Propeller troupe's Richard III at the Huntington Theater

I went and saw Richard III last night at the Huntington Theater in a lovely trip organized by captainecchi-- so glad she suggested it! In fact, you can read her impressions of the show here, which match up very much with mine, so much so I was tempted to just let her speak for me and agree with everything she wrote! But for posterity I am recording my own thoughts, given this show impressed me as much as any show I've ever seen.

The show was given the aesthetic of a Victorian insane asylum, and I don't need to tell you how creepy that can be, with the men in white masks, the primitive steel medial instruments, and the constant presence of sterile plastic and black body bags. It even seemed that at the imprisonment of Clarence he was given a partial lobotomy! There are many gorey murders in this play, with tons of stage blood and every onstage death committed in the most gruesome way possible-- drilling into a man's eyes, guts torn out with a hook, and a chainsaw dismemberment behind a plastic curtain that was sprayed with blood. Despite the potential over-the-topness of it, I actually liked it and thought it worked with the stark brutality and sociopathy of their Richard III.

The cut of the script was excellent, keeping the length and frequent dryness of a Shakespearean history down to a minimum and maintaining an engaging pace. The storyline was easy enough to follow, though I had read it before, and despite a handful of confusion regarding people's relationships, it kept remarkable clarity. If I ever were to put on Richard III, I would try to emulate this cut.

Interestingly, this was an all-male Shakespeare troupe. The acting was phenomenal across the board-- Richard Clothier as Richard III in particular with his powerful voice. But as one fequently cross-cast myself, I am always interested in how it's done. I thought it was notable that while the men playing women were dressed in period female costume and affected feminine carriage, they did not much attempt feminine voice, and they all had their normal masculine hair. That disconnect was a little jarring, but their acting was excellent, if representative rather than emulative. It also pleases me to see men effectively to play women, when I am so much more used to the other way around.

The tech was excellent, particularly the sound design; the effects were organic and expertly timed, plus the singing! The entire troupe sang to punctuate the drama and over the transitions, usually psalms or Victorian-sounding caroles and folk tunes. Their voices were exquisite, and it was incredibly atmospheric. I particularly enjoyed when they sang something in contrast to what was happening, like a merry folk song over somebody's brutal murder. There was even a minute when they rendered "Bloody, bloody England" as a kind of rap set to an electric guitar! Out of left field, certainly, but I kind of liked it anyway. :-)

This may have been the best Shakespearean production I've ever seen. I enjoyed it immensely, and now I want to see the Comedy of Errors this troupe is also putting on. Alas, it may be out of my price range, but I will look into it anyway.t

Sewing plans

Now that the house is more or less in order (except for the room painting, soon to come) I can turn my thoughts back to the projects I have been wanting to work on. I want to go back to sewing now that those pressing matters are taken care of, and here are some things currently on my mind.

1. Finish my red silk skirt.
My skirt is very close to completion at this point, lacking only a finished hem to make it accomplished. That shouldn't be too hard, as I enjoyed trying out the blind stitch, but I am concerned that the material is too thin to genuinely hide the sitches even if the blind hem is done properly. I look forward to wearing it somewhere, as it fits nicely and is actually kind of pretty.

2. Make a gift for katiescarlett29
I want to take on another easy sewing project to practice my skills, and I also want to give a gift to Steph when she comes back. Since we like cooking together so much, I thought I would make her an apron out of some interesting fabric (in purple, of course), as that is both simple to construct and something she might like and use. Though I might buy the fabric sooner rather than later, I am planning on waiting till I have my sewing machine before I start on it.

3. Study up to make the two dress patterns I bought
Due to a large sale, I purchased two dress patterns, Butterick 5559 and Vogue 1117 by Michael Kors. I got them in the mail last week, and upon looking at them I think they are massively too hard for me right now. I don't even understand what all the words they use mean. I am going to have to study up on the terms so I understand the directions. That may require the obtaining of a good beginner's sewing text. I am open to recommendations if anyone knows a good one.