Back for the third year running 'Shake Fest' provides a unique opportunity for students across Queensland to celebrate the works of William Shakespeare.
'Shake Fest' is Shake & Stir Theatre Co. and the Judith Wright Centre's ultimate search for the most passionate actors, dancers, musicians, photographers, videographers and visual arts students this state has to offer. The festival combines multiple art forms including: monologue, duologue, scene, dance, music, design, photography and film.
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Participants will showcase their work to the public over two Bard-packed days at the Judy. There will be workshops, a gallery of design work, mingling with students from across the Queensland, and a behind-the-scenes insight into one of Brisbane’s most popular performance venues.
Artistic Director of Shake & Stir Theatre Co., Nelle Lee, highlights the Top 5 most awkward moments in a Shakespearian play (hopefully none of these happen at the fest):
Exit, Pursued By A Bear
One can’t help but wonder what was going on in Shakespeare’s head when his quill scribbled down what is now surely one of the most famous pieces of stage direction ever written. For those unfamiliar with 'The Winter’s Tale' (don’t be ashamed, it’s not one of his best), this very random, yet quite specific instruction occurs when one of the minor characters, Antigonus, is given the task of ditching the Queen’s supposedly illegitimate daughter on the beach. He gives a little soliloquy and then exits pursued by a bear.By now you’re probably thinking, 'surely there is some reference to bears, perhaps some sort of suggestion of a nearby wildlife park or zoo'. Nope. Some suggest the bear is very symbolic to the play, not just a random thought for comic relief. The idea that the bear represents the savage events that are unfolding ('hmmm… not sure').
The play was written quite late in his career, so perhaps The Bard became sick of the good old ‘sent abroad and slaughtered’ demise for his minor characters? Perhaps it was an in-joke Shakespeare put in for his fellow company, and just never go around to blotting it out? Whatever the cause, it has become a gem of a stage direction that has had directors scratching their heads for years to come.
The Suicide of Cleopatra
Poor Cleopatra, she decides to kill herself rather than become a trophy of war for the Romans. All that was available to her it seems were some asps (Egyptian cobra – duh). The old snake on the breast chestnut. What a way to go.
Lavinia
'Titus' is just one big play of wrong. Which is what makes it so good, right? Lavinia, the virginal daughter of Titus Andronicus has her fiancée killed in front of her, then under the order of Tamora, her two son’s repeatedly rape her (Titus killed her oldest son, so it’s only fair, right?) It gets worse. They then chop off her hands and cut out her tongue. Nasty. To finish off her wretched tale, her dad ends up killing her, to save her from her shame. Thanks dad.
Chiron & Demetrius
Well, as we know – Titus and Tamora have some unresolved issues. Titus killed her son; Tamora had his daughter savagely raped and tortured – so it’s Titus’s turn right? How could he possibly top what Chiron and Demetrius did to his beloved daughter? The answer is one cup of crushed tomatoes, some puff pastry and an oven preheated to 220 degrees celsius. That’s right folks, Titus cooks Tamora’s two sons into a delicious pie and feeds it to their unknowing mother. Yummy.
