The Winter’s Tale begins with a song, with one character, Hermione, appearing in the centre of a canopied stage to sing, as others quickly burst out from behind foliage and join in. Produced by the Tadpole Repertory and Wide Isle Productions, this Tale engages in many experiments – an outdoor, mobile setting; live music; multiple languages – but perhaps the most radical is this flash mob inspired-opening. In this vein, the trajectory of the play and its setting develop in conflict: as the show begins, early in the evening, it is warm outside with a pink sun, but the moods of the characters rapidly thunder and darken. Then, for Act Three, as the audience shivers and the sky is black, we are treated to reunion and celebration.
Editor's Note.
'Tis in ourselves that we are thus or thus. Our bodies are our gardens, to the which our wills are gardeners. So that if we will plant nettles or sow lettuce, set hyssop and weed up thyme, supply it with one gender of herbs or distract it with many—either to have it sterile with idleness, or manured with industry—why, the power and corrigible authority of this lies in our wills. [WS, Othello, III.3]
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By Simran Bhalla, Issue 19, Will: A Desire and A Destination, March 2013
Also in this issue
Illusion: Seeing Beyond Seeing
Meaning: In Search of Significance.
Melody: A Different Tune
Rhythm: Ordering Time