LF_082417

LakeForestLeader.com LIFE & ARTS
the lake forest leader | August 24, 2017 | 17
Embracing Shakespeare in a new environment
Centerstage
presents “The
Gulling of Malvolio”
on outside stage
Gianna Annunzio
Freelance Reporter
Shakespeare has come
to Lake Forest, unfolding
a plan to play an elaborate
trick on a steward right
before his audience’s
eyes.
The actors at Center-
Stage Theater carried out
his scheme during their
performance of “The
Gulling of Malvolio,” an
adaptation of the funniest
scenes from Shakespeare’s
play “Twelfth
Night.” The show was performed
outdoors at Lake
Forest’s Grove Cultural
Campus. This marked
the first time CenterStage
had ever performed work
written by Shakespeare,
or “toured” their show in
outdoor locations.
Barb Anderson, the director
and play adapter,
directed Shakespeare for
20 years at New Trier
High School in Winnetka.
She and her husband
Edward Kuffert
(who plays Sir Toby
Belch in “Malvolio”) had
also performed in Chicago’s
“Shakespeare in
the Park” as actors in the
past. Anderson said she
only lightly adapted “The
Gulling of Malvolio” for
this series of performances.
“The reason I picked
‘Twelfth Night’ is because
the story’s subplot
[Malvolio] makes
it’s own play,” Anderson
said. “It really stands
alone so easily. It’s a terrific
way of starting our
Sir Andrew Aguecheek, played by Jeremy Schaye, sits on a bench while performing
CenterStage’s adaptation of “The Gulling of Malvolio,” on Sunday, Aug. 20 at Grove
Cultural Campus. PHOTOS BY Gianna Annunzio/22nd Century Media
summer shows, if we
keep doing this.”
Rachel Martindale, a
Lake Forest local actress,
plays Olivia in “Malvolio”
and serves as costume
coordinator. She said the
play presents physical humor
in several different
ways.
“We’ve taken all the
funny bits and got rid of
the thicker plot,” she said.
“It’s the part that people
remember when you say
‘Twelfth Night.’”
From plotting a trick
on the steward Malvolio
to a sword fight between
two unlikely characters,
the play consistently kept
its audience engaged. The
location also offered refreshing
scenery for all attendees
to enjoy.
In her version of “Malvolio,”
Anderson picked
parts of scenes and wrote
some of her own speeches
to be included in the performance.
She also ensured
her actors had good
diction and annunciated
their lines correctly, so
the audience understood
Shakespeare’s Early Modern
English writing.
“If I look at a word and
say, ‘Okay, nobody is going
to know that word unless
they have a dictionary,’
I just translate it,”
she said. “I’ll use words
that tie in with the plot,
but that modern audiences
will understand.”
Although Shakespeare’s
original work included
two songs by Renaissance
musician Thomas Morley,
Anderson also added a
song by Henry VIII called
“Past Time in Good Company.”
“Since the show is
about fun-loving guys
who like to party and not
get caught and then decide
to play this trick, I thought
it would tie in well,” she
said.
Martindale said she appreciated
Anderson’s adaptation
of “Malvolio,”
when it came to her specific
character.
“[The adaptation] condenses
the situation for
Olivia,” she said. “The
wonderful thing about
Shakespeare is that he
played to all types of people.
So, you have scenes
featuring high comedy
and low comedy.”
With “Malvolio,” the
cast provided their audience
with a way to enjoy
and understand Shakespeare’s
work in a unique
way.
Viola (left) dressed as Cesario, played by Alexandra T.
Cross, reluctantly duels Sir Andrew Aguecheek, played
by Jeremy Schaye.
The jester Feste, played by Sahara Glasener-Boles,
kneels during a comedic performance of “The Gulling
of Malvolio.”
“It’s a very accessible
and enjoyable 90 minutes.
Shakespeare’s not just
highbrow,” Martindale
said. “We can go that way,
but it’s really about entertaining
our audience. Especially
given that it’s just
the comedic parts.”
Overall, both Anderson
and her cast provided the
community with the full
Shakespearean experience:
language, music and
costumes. They hope to
continue performing this
way in the future.
“I thought the idea of
bringing it actually to the
people would be something
really cool,” Anderson
said. “I know the
people who came the first
weekend said, ‘Gosh we
should have more of this,
I hope you keep going,’ so
that’s something I really
think could work.”
To catch CenterStage’s
next performance of “The
Gulling of Malvolio,” visit:
www.centerstagelakeforest.org
Admission to the performance
is free, but donations
are accepted.