Bard on the Beach: The Tempest

I saw the Tempest over the summer, and I was pleasantly surprised.  I read the play in 2011 for my undergrad and I can't say that it was my favourite; I filed it along with Troilus and Cressida and A Winter's Tale: lesser Shakespearean plays with too many characters and not enough depth.

This Bard on the Beach presentation changed my mind.  It was colourful and beautiful.  I had a prime seat right next to the small string band on stage, and when Ariel sang to them, it felt like she was singing directly to me.  I felt that the music and staging of the play underlined what I felt was missing in the Midsummer's Night presentation, it encapsulated the audience in warmth and light.

The focus on forgiveness however, forced some downplaying of the story-lines.  Antonio's continuing deceit was reduced to only one or two scenes, and Caliban was a much more more sympathetic character than the demon child presented in the text. I liked the interplay between Caliban and the female portrayals of Stephano and Trinculo, a gender switch which added to those characters. Trinculo in particle was the comedic highlight of the play.  Prospero's forgiveness of Antonio and Caliban seemed unfounded, whereas Ariel's release was bitter-sweet, representing Prospero's bittersweet relinquishment of his stature and his magic.

During class discussion, I was trying to think of another Shakespearean play that started with a storm, and Twelfth Night came to mind.  With it's twins torn asunder because of the storm, and Sebastian and Antonio being delayed to be washed on the shore where Viola had already made her home.  I wonder how many other comparisons we could find between these two plays, turned on their head. Is Prospero a shade of Viola?  Is Ariel an aspect of Feste?  Is Caliban the darkest Malvolio?  In my future "Free time", I feel a visio-diagram needs to be made to map these similarities, but for now,tthis presentation has elevated The Tempest into a dear friend instead of a dreary homework assignment.