Taming of the SHREW

A shot of the ticket that got me in!

The last time I posted, I mentioned that I was thinking of dedicating a post to the production I watched of 'The Taming of the Shrew'. Well, here it is! As I said the last time, I was lucky enough to be able to catch the play on my school lawn, literally. The play was done by the 'Shakespeare's Globe' company and if you are in Singapore, you can catch them (same cast as the one I saw) at Fort Canning from the 2nd-13th of October. 

Outside the school arts centre

The opposite side of the school arts centre (the building to the left)

I really recommend you catch the play. First, it is rare for the Globe to bring their productions to Singapore. Secondly, it's the SHAKESPEARE'S GLOBE for goodness sakes. If you are not 'Bardnanas' like I am, you might not know the history behind the connection of the company and its deep roots to the genius himself. 'Shakespeare's Globe is a reconstruction of the Globe Theatre, an Elizabethan playhouse in the London Borough of Southwark, on the south bank of the River Thames.The original Globe Theatre was built in 1599 by the playing company Lord Chamberlain's Men, to which Shakespeare belonged.' Which means that though the building is not the same, you can't accuse me of over exaggeration when I say that Shakespeare himself graced the very ground that amazing theatre is built on. Thirdly, 'Taming of the Shrew' is not as done as often as some of the other productions (more in reference to Singapore). Fourthly, the cast was terrific, it's an all female cast and if you have read/ watched the play you would know that that adds so much more depth to the story. Fifthly, it has a very interesting plot which makes you question certain societal norms and typical gender roles.

The main stage, don't be fooled by it's small size, some big acting happens on it!

However, talking about the plot, you really don't have to feel worried if you don't know the storyline. I went for the play with no knowledge of what was going to happen, but I was fine. Most of the other AC students who went had never read/ watched the play before and we could all catch up. Anyways, it's Shakespeare, the man who could straddle all social classes, touch and entertain everyone. You'll be fine! 

The crowd (many people come from the area around my school)

I will not give away the plot because I personally hate spoilers. But if you think that by knowing the plot, you will then decide if it's for you or not, you can check out the Wikipedia page as it has a pretty good summary on the key ideas and plot of the play. The play was extremely thought provoking, it really made me think hard and more importantly feel hard. I always think that one way to tell if a play is good is if you were subjected to an emotional roller coaster while watching it. If you actually felt furious when the lead character did something, or if you felt depressed when someone got into a sticky situation, or if you rolled on the floor laughing when something comical happened, then you know it was a good play. This production was able to do that to me. I felt what the characters were feeling as though I was with them in those moments; in that scene with them and that was the reality.

Another shot of the stage which gives you a better perspective of the size of the stage and a the castle in the background (:

 
I don't think I can say much more without giving the story away, so I will end here. Please do consider going to see the production as I personally think it really is worth the time and money. And if you do, hopefully you will enjoy it as much as I did! If you didn't... Well I never forced you to watch it! (;

A few of my fellow AC-ers who were at show as well!

“My tongue will tell the anger of my heart, or else my heart concealing it will break.” - Taming of the Shrew, William Shakespeare