Volu m e II - Purdue University Calumet

Orlando and she even goes as far as walking off hand-in-hand with him when he agrees that he will call her
his lover. McAnuff has created a very clever Rosalind, for the impression that is given by her intonation is
that she is coming up with so many brilliant ideas so that she can secretly seduce him into loving her. The
director’s depiction of Rosalind’s new attitude is also clearly seen in the vehemence with which Rosalind
meets Phebe chastising Silvius in the woods. Rosalind was infuriated that a woman like Phebe, who in
Rosalind’s opinion was very ugly, would speak down to a man of such worth and love as Silvius. “’Tis not
your inky brows, your black silk hair, / Your bugle eyeballs, nor your cheek of cream / That can entame
my spirits to your worship” (3.5.46-48). The way that Rosalind acts demonstrates to the audience that she
is no longer under anyone else’s control and that she feels free to do as she pleases.
Beyond the cues taken from Rosalind’s change in costume and mannerisms on stage, McAnuff’s
blocking of Rosalind demonstrates to the audience the transformation that she undergoes from timid to
courageous. In the beginning of the play, Rosalind appears to be very needy; she is never alone, for she is
always with Celia because of their inseparable bond. Rosalind expresses great fear when her uncle enters,
which is seen in the way that she moves clear across the stage to her cousin’s side to get away from him. In
these scenes, she is very dependent on her cousin and is never far from Celia. However, after she meets
Orlando, her blocking begins to change. She is more apt to sighing over her love, like the scene in the
sauna, because she has fallen head over heels for him. This love continues to have an effect on her as they
enter the forest in their new personas. Rosalind still comes across as very feminine and she has the
disposition of a weak woman. However, when she comes across Orlando and decides to trick him, she
surges with a newfound confidence. Her movements are much grander and animated, and the closeness to
her cousin is no longer noticed as physically. Rosalind gets closer to Orlando in the forest, physically and
emotionally. The audience can note how close she feels to Orlando when she tells him the signs of a lover,
for she touches his face as she describes his appearance. She is very confident and it seems as though she
feels more able to be in an intimate situation with him. Rosalind’s new attitude is noted in McAnuff’s
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