Solanco High School's fall play puts a new twist on an award-winning production about two insignificant characters from a Shakespeare classic. Solanco's version of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead will be performed free for senior citizens Wednesday, November 20, at 4 p.m. as well as for general audiences Thursday through Friday (Nov. 21-23) nightly at 7:30. Director John Biles provided a plot synopsis: "This comedy focuses on Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, two minor characters from William Shakespeare's play Hamlet, who are childhood friends of Hamlet. The events of Hamlet act as the backdrop to the action on stage. Consequently, the play is structured as the inverse of Hamlet; the title characters are the leads – not supporting players – and Hamlet himself is but a minor role. The duo appears on stage here instead of off-stage, with the exception of a few short scenes in which the dramatic plays converge. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern spend the play attempting to not only figure out Hamlet’s motives, but their own purpose in life. The irony being that their purpose was already determined by William Shakespeare: to die."
Solanco is making one notable change to Tom Stoppard's 1968 Tony Award-winning play. "Normally, this work is set in the Elizabethan period, complete with Elizabethan-style costumes and music," Biles said. "Our production, however, is set in during the 1967’s Summer of Love, as I found the era fits the play’s thematic elements perfectly. We’ve incorporated elements of the Hippie movement and 1960s pop culture such as the music and fashion." Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead meets Biles' criteria for subjecting students to a variety of productions. "When I became the Solanco High School Fall Play Director a few years ago, I made it a mandate of our Drama Club program to expose our students and community to not only timeless classics and award-winning material, but also to include various major genres of drama," said Biles, who is also the co-advisor for the school's Drama Club. "Two years ago, the students explored timeless, Pulitzer Prize-winning Our Town, a traditional American drama. Last year, they transported you to the 1920s for the genre of farce in Moliere’s classic, The Imaginary Invalid. Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead by Tom Stoppard, which won the Tony Award for Best Play in 1968, continues this tradition with Theater of the Absurd. Coined by Martin Essin in his highly influential 1962 book The Theatre of the Absurd, Absurdist theater came to prominence in Post-World War II England. Essin writes in his book that audiences are challenged “to accept the human condition as it is, in all its mystery and absurdity, and to bear it with dignity, nobly, responsibly; precisely because there are no easy solutions to the mysteries of existence…” While this genre asks big questions on the meaning of life it is also very, very funny. "Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead explores this genre but through the lens of William Shakespeare’s classic and most famous play, Hamlet. The play follows Hamlet’s two college friends, the unforgettable forgettable characters, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. In Hamlet, the two friends are tasked by King Claudius (who murdered Hamlet’s father) to spy on Hamlet and ultimately take Hamlet to England to be executed. After setting sail to England, Hamlet turns the tables on the two spies, replacing Claudius execution order with one of his own, ordering the deaths of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern. The two spies die, off-stage. In Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead our two protagonists don’t understand why they out of all of people in the world have been asked to come before King Claudius. They barely remember their trip to the castle and have very vague memories of their own pasts. They spend the entire play trying to uncover their purpose not only in the events of Hamlet, but their own lives. They irony is that they don’t know that their deaths have already been written, which is textbook Theater of the Absurd." Maria Eden is playing the role of Rosencrantz. In order to prepare, Eden watched the movie which she said isn't as good as the book. "I also read as much as I could of Hamlet so I could see what was going on," she said. "Then I read the script and thought, 'Oh, I think I want to be Guildenstern'." Using some self-deprecating humor, Eden explained the role of Rosencrantz suited her better. "Rosencrantz seems more like me, more like my personality," she said. "Rosencrantz is a dumb idiot and I can have those moments. We call them 'Maria Moments'." Elliot Spangler is in the role of The Player, an all-knowing character initially hated by Rosencrantz and Guildenstern but who winds up becoming a guide and resource to them. Spangler auditioned for the role of Guildenstern but embraced landing The Player role. "I read a scene and I realized the directors know so much better than me," she said. "This part was meant for me." Emily Herr is playing Guildenstern. "Guildenstern is not a logical character," she said. "He has to have an explanation for everything. I love playing the role because ir provides so much insight on life." Jorge Burgos is Hamlet, a character far different in this play than in the eponymous work by Shakespeare. "The character is depressed in Hamlet," Burgos said. "I spice things up and get to be extremely out there and wild. What I love about acting is the chance to tell the backstory of a person and to challenge myself which makes me more versatile of an actor." The cast for Solanco High School's production of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead: Rosencrantz - Maria Eden, Guildenstern - Emily Herr, The Player - Elliot Spangler, Hamlet - Jorge Burgos, Ophelia - Hailey Lehman, Claudius - Josh Pope, Gertrude - Susanna Britton, Polonius - Tristan Rush, Horatio/Tragedian - Kelsey Klecko, Alfred - Josh Sharp, King's Attendant - Jimmy Beam, Queen's Attendant/Pirate - Anna Fite, Tragedian/Pirate/Ambassador - Morganne Crawford, Tragedian - Julia Gavin, Tragedian/Pirate/Fortinbras - Lilia McHugh, Tragedian/Pirate - Mallory Sturgill, Tragedian - Brayden Swope, Tragedian - Sarah Wert, Tragedian/Pirate - Gavin Winder, Tragedian/Pirate - Lauren Yoder. "I would be amiss if I didn’t mention the herculean efforts of this cast and crew in what is perhaps the most complex and difficult play to be produced on this stage, especially that of Maria Eden and Emily Herr, our Rosencrantz and Guildenstern," Biles said via email. "These two ladies never leave the stage during the play. The amount of lines they are required to master and memorize surpass all of the lines of the entire rest of the cast, not to mention the highly sophisticated and intricate nature of Tom Stoppard’s writing. To put it mildly, they are performing admirably in roles that many professional actors would be challenged to handle. What they and the entire cast for that matter have been able to accomplish over the course of our two months of rehearsals is a marvel and testament to the talent and commitment of our thespians in the Southern End." Comments are closed.
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