Twelfth Night Performance Review Essay

Baz Lurhmann’s creation of the film Romeo and Juliet has shown that today’s audience can still understand and appreciate William Shakespeare. Typically, when a modern audience think of Shakespeare, they immediately think it will be boring, yet Lurhmann successfully rejuvenates Romeo and Juliet. In his film production he uses a number of different cinematic techniques, costumes and a formidably enjoyable soundtrack; yet changes not one word from Shakespeare’s original play, thus making it appeal to a modern audience.

The New World Encyclopedia includes a lengthy and extensive section on Romeo & Juliet with a copious amount of information or aspects pertaining to the play. In one part, it examines the film adaptations of Romeo & Juliet and discusses the thought process when trying to adapt Shakespeare’s works cinematically. The end of the fourth act being a major focus. This material will help further my understanding and argument of the sacrifices that need to be made to have Shakespearean plays effective on the big screen; especially for modern audiences.

Trevor Nunn’s (1996) adaptation of Twelfth Night illustrates the complexity of Feste’s character and how important he is to the overall play. Ben Kingsley, the actor, presents Feste as sympathetic and gentle choric figure. It is Feste who allows the audience to see the films respect for the original play, and the existing issues within it. This includes the defencelessness of women, and the attractive, but dangerous, qualities of altering one’s true sexual identity. Interestingly, unlike the original script, Nunn opens his first scene with Feste observing Viola struggle to shore after the shipwreck she has experienced. In this context, Kingsley’s Feste is revealed for the first time. He is shown as a mysterious and isolated individual, who

     Many of Shakespeare's works have been transposed from stage to screen, none so more than Hamlet. Two of the most unique film appropriations of the play are to be found in Rodney Bennett's 1980 film and Kenneth Branagh's 1996 blockbuster. The two films share many parallels between them in both interpretation and method, however they also have marked differences in their respective approaches to the text.

Our drama assessment was to watch the play “Woman in Black” at the Fortune Theatre in London. The original 1950’s play starred Orlando Wells and Michael Mears as the two main and only characters and directed by Robin Hereford.

In conclusion of the disagreement of the statement "Shakespeare's plays should not be updated for modern audiences. The authenticity and originality of the stores should be preserved exactly as the author intended- no dramatic license should be taken." Kenneth's film could be understood and related and provided a sufficient amount of entertainment to enjoy for audiences of the modern era. The original should be changed as things do change over time and would adapt to the present time period. The authenticity and originality may not have been preserved however worth the cost for this morale and the bigger picture of the main idea of what Shakespeare is trying to

Kenneth Branagh successfully adapts Shakespeare’s Hamlet into a modern film. His version of the tragedy allows enthusiasts to experience Shakespeare as a movie. Branagh’s use of an unabridged script and flashback scenes provide the complete story of Hamlet. The variety of camera shots highlight Hamlet’s intense dialogue and soliloquies. Patrick Doyle’s original score emphasizes action, suspense, and drama. Therefore, through his screenplay, cinematography, and score, Branagh caters to Shakespeare enthusiasts interested in seeing Hamlet on the big screen.

The facial expressions, music, lighting, staging, acting, pacing, costumes, setting, line omissions, line additions and more all contribute to a

All in all, Shakespeare’s difficult-to-understand English is better understood through the performances of the characters in the film adaptation of Twelfth Night.

   Shakespeare enjoyed writing passionate plays about young lovers, but, after a while, the formula became exhausted and the Bard was forced to dig deeper, creatively speaking. Twelfth Night is an example of a Shakespearean love tale with a slight twist to keep things interesting. This play was the “Tootsie” of its time. Twelfth Night takes the audience on a gender-bending journey, while maintaining all the elements of true love throughout. At one point, Olivia wears a disguise in order to take on the traditionally male role of wooing her romantic interest, Cesario, who is also disguised. Although Olivia flirts with Cesario and tells him that his “scorn” only reveals his hidden love, she is

Modernized versions of classic performances often run into the issue of being simply too long for a modern audience to sit through, with the dangers of audiences simply being too bored in an age where the average movie is about 110 minutes. By making decisions that appeal to the visual side of Hamlet as opposed to altering the auditory work in any way Kenneth Branagh succeeds in maintaining both artistic authenticity and audience in a way that has not been replicated in modern times. Hamlet, released in 1996 starring and directed by Kenneth Branagh follows William Shakespeare's tragedy precisely and successfully overcomes the risks by make the film more digestible for a modern audience are with its imagery, themes, and line delivery, this success is showcased at it’s most masterful upon looking at the soliloquies that Hamlet delivers with his act 4 scene 4 soliloquy being the pinnacle of mixing the source material and modern appeal.

At the beginning of the play he thought he had lost his sister, but by

“In roughly built playhouses and cobblestone inn yards, an extraordinary development took place in England in the 1500s.” (Yancey, 8). At that time, an opportunity combined to produce literature achievement never before witnessed in the history of drama and theater. The renaissance, helped spark this movement by inspiring scientific and artistic creativity throughout the land. Models began writing dramas that portrayed life in both realistic and imaginative ways. This created work later captured the attention of the world that changed the English drama. The many aspects of Elizabethan theater helped to shape the acting and theater world forever.

Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night is a play with themes that parallel the folly of the festival it is named after. The main storyline of the plot plays on this a lot by mixing up the stereotypes around gender that were very present at the time. However, a sub-plot involving secondary characters defines this theme even more. It takes the idea even further by relating servants’ attempts to blur the lines between social classes. Twelfth Night’s Maria and Malvolio both have great aspirations to rise above their social class. However, Maria succeeds where Malvolio fails because of her capability to make use of the satiric ambiance of her mistress’s household to achieve her goals.

In the Cornell Schwartz Center for Performing Arts production of Hamlet Wakes Up Late, Director Rebekah Maggor made various innovations in the stage design, music, costume, and the actors’ lines and motions to make the play more effective and more understandable to a Cornell audience.