So Shakespeare can be Entertaining..

Three years ago I had my first experience with a play being performed not only on an open air stage, but with audience interaction and full light. Of course the production in question is one I do not clearly remember, sometime during the show I passed out from being overheated, dehydrated, having low blood sugar and whatever else the medics said. The year after and the one after that however I am fully able to remember the productions: “Testaclese & ye Sack of Rome” and “Romeo & Juliet version 2.0” by the so-called ‘Fakespearian’ acting troupe Sound & Fury at the Texas Renaissance Festival. The acting was purposely bad and the jokes were downright bawdy, but it was fun and that is all that mattered.

On a Wednesday night in February I found myself smiling at remembrances of Sound & Fury as the American Shakespeare Company took stage. During the hours previous to the performance of “Hamlet” I had resigned myself to the fact that the play would leave me in a fit of boredom that would take several B movies to pull me out of. About fifteen minutes before the production was to begin I settled myself into a seat, tried to find a way to sit without my knees blocking my view of the stage, and began reading a book I had brought along. But no, the actors must have known that there were people in the audience who have never and will never be a fan of Shakespeare and love Renaissance festivals. From the moment two of the actors took stage to talk about the staging conditions and, of course, advertise memorabilia it was rather difficult for me to focus on my book. Alas, the adventures of Drizzt Do’ Urden and his friends would have to wait.

Finally, the play began. At first I felt a little let down by the performance of the man playing Hamlet. His first few lines were uttered in the same fashion as countless other actors have recited them. Luckily things picked up and the promise of a Renaissance faire feeling was fulfilled. The only way that the production could have been better was if it were performed in broad daylight on an open-air stage.

While I will never be a fan of William Shakespeare’s works, I do begrudgingly admit that the actors from the American Shakespeare Company made “Hamlet” and enjoyable spectacle. Many productions of this play I have seen and none compare to the quality of those actors from the Shakespearean acting troupe. Mystery Science Theater 3000 could not even make a German- TV production of “Hamlet” enjoyable.

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Made a B on this. Professor said that "where content is concerned it fizzles out." Any suggestions on how to improve the content?