Shakespeare day 2
Posted in Uncategorized on July 21st, 2010 by adminThe next clump of questions all overlap, so let’s just answer them in one fell swoop.
Day #2: Your favorite character
Confusing wording here: “favorite character” vs. “favorite hero/villain/etc”? Anyway, I suppose by “character” you mean someone not heroic or villainous, so I guess I will go with Richard II. He’s rather an antihero, and has some of the best soliloquies in the histories. Also he’s a clear predecessor of Hamlet, and we all know how I feel about Hamlet…
Day #3: Your favorite hero
Well, it’s not Henry V, who’s rather a prick. As was his father, of course. I always saw Falstaff as a heroic figure, actually, and since he isn’t really a clown let’s use him here.
Day #4: Your favorite heroine
Beatrice kicks a lot of ass in Much Ado. I’d like to see a production where she beats she shit out of Benedick, who deserves it.
Day #5: Your favorite villain
Iago’s probably the GRE answer you’re looking for. Or Richard III. Richard III may be a creep. but he’s also funny and damned charming. And that’s enough for me. Richard FTW.
Day #6: Your favorite villainess
I was taking an acting class a few years ago with L. Peter Callendar, and he had one of the students do Constance’s monologue from King John. She immediately headed to the top of the lady villain list, where she sits comfortably beside Lear’s rotten daughters.
Day #7: Your favorite clown
I’m going with the clown in Lear. The early clowns are mostly annoying. I prefer the Robert Armin era fools (Touchstone, Feste, Lavatch) to the broader Will Kemp fools. Armin probably played the Fool in Lear, who is not really “funny” but more of a wry and occasionally sympathetic observer.