A Carolingian Tragedy

[jducoeur]

We just got home from the Mummers' performance of King Lear, and I'm pleased to say that they acquitted themselves well -- this was a good performance.

Things started a bit slow and rough, but after the first couple of scenes everyone hit their stride. The casting proved apt, and everyone did well: from Christian as a thoroughly (and enjoyably) evil Edmund to the wicked sisters to Pamelina as a very complex and varied Fool, it was all great.

The standouts for me turned out to be hakamadare and learnedax, neither of whom I had known could really act and both of whom were great. hakamadare gave an Oswald who managed to be entirely buffoonish and slimy at the same time: within minutes, you understood why Kent and Edgar both so desperately wanted to kill this guy. (I was especially impressed because the performance was so *completely* unlike his normal demeanor.) And learnedax pretty much stole the show, with an Edgar that was nuanced, complex and heartfelt, swinging between feigned madness and real despair on the turn of a word. He very much became the heart of the story: in a cast of pretty experienced actors, I actually thought he turned in the best performance overall.

Anyway, there's one more performance tomorrow afternoon. If you can make it, I commend it. If you can't, it looks like they were taking the videography very seriously this time, so there is hope for a reasonably good DVD when all is said and done...

Comments

[siderea]

I saw it last night and was very impressed. learnedax was tremendously compelling.

I thought Jack was incredible, too, though not as obviously. He played Lear as enough of an ass that by the end of act 3, I was still thinking of him as a completely unsympathetic character: he made his bed and is lying in it. But by the end, Lear has become an object of great pity, which is, I think, an amazing dive to pull a character out of.

Is there an unwritten rule somewhere that if Viz is directing, Gwendolyn and Christian have to kiss (e.g. Gawain and the Green Knight)?

Christian's initial monologue got a spontaneous round of applause from the audience, Friday night. He came close to stealing the first half of the show; he was splendid to watch.

Did the Scadian crowd (Sat) laugh at the line where Edgar asks Edmund (Christian!) how long he's been an astrologer? Nobody laughed at that on Friday -- the "hey, waitaminute..." of that hit me only after the moment or I would have.

cristovau did a darned fine evil, too. What a surprize to see him so cast against type.

BTW, I may have been the only person to get the song title cues, but I got a bunch of them. :)

[(Anonymous)]

Did the Scadian crowd (Sat) laugh at the line where Edgar asks Edmund (Christian!) how long he's been an astrologer? Nobody laughed at that on Friday -- the "hey, waitaminute..." of that hit me only after the moment or I would have.

It got a big laugh, and Christian was most pleased with himself.

-Fu

[jducoeur]

I thought Jack was incredible, too

It's true -- it was a deeply affecting and consistent performance; like learnedax, it was very heartfelt, not feeling "stagy" at all.

Christian's initial monologue got a spontaneous round of applause

In our performance, he got the true honor of a villain: he got hissed roundly on almost every exit.

Did the Scadian crowd (Sat) laugh at the line where Edgar asks Edmund (Christian!) how long he's been an astrologer?

Yep; indeed, several of us were giggling quietly throughout the preceeding rant about the stars, and how foolish it was to believe in them.

cristovau did a darned fine evil, too.

Yaas. Indeed, I was impressed at how well the pairs worked: the only words I could think of for him and Kat were "oozing wickedness".

I may have been the only person to get the song title cues

Huh; I wasn't even thinking about that. I recognized most of the tunes, of course, but it didn't occur to me to think about the titles. Hmm -- now I'm wondering what I missed...

[siderea]

Hmm -- now I'm wondering what I missed...

A few random examples: a Battle Pavan at a strategic moment, "Belle qui tient ma vie" when Cordelia finally appears at Dover, "Mille Regretz" at some appropriate point in, hmm, 3rd(?) act.

Music cues

[(Anonymous)]

Should have figured Tibicen would get them. :)

"Heigh Ho Holiday" for Edgar disgusing himself as a madman and taking to the hills.
"The Tempest" for the intro to Act III, the storm.
"The Image of Melancholly" as the intro to Act IV, where Lear goes mad.
"Belle Qui" in the French camp (I knew SCAdians would get this one :)
"Mille Regretz" when Lear regains his senses in Cordelia's camp.
"Galliard de la Guerre" as the intro to Act V, and "La Guerre" for the actual battle.
Unfortunately, "Pavan Infernum", the death march for the very end of the show, was cut at the tech rehearsal for dramatic reasons.
Also used were Almayne 56 for the intro to Act I, and Huit Almand I for the royal processional.

-Yeliz

[chaiya.livejournal.com]

I am so very proud of hakamadare. And to think, he wasn't going to try out! :)

[hakamadare.livejournal.com]

i'll say this in public, sweetheart: i really owe you one for encouraging me to go for it. thank you!

thank you also, Justin - i'm glad you enjoyed the show.

-steve

just a few comments from the director

[(Anonymous)]

In my view, Edgar didn't steal the show - he had the exactly correct part in it. I think this story is very nearly as much Edgar's as it is Lear's. He's the one who had the unfair catastrophe occur to him, descend through madness (are you so sure it was feigned just because he said so?) and come out at the end stronger for it; and the final tragedy is shared between him and Albany - he ends up having to piece together a shattered kingdom with everyone he cared for in it dead.

Actually, I think there's tragedy all over the place here, and most of the characters had their own, from the obvious ones like Edgar's to the subtler ones of Goneril rejecting love for power, and we see the madness that brings on and the destruction she causes after it.

Having Gwendolyn kissing Christian in all the things I present just means I'm rather fond of Christian.

We do hope to make a serious movie out of this (well, as serious as one can do for essentially no money, anyway); my hope is that it will be good enough that people besides cast members will want them. Time will tell.

Tom/Vis