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This production is part of a series of HND Shakespeare projects. While teaching Shakespeare over the years it always seemed to me that without being involved in an actual production, everything we were attempting to learn in class was unfulfilling. Everyone who is serious about wanting to become an actor should, at some point, have the opportunity to tackle difficult challenges.Being in a Shakespeare play would seem to be a vital part of that process. Mastering Shakespeare isn’t a super-power despite what some people will have you believe. It is more or less the same as any other acting job, but, it involves more detailed interpretative skills and a key sense of rhythm, pitch and dynamics. The same essential skills we need to be any good at busking.
A lot of young actor’s fear Shakespeare because they have been told to be afraid. They are hypnotised into believing it is something they cannot do. Of course, this isn’t true.
Is it hard work? Yes, it is. It is technically difficult which is why it is a great test of skill. However, hard work isn’t something we need to be afraid of and isn’t any more terrifying that regular exercise.
The biggest fear of all is the unknown. What do the words mean? What are the plays about? What is the ‘secret’ to getting it right? So those are the key things we have to fix.
Also, acting styles change with every generation, so what was considered a ‘great performance’ twenty-five years or more ago, may no longer prove to be quite as palatable to a contemporary audience. The way that we engage with our ever-increasing forms of entertainment has irreversibly changed in the last twenty years. It is only fair to assume that tastes have changed.
The sooner we understand that education is not about one generation teaching the next generation to ‘do it the way I do it’ the quicker we will all benefit. This generation of actors need to explore their own methods and, if they need to dip into the ‘library’ occasionally to see how it was done ‘back in the day’ then fair enough.
And so, with this and the subsequent productions, the point is to adapt the text we are left with and use it to make a relevant statement. The language should be changed where it seems much too obscure or locked in the late 16th or early 17th centuries. Every production must make sense to it’s intended audience otherwise we are being indulgent and conceited with our own cleverness. There is nothing forbidding about Shakespeare, just as there isn’t about Mozart, Beethoven, Rabbie Burns, Wordsworth, Reubens, Picasso or Radiohead. As with any great personal achievement, there is no secret. Just endurance, consistency and hard work. To watch, all that is required is a bit of undivided attention and preferably, in groups so that the experience can be greater enjoyed.
So please,
Enjoy
Ian Grieve
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Park Street, Coatbridge, ML5 3, United Kingdom
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