PREVIEW: Finlay Park welcomes back SCSC with The Merry Wives of Windsor - By Alivia Seely

 

“Better three hours too soon than a minute too late.”

The words of William Shakespeare are not always as clear in their meanings as audience members would like them to be. Yet, that does not stop the talented individuals from The South Carolina Shakespeare Company from taking that difficult language from folio, to the stage.

Sharing the beautiful, historic language with audiences across Columbia, the SC Shakespeare Company will be gracing the Finlay Park stage for a two weekend production of The Merry Wives of Windsor.

The Merry Wives of Windsor is a story that chronicles the life of Sir John Falstaff, played by Hunter Boyle. Falstaff is an outrageous man. He is a retired bacchanal with vulgar wit and multiple schemes of seduction, as he plans to dazzle the hearts of Mistress Ford and Mistress Page, played by Libby Campbell-Turner and Becky Hunter. Yet, it does not take long before the two ladies and Ford’s husband Master Ford, to figure out why Falstaff is set on reeking havoc in Windsor.

“He is a very suspicious and jealous husband. I think that he is someone that always thinks that someone is up to something. So when all of this stuff with Falstaff starts happening, my character Master Ford very easily and rapidly buys the fact that his wife is cheating. He then sets out to discover if that is true,” says Scott Blanks, managing director for the South Carolina Shakespeare Company, and will be playing the role of Master Ford.

This production is directed by Linda Khoury, artistic director and co-founder of the company. Other notable characters are: Robert Shallow, played by Chris Cook, Dr. Caius, played by Tracy Steele, Master Page, played by Jason Sprankle, Mistress Quickly, played by Sara Blanks, Anne Page, played by Katie Mixon and Parson Evens, played by David Reed.

“It is captivating, energetic, and is a humorous take on marriage, miscommunication, and forgiveness. The wild and bawdy characters along with the fast-moving story full of mischief and trickery will keep the audience riveted,” says Khoury.

The outdoor performance environment is no stranger to these company members. Finlay Park has been home to numerous SCSC performances in the past. The only thing that will be keeping them out of the park is inclement weather.

“I really enjoy the outdoor environment. I think audiences enjoy the outdoor environment. I can tell your first hand it is a really great experience for an audience member; however, it is really rather difficult for actors and actresses,” says Blanks.

Although there are moments of scandal and humorous revenge, Khoury encourages the entire family to come out and enjoy the show.

The South Carolina Shakespeare Company is one of the most popular professional theatre companies and producers of classical theatre in South Carolina. Since its founding in 1992, the company has sought to bring language, art, and history to the community in order to foster the arts culture.

The show opens Saturday April 23 at 8:00 p.m. in Finlay Park, and will run again April 27-30 at 8:00 p.m. For more information about the show visit www.shakespeareSC.org.

PREVIEW: Herculine and Lola at USC's Center for Performance Experiment -- By Alivia L Seely

“People often think that identifying as transgender or words like 'intersex' are all new things, but the inclusion of Herculine’s story from the 1800s gives a different perspective. Struggles with gender identity and sexuality are not new--it’s just been excluded from the mainstream conversation,” -- Rachel Kuhnle, Lola in Herculine and Lola

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A jump through time and a change in culture, and yet, the same problem is still seen. Will comfort be felt or sexuality understood as playwright Dipika Guha’s script is brought to the stage?

Herculine and Lola is a play that showcases the struggles of gender identity and follows two women in their search to find peace with their bodies. Herculine Barbin is a women from the past. A schoolteacher in 19^th century France, Herculine writes a diary conveying her troubles as an intersex person. While leaping forward to present day, Lola is an American teenager who travels overseas with her parents, when they break some complicated news to her about her body.

“Lola looks and acts like a female and in fact believes she is a female until her parents inform her that it’s not so simple,” says Carin Bendas, a second-year MFA acting student at the University of South Carolina and playing the role of Lola.

Guha’s writing paints a picture of what it feels like to be someone struggling with gender identity. “This play has been enormously challenging to wrangle because of its structure and size. I wanted to create a three-part structure for the stage where we would depart and ‘be’ somewhere entirely different in the second part,” says Guha.

Herculine may be a piece of the past, but her problems are still prevalent in today’s contemporary culture, as audiences will see through Lola’s character. Rachel Kuhnle, also a second-year MFA acting student at USC and playing the role of Herculine, mentions never working in any production that takes sexuality and explores it so much. “People often think that identifying as transgender or words like 'intersex' are all new things, but the inclusion of Herculine’s story from the 1800s gives a different perspective. Struggles with gender identity and sexuality are not new--it’s just been excluded from the mainstream conversation,” says Kuhnle.

Most people have come across an intersex person before; we just wouldn’t normally notice it, Bendas mentions. As it seems, today’s culture is more understanding when it comes to an intersex or transgender person. Knowing that people had to deal with gender identity issues at a time when the culture was not as accepting really puts an emphasis on how evolved our culture has become-though obviously not far enough. Despite period differences, Herculine and Lola bond together through their imagination and love.“Our life experiences play a huge part in the characters we create, especially in a play where the characters' journeys are so personal,” says Kuhnle.

Audience members have to keep their imaginations going and remember the unique culture each character belongs to. With such dramatic time period shifts, showing scene changes can be a challenge, even for set designer and director Steven Pearson.“It’s a very cinematic play and to do that with a simple element, to bring to life what is written on the page, is always a challenge, especially to go from one environment to another and from one time to another. We are using more general furniture and props to have the audience’s imaginations anchor on them. But the most important part is the actors in it,” says Pearson.

This will be the first production of the play, and Guha is delighted to have Pearson behind her. “He understands what this play is after down to its marrow and has worked tirelessly to realize the story in a kind of bare theatrical landscape I had imagined when I wrote it,” says Guha. “He has given me the greatest gift that a playwright could ask for, which is the absolute commitment to staging the play as is written.”

The play will run from November 15-21 at the Center for Performance Experiment on 718 Devine St. Tickets are $5 and are available only at the door. Show times are 8 p.m. every night, and on Friday, November 20, two shows will run at 7 p.m. and 10 p.m.