Shakespeare is entirely serious, and this group of actors know it – well, all of them except one, who is genuinely inebriated every night on stage in 'Sh!t-Faced Shakespeare’.
It's an award-winning smash hit, which has sold more than half a million tickets worldwide. Adelaide Fringe audiences in 2023 will be treated to 'Romeo & Juliet', where they'll find out what happens when a talented cast takes one of their troupe and feeds them four hours' worth of alcohol.
This is one of the most iconic love stories of all time, if not the most iconic. Star-crossed lovers referenced throughout history from film (thanks, Baz Luhrmann) to music (cheers, Taylor Swift). . . But it's never been done quite like this before.
Intrigued?
The team from 'Sh!t-Faced Shakespeare' let us in on some more of the details of the show.
You’re tackling ‘Romeo & Juliet’ this year. For anyone new to this. . . How would you describe 'Sh!t-Faced Shakespeare'?
Sh!t-Faced Shakespeare is 'exactly what it says on the tin'. We perform an entirely serious Shakespeare play with one genuinely, entirely sh.t-faced actor. The chosen actor starts drinking four hours before the show and once the curtain goes up, the sober cast try to steer their way through the show, which results in a completely different performance every night!
Why is ’Romeo & Juliet’ the perfect production for 2023 Adelaide Fringe?
'Romeo & Juliet' is Shakespeare's most famous play and with good reason. . . Although a tragedy it also contains romance, comedy, sword fighting! Throw a drunk into a scene of underage marriage and/or the ability to change the famous ending (like Juliet running off into the sunset with an audience member) and you have the perfect show for any fringe, any year!
Image © Rah Petherbridge Photography
Is there a drink of choice for the one inebriated actor? What beverage have you found works quickest for getting them to their ideal state?
We actually take it quite seriously, we have to, for the insurance, but if it's your drunk show then you choose what you are drinking! My personal favourite is Bird In Hand sparkling rose from the Adelaide hills! I discovered this back in 2019 at the fringe. . . I follow this up with a chaser of some dirty cheap American beer or a G&T. I kid you not, one of our actors in the UK likes drinking milk and Kahlua or milk and Baileys. . . By the end of the show he smells disgusting. We find the best way to brew our actors is to firstly put them in a good place. So four hours before the show we start the actor drinking. We call this the 'drink up', all the cast get together to have dinner, play games and hang out to get our drunk into the best place. We want them to enjoy drinking the booze so they can drink at their own pace while having a lovely time! A happy drunk = a brilliant show.
This is a huge production, having toured around the world. Why do you think audiences keep coming back?
Well no two shows are ever the same and honestly it's really bloody good fun. Some of us have been doing the show for 12 plus years – and again that's because we never know whats going to happen each night. It keeps it fresh – but also we are also all really good friends and I think that is very obvious when we are all on stage together.
What is the biggest difference in Australian audience response compared to the rest of the world?
Australian audiences are so much louder than British audiences which is exactly what we want! The UK cast fight over each other to come over here!
Image © Rah Petherbridge Photography
What non-Shakespeare play would be most hilarious with one drunken actor. . . And why?
'The Nativity'. Hands down. . . I would love to see a drunken Angel Gabriel or Virgin Mary, there would be so much to play with – but I don’t think we are stupid enough to open that box of controversy, or are we…
And why do you think Shakespearean plays in particular are so funny when alcohol is brought into the mix?
Shakespeare is the greatest storyteller of all time – and yet people shy away from him because of the language barrier (and PTSD from school). But Shakespeare’s plays would have definitely had drunks in them (I mean the water was so unclean back then that the staple drink was wine or ale – the actors would have been absolutely smashed – along with the audiences!). . . We just seek to introduce a new generation of theatre-goers to the works of the Bard by reviving the raucous, interactive and vibrant nature of Elizabethan theatre, reminding them as we go to always ‘enjoy Shakespeare responsibly’.
Describe ’Shit-Faced Shakespeare’ with a line from a Shakespeare play.
“Exit. Pursued by a *bear”
*The bear is drunk.. very very drunk.
'Sh!t-Faced Shakespeare – Romeo & Juliet' plays The Roundhouse at The Garden of Unearthly Delights (Adelaide Fringe) 17 February-19 March.
