Month: April 2018

By Grace Schmitz, Costume Design Coordinator/Senior Costume Technician

 

 

 

Serious planning for Shakespeare in Love began in the Costume Department at Charleston Stage as far back as October of this past year. We started by analyzing the script in depth and identifying each character that needed to be represented, that character’s historical background, and their status at the time of the play in Elizabethan England. I even initially created a flow chart of characters to help me visually map how each fit into this world and to mentally familiarize myself with them all. Once we were able to identify groups the color palettes began to come together, the upper class in their metallic gold and silvers and the lower class in their earthy rustic tones. We identified key scenes where we wanted certain characters to pop forward in the audience’s eyes, and where an actor was perhaps playing their third character and we needed them to blend more to support the scene. It was very important that Viola stand out above all as she is really the only character who is stepping out of the expected behavior in her environment. She is brighter than an other lady in the show which supports the scenes where several of the male characters are drawn to pick her out of the crowd.

 

 

With these story focused designs in hand we then moved to how to make it happen. The shop manager Gillian and I actually created 3 different budgets for the show utilizing 3 different plans of action from renting it all to making every single piece. The existing Charleston stage stock unfortunately didn’t have what was needed to produce Elizabethan characters, and there was a large need for new pieces. The best plan of action revealed itself to be a combination of sources which included help from The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, The College of Charleston, independent period costume makers from Etsy, and several costumes we would create from scratch in the costume shop. Overall there are over 200 costume pieces in Shakespeare in Love.

 

 

Many pieces from across the country arrived in Charleston throughout the spring and went through alterations and re-workings in order to create a cohesive world on stage. We also had the challenge of many of the historically accurate costumes needing to be reconstructed as functioning theatrical garments. These alterations included cutting additional openings, joining pieces that were once separate so they could all go on at once, and in many cases the addition of quick closures such as snaps and hidden zippers. We are so grateful for our volunteers Eileen McIntosh, Joanne Marcell, Fran Williams, and Kathy Honan for helping with all parts of these projects, as well as our TheatreWings students who made many of the hats. We could not have done it without you!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Alison Frimmel, Properties Master Tech Intern

 

As Charleston Stage’s Properties Master Tech Intern, I’ve been responsible for props used onstage all season.  “Shakespeare in Love” has been one of my most complicated shows. We have a number of special items from realistic swords to period lanterns—even these beautiful candelabras (featured in the photo below).

 

 

One of the fun elements I got to make was a period jester’s head that Shakespeare mistakenly grabs in the midst of a sword fight thinking he is grabbing a dagger. Both Shakespeare and his opponent are in for quite a surprise. In that same sword fight they also have a trick dagger where the blade disappears into the hilt!

 

 

While this show was very complicated, in the end, it has been amazing to hear how much the audiences have been enjoying themselves. I hope that this show inspires a love for theatre, not just for the cast members onstage but for the backstage crew as well.

 

Thank you all for your support of this show and I hope you join me in saying to the cast and crew of this show “Break a Leg!” in your final weekend of performances.

 

 

 

 

 

One of the best parts of the “Shakespeare in Love” movie is its sweeping romantic score—a score not available for the stage production. Theatres around the country have created their own scores for their productions and we listened to a number of these. But in the end, our Sound Designer, Luke Walchuk, decided to write an all original score for our production.

 

Here are some notes from Luke Walchuk about the process:

 

This project was a daunting but rewarding challenge. Though I have written incidental music (a term for any music written for a play that isn’t specifically a “musical”) for nearly every non-musical since I joined Charleston Stage in Season 39, Shakespeare in Love represents a step above. Normally, the music I write for a play is primarily transition music between scenes and occasional underscoring; it is intended to move the story along and enhance the emotions of a scene but does not usually require close interaction with the cast.

 

For this production, we had those things plus dances, sword fights, and a chorale sung by the whole cast. This meant that I had to be involved earlier in the process than usual. I attended rehearsals and worked closely with Directors Julian Wiles and Marybeth Clark, as well as Choreographer Cara Dolan and Fight Choreographer Evan Parry, to create music that complemented the action. Whether I was illustrating William Shakespeare’s writer’s block at the beginning of the show, adding intensity (and comedy) to an exciting sword fight, or supporting an emotional love scene, every piece was tailored specifically for this production of this play. I also created recurring themes for some of the major characters (you can check them out below). These themes help to subtly give focus to specific characters or aspects of the story. In the case of the Queen, perhaps not so subtly.

 

Creating a score for a play is not like creating a score for a film; I did not have each scene on a screen in front of me as I wrote, with perfectly concrete, consistent timing. Live theater is more unpredictable than that. This required the music itself to be written differently than a film score. If you listen closely during scene transitions or long pieces like the sword fights, you may hear sections that repeat on a short loop. This allows the action to catch up to the music. At a certain cue in the action, the loop will end and the music will continue. The challenge is to make the loop sound like a natural part of the piece. I used this strategy for moments that didn’t lend themselves to strict choreography. For other moments, such as the DeLesseps’ ball, I worked with Cara Dolan to map out the sections of a piece in exact musical terms of bars and beats. I then wrote the music and she choreographed to it, with both of us making adjustments over the course of a few weeks of rehearsal. Music Director Sam Henderson taught the “O Mistress Mine” chorale to the cast and checked in periodically to ensure that the piece was in good shape.

 

The result of all of this extra planning, rehearsing, and choreography is a living, breathing score that is an integral part of the production in a way that pre-made music could never be. Thanks to the close collaboration of every person involved in Shakespeare in Love. I am proud to say that we have created a fine and fitting tribute to Theatre itself. I hope our audiences feel the same way!

 

Audio Examples

Will Shakespeare’s Theme (Writer’s Block)

Viola’s Theme (O Mistress Mine)

Will and Viola’s Love Theme

Wessex’s Theme (I Need a Dowry)

Burbage’s Theme (Peddlers of Bombast)

The Queen’s Fanfare

 

 

 

 

 

by Julian Wiles, Set Designer for Shakespeare in Love

 

The sets for Shakespeare in Love presented quite a challenge. The show has 28 scenes. Since the show started as a movie, it flows very much like a film, one scene moving into the next. That’s easier said than done when the scenery for Shakespeare in Love includes two theatres, a tavern, inside the Queen’s palace, a boat on the Thames, and Viola’s bedroom! Cody Rutledge and I actually went through three separate complete designs before we decided on the one you will see onstage.

 

Since the show is about one of the most famous writers in history, we wanted to literally put his writing front and center. This led us to making the basic set look like giant pieces of parchment paper with Shakespeare’s writing on it. For the writing, we used actual copies of lines from Shakespeare’s first folio.

 

The play opens with Shakespeare sitting at a simple desk struggling with writers block. Cody and I began to brainstorm on what Shakespeare might be doing at his desk as he struggled to write, and we decided he might be doodling and just scribbling ideas for plays. So when the audience arrives at the theatre, they will indeed see Shakespeare’s desk at center stage but floating magically behind his desk are fragments from his prolific pen in which he is trying out new phrases, plots, as well as, fun elements like his shopping list.  This whimsical look at Shakespeare’s wondrous imagination also says to the audience, this isn’t the stuffy Shakespeare you expect, this is going to be great fun.

 

And indeed it is. For in addition to the writing, there are sword fights, a grand ball, and of course at center, a wonderful romance. This is a romance that would inspire Shakespeare to create one of the greatest love stories of all time—Romeo and Juliet.

 

So how does a set design begin? In the case of Shakespeare in Love, it included a series of quick thumbnail sketches.

 

 

From these the ideas became more concrete, and designs began to be drafted. From these draftings, Cody built a half inch model. This model shows all the scenes and is painted just as the full set will be painted. The model also allows the directors and the actors to know what the set is going to look like and what elements they have to work with. As you will see in the model photo, you can’t do Romeo and Juliet without a balcony, so that was added as well.

 

 

From the model and the drafting (just like those an architect does) our scene shop went to work (starting back in January) to begin constructing the 28 scenes the show requires. Nicole Bianco, Chris Konstantinidis, Cody Rutledge, Dylan Rutemiller, Alison Frimmel, Allison Grady, our TheatreWings High School Apprentices and others have been hard at work constructing these elaborate sets—for everything you will see onstage was built in our scene shops in West Ashley. We’re hopeful all this hard work will give our audiences a show that is worthy of being the grand finale of our 40^th Anniversary Season.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By Evan Parry, Fight Choreographer, Associate Professor of Theatre at the College of Charleston

 

 

When Julian Wiles asked me to choreograph the sword fights for Shakespeare in Love, I jumped at the chance. Having acted, directed, or choreographed numerous productions of about half of Shakespeare’s plays, I relished the opportunity to stage fights which included among the combatants the great author himself, as well as some of the famous actors and writers of his time: Marlowe, Burbage, Alleyn, among others. The film Shakespeare in Love had affected me powerfully on its release, and still does when I watch it today. Being involved with this production, and with Charleston Stage, was an easy choice to make.

 

The issues with staging these sword fights are many. Of particular importance is the issue of safety. While swashbuckling sword fights often look like great fun (and they are) it is critical that they are staged safely. We began with daylong workshops in January and have been working on the swordplay in Shakespeare in Love for the last 3 months.

 

First off we wanted the fights to seem authentic and that meant having the right weaponry. The late sixteenth century was a period when people of some means wore the rapier for daily use. The rapier is a light, double-edged, pointed weapon, noted for its quickness and versatility. It is a weapon which could effectively both cut and thrust, which you will see in our fights. I had some rapiers available, but Mr. Wiles was interested in beginning to purchase swords (and two daggers) to form an armory of stage weapons. Also, what is called the “Big Fight” in Act 2 required a lot of people fighting, which meant many weapons.

 

While we knew we wanted some flashy swordplay, we also wanted to use the fights to help tell the story. Each of the three fights has a different story to tell. Shakespeare and Marlowe are chased by guards from Viola’s balcony in a comic encounter. Another fight combines a kind of keepaway chase for the manuscript of Romeo and Juliet, as well as a free-for-all between two acting troupes, using some slapstick as well as serious sword techniques. The last fight, between Shakespeare and his rival in love, Lord Wessex, however, is deadly serious… most of the time. Each of these fights tells a different story about different (and dynamic) characters.

 

Don’t miss your chance at seeing these sword fights on stage at the Historic Dock Street Theatre. Shakespeare in Love performances run April 6^th – April 29^th and ticket sales are available online by clicking here.