at Blyth
Theatre review
‘Dream’ a Grand production
By Erin Roulston
Student Writer
For the second year now The
Grand Theatre has presented
London with its High School
Project. The results A Midsummer
Night's Dream running from May
14 - 26 at the Grand in London. A
Midsummer Night's Dream, in the
same style as last year’s West Side
Story, is way beyond a high school
drama club play and must be
critiqued as such.
I want to set it straight right off
the bat; the High School Project ‘99
is as close to professional as they
come and I am going to review it
like a professional play. I will not
patronize those kids by saying
“They’ve put a lot of work into it”
because of course they did. That is
what theatre is.
And I’m not going to be amazed
by what they’ve done at such a
young age, because I know first
hand what kind of remarkable
things kids can do when they put
their minds to it, things that many
40-year-olds could never
accomplish.
This was a good play.
Shakespeare is lost on me. I can’t
understand it. The number one
challenge that faces any
Shakespearean performer is how to
get across the meaning, despite the
words. These performers pulled it
off.
The first 10 minutes went over
my head but eventually the
performers and myself became
accustomed to the language and the
play began to flow.
Another obstacle when working
with Shakespeare is finding
something different for the actors
to do during the extended, poetic
monologues. Actors must spend
several minutes speaking in
beautiful poetry about very little at
all and find themselves repeating
the same arm motions or standing
still for a lack of anything else to
do. I found Helena’s (Diane
Wilson) meaningless arm gestures
distracting as she searched for
some physical variety.
Often times the secondary
performers found themselves
repeating the same motion, such as
rubbing a hand against their cheek,
over and over because there was
really nothing else they could do.
There were some very strong
performances in this piece. I was
especially drawn to Becca Elias
who played Titania/Hippolyta. She
pervaded the stage with a powerful
air. Her voice was firm and her
look was confident.
Aidan De Salaiz (Ober-
on/Theseus) was confident on the
stage as well, but whenever he was
present attention was drawn
towards the jell-o-like fellow that
followed his every motion. I still
have not figured out the purpose of
this character who stood behind
Oberon and walked like water,
flowing as though he had no bones.
Another strong performance
came from Nik Longstaff (Nick
Bottom) who played an adorably,
naive, squeaky-voiced mule.
I quite enjoyed most of the
Just dreaming
Curtis De Boer as Lysander and Shannon Eizenga as
Hermia appear in The Grand’s A Midsummer Night’s
Dream. Directed by Michael Shamata, the production fea
tures 35 local and surrounding area students. It runs until
May 22. (Michelle Folliott, Erin Wilk photo)
Looking for something to do with
the children? Bring them to the
Blyth Festival on Saturday and
Sunday, May 29 and 30 for two
afternoons of films and activities
sure to keep them entertained.
Saturday afternoon (May 29, 1
p.m.) will focus on movie
animation as children of all ages
enjoy the classic cartoons,
including Betty Boop, Popeye,
Superman and the full-length
animated feature Gulliver’s
Travels. Following the film,
children, ages eight to 14, can
participate in a workshop of the
making of cartoons. Advance
registration for the workshop is
required as admission is limited.
Sunday afternoon (May 30, 2
p.m.) will be Family Day with the
presentation of 1942’s The Jungle
Book preceded by the National
Film Board’s The Sweater about a
young Quebec boy who wants a
Montreal Canadiens hockey
sweater, but to his surprise,
receives a Toronto Maple Leafs
sweater instead.
Look for a Jungle Book colouring
contest entry sheet in area libraries
or pick one up at the Blyth Festival
Box Office. Entries will be
displayed on Family Day and
prizes for the top three will be
awarded following the show.
Winners must be present in order to
receive a prize.
Tickets for each show and
accompanying activities are $5 per
person and will include a coupon
for a free ice cream if purchased in
advance. For tickets or information
on the rest of the Silver Screen
Weekend series, call the Blyth
Festival Box Office at 523-9300
(local) or toll free at 1-877-TO-
BLYTH (1-877-862-5984).
Tickets are also available at
Campbell’s Photography
(Goderich), Carols Candies &
Collectables (Blyth), Crossroads
Gifts (Clinton), and Ernie King
Music (Wingham).
Jdappy 25th
Anniversary
Mom & Dad
May 25,1999
Love from your family
players and their play-within-the
play was very, very entertaining
even though it occurred right about
the time that I was checking my
watch to see if the show was nearly
over.
Titania’s fairies were quite
seductive, dancing and writhing in
their red-and-black costumes.
Oberon’s fairies were underplayed
and did not get nearly the attention
that the women did.
Puck (Sabrina Miller) seemed
more masculine than any of the
male actors did. She had spirit and
a lot of energy, but I think that a
little bit more would have been
welcome.
The set was beautiful, as was the
lighting. The costumes were
present-day, which worked without
a hitch. The music was beautiful
and eerie, adding greatly to the
mystery and magic of the show.
A Midsummer Night’s Dream is
excellent, entertaining and, I think,
Shakespeare would have been
impressed. Either way, I was, and I
expect to see the High School
Project continue in its success for
years to come.
Don't be a
chicken -
Go ahead
and crow
‘King and I’ at Centre stage
The Centre In The Square is
presenting Rodgers and
Hammerstein’s, The King and I on
Tuesday and Wednesday, May 25
and 26 at 8 p.m.
Set in the exotic and opulent Far
East in the 1860s, The King and I
tells the story of Anna Leonowens,
an adventurous Englishwoman who
travels to the royal palace in
Bangkok to become governess to
the 67 children of the autocratic
and stubborn King of Siam.
The original production of The
King and I opened on Broadway in
March, 1951. It was the hit of the
season, winning five Tony Awards,
including Best Musical and Best
Actress and Best Supporting Actor
in a Musical for its two leads,
Gertrude Lawrence as Anna and a
relative unknown, Yul Brynner, as
the King. Most recently, the 1996
Broadway revival of The King and
I received four Tony Awards,
including Best Musical Revival.
To order or for more information,
call The Centre’s box office at 578-
1570 or toll free 1-800-265-8977.
A little bird told
us you are 50 -
Tom Jarrett!!
Rosemary & Rae, Paul A
Debbie, Kathy & Paul
& families
Helen & Gordon
Blake
May 14, 1949-99
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