Unbelievably great. Thanks for this. I feel I was there when I read this.
-----Original Message----- From: weeklong-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org [mailto:weeklong-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org] On Behalf Of Clay Stromberger Sent: Sunday, June 20, 2010 6:10 PM To: weeklong-l@lists.wikimedia.org Subject: Re: [Weeklong-l] shakespeare camp MND
The final gathering was a wonderful moment. No one in their yellow Camp shirt wanted to be the first to step away. A parent said, "One more song." Doc and the counselors told the kids, "You choose." The kids chose "Wind and the Rain," Feste's farewell from Twelfth Night, and as it reached the inevitable moment of "Our play is done..." I saw Doc's granddaughter Caitlin's eyes welling up, and another boy wiping away a tear... lovely. And yes, that hard goodbye took me back to a final hot Sunday in the Barn 27 years ago.
Augie didn't cry (I think he may be half Vulcan, he's sort of fascinated by others' tears) but my wife did hear him say to no one in particular, "I don't want to go..."
Equally wonderful was the wave of spontaneous, unself-conscious hugs happily exchanged by all the kids in the crowded foyer of the Barn after the Saturday performance -- I saw Augie hug girls who weren't his sister or his cousins! And he didn't cringe!
Both performances were remarkable for the clarity and crispness of the language, the delicate attention paid to individual words, the head-high confidence of the players (earned through hours and hours of hard work), and a genuine pleasure in playing together and in the sharing of discoveries with the audience. And I have to agree with Jeff, little Maya's Puck was a delight to watch, completely unforced, genuinely engaged in every moment, especially those in which she was listening to others (Titania in her speeches, the quarreling lovers) -- a world of reactions rippled across her face, but so subtly that she always redirected our attention to the character speaking. She never tried to be "funny," she was simply a very mysterious creature with a unique relationship with the audience.
The final moment of the play, with everyone onstage, frozen, except for Maya speaking Puck's final lines, was heartbreakingly beautiful. It sure got Jerald, sitting on the front row, who told my wife afterwards, "This old heart of mine can still clutch up!"
Wonder indeed became familiar. Thanks, Doc.
cs
On Jun 19, 2010, at 9:27 PM, James Ayres wrote:
Jeff: It was once again great to see you and Mary at the performance. Thanks for making the bows. We will use them again in AYL. Son Will seems to be very excited about what's ahead for him in the play. And thanks for your comments on the performance. You are absolutely right. It was a good play, with good kids who worked and played twelve 15 hour days toward developing a special ensemble experience. After the performance at Winedale today, none of them wanted to leave. We are talking about 10-13 year olds! I think their parents were a bit astonished by the final hugs and tears.
Reminds me of the old days.
Doc
On Jun 18, 2010, at 10:47 PM, Jeff Larsen wrote:
Just got back from seeing Doc's Shakespeare camp for kids perform MND. It was a wonderful performance, excellent ensemble, very good use of a multitude of musical instruments, Clayton's Augie doing a great job as Bottom, and an excellent Oberon (and the same guy played Snug the joiner/lion). AND a Puck to knock your socks off. (Maybe being about 3'6" and 40 lbs gives you an advantage in looking right for the role, but this kid was ROMPING. I think she was channeling the inner mischief-elf that lives within all ten year olds.) I was tempted to bow down before her and kiss her feet, but I assumed that it would weird her out and would be misinterpreted as just being a pervert. If anyone has a chance to see it tomorrow in the barn, I think it would be worth the trip. SO the Shakespeare camp first session of 2010 has set the bar pretty high.
Weeklong-l mailing list Weeklong-l@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/weeklong-l
Weeklong-l mailing list Weeklong-l@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/weeklong-l
Clayton Stromberger Outreach Coordinator UT Shakespeare at Winedale College of Liberal Arts, University of Texas at Austin www.shakespeare-winedale.org cell: 512-228-1055/ office: 512-471-4726
_______________________________________________ Weeklong-l mailing list Weeklong-l@lists.wikimedia.org https://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/weeklong-l