Magical Moments: Shakespeare’s Stratford-upon-Avon and Arabian Nights Posted on January 19th, 2010 by Andrea Gullixson

“Rock star” isn’t exactly the first label that most people connect with William Shakespeare. “Poet,” “playwright,” or simply “writer” are much more common associations. But for a Theatre and English double major like me, “rock star” sums it up when I think of Shakespeare. Which is why I was surprised when on Tuesday January 13, our class went to visit the original home of Shakespeare, Stratford-upon-Avon, and there were no giant signs pointing out the birthplace of the Bard. There were no screaming, eager flocks of fans rushing to get a picture of his home, the church he was buried in, or the Shakespeare archives. In fact, everyone was going about business as usual, walking home, to work, or to lunch with no outward indication that they were in fact walking the streets in the birthplace of a legend. My mind was absolutely boggled. Didn’t these people realize the history and importance that lay here? That this was the place that the man who has given us 37 plays, 154 sonnets, and introduced around 2,000 new words and coined a few thousand more (although these last numbers are fiercely debated among critics) had walked, talked, lived, eaten, slept, and breathed? Apparently not. What was possibly a once in a lifetime opportunity for our class, was just another day to the citizens who made their living here. Seeing them pass by, unimpressed with their surroundings, as I gawked and took pictures of what seemed significant (everything, of course) I felt more like a tourist here than I had at any other time on this trip so far, since I was seemingly the only person interested in taking pictures of everything around me – which is what we as a class have discussed is a sign of typical tourist behavior. Of course, after returning our flats in London what I have come to realize is the fact that of course these citizens of Stratford-upon-Avon are unimpressed with their surroundings. They have long since gotten used and adjusted to the fact that they are surrounded by this history because they make their living off of it. Let’s face it, if Stratford were not the birthplace of William Shakespeare, it wouldn’t be on the map for tourists at all. So the citizens there understand and respect all of the history, but remain coolly unimpressed by all the gawking tourists when walking down the quaint cobblestone streets, and go about their business as usual. The business of selling Shakespeare gear to tourists like myself who eagerly snatch it up.
For me the two hour bus ride from London to the small and decidedly charming town of Stratford-upon-Avon was well worth the drive, not only to see the birthplace of Shakespeare, but also to see the wonderful and magical Royal Shakespeare Company production of Arabian Nights both adapted and directed by Dominic Cooke. For such a small town its impressively sized Courtyard Theatre housed a play that had more tricks up its sleeves than a magic show. From switching real bodies with plastic pieces and turning them back again to moving crystal balls and even a flying carpet or two, the staged magic held the audience in the palm of its hand. On the company’s website, director Dominic Cooke admits to hiring stage-illusionist Paul Kieve who is best known as the Physical Magic Consultant to the film “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.” Kieve’s magic element in the production certainly cast a spell on the audience, comprised of both young elementary school children, and older couples and groups. But the real magic here, as even the illusionist admits, is the element of storytelling. Sharazad, played by Ayesha Dharker, weaves a new tale each night to convince the king of the land to spare her life. Delighting not only the king but the audience as well, this enchanting production reminds us all of the power that storytelling holds, which is fitting in the birthplace of Shakespeare since he is considered to be one of the greatest storytellers of all time. As I watched the production unfold in front of me, I couldn’t help my mind turning to thoughts of our own production of Arabian Nights coming to the Gustavus Theatre this spring. The cast has already begun to memorize their lines, sketches for costumes have been drawn and presented, and as Henry stated during class, scenic design elements that were much like the ones we saw on the Royal Shakespeare company stage have previously been agreed upon. Though we are presenting a different version of the play, the same basic plotline is still there. The character that I will be portraying, Scheherazade – or in this show, Sharazad – was still telling King Shahryar stories in order to save her own life and those of the women still remaining in the kingdom. At first when I sat down to watch the show I was very skeptical. Looking at the program I thought to myself, well their show is clearly inferior to the one we are going to put on, they can’t even spell Scheherazade’s name right. It was difficult to watch as the play unfolded and I had to see another actor’s interpretation and vision of what I already considered to be my character, or even to watch King Shahryar and not think of Jordan Klitzke, or to watch Abu al-Hasan, the only story that was kept the same between the two scripts, and not think of Christian DeMarais. But somewhere between Ali Baba and his slave girl outwitting the forty thieves and the two older sisters who envied the younger who became Queen, my mindset had completely flipped. I recognized the strong presence of an actor who has a clear idea of her character and how to express that idea to the audience. Now I only wonder and worry how I’m going to make my version of Scheherazade as interesting and compelling as Ayesha made hers. But that, like Scheherazade’s final tale, is a story for another day…