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Everybody loves Shakespeare
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For most, donning a tie or suit coat and spending time and money
at a live play is akin to swimming in gasoline before lighting a
match. But The Idaho Shakespeare Festival, an annual event held off
Warm Springs Avenue, is currently putting forth its 27th season and
the event booklet boasts “50,000 patrons… each
season.”
So the question becomes, simply put, why? Why would thousands
spend an extravagant sum of money to attend a play that they could
purchase at Barnes and Noble for $12.95 and 37 cents in gas? Anyone
who has ever suffered through a live play in a sweaty high school
auditorium knows that an easy chair beats the pants off of the
hard-backed swing thrones provided there. So what is it that
delivers the taut bills of many a wallet into the coffers of the
Shakespearean institution?
Nearly every media encounter of the Idaho Shakespeare Festival
describes, or at least touches upon the setting. As well it should.
The Boise River seems to be a main attraction as it softly pulses
on the outskirts of the complex, which is not simply a theatre.
There is a café that serves appetizers, soups, salads,
entrees, dessert and drinks. Most of which is moderately priced,
and the frugal consumer can spend under $10 for a decent meal. The
premier beer is Table Rock Draft and costs only as much as it would
in any bar. The wine selection should obviously be passed over by
any cost-effective college student, but overall the cafe affords a
fine outdoor eating experience.
The outbuildings themselves are beautifully crafted of soft
sandstone or river-rock and the vegetation—lustful green,
blue, yellow, and even some red, all promoted by the
river—accents the structures wonderfully. Some may worry
insects could pose a problem, but in fact they do not. Bats dart
overhead feasting, performing their own hunting dance, above the
audience attempting, but ultimately failing, to steal the spotlight
from the thespians.
The stage props are changed between the ‘green show’
(an introductory performance) and the main attraction. They alter
slightly between acts, so the background is never dull. If the eye
wanders directly behind the complex a wonderful view of the
mountains are proffered. The lighting is superb and no matter where
one sits, the stadium seating assures that the stage is always in
view. Tables are also available, but for a price. Another option is
a grassy hill, but the performances are typically very long, so a
seat may be a better bet for someone with a bad back, ankles, or
knees.
The sound quality of the event is really not bad. Surely voice
projection is a practiced form of the thespian, but there were
moments when a rude patrons guffaw outweighed the play. Certain
steps have been taken to curb audible distractions, especially
high-pitched, teeth–grinding squeals of children. There are
family nights for those with children under six, but on every other
occasion they are not permitted. Now, if they could only discover a
way to silence the annoying adults…
The previously mentioned wonders of the complex only serve to
strengthen the performers, who are obviously professionals. Even
those who hate, or feel indifferent towards famous literary
playwrights such as Shakespeare or Oscar Wilde, must acknowledge
that each writer did something very right. But without an
incredibly picturesque imagination, ink-marred pages can only do so
much for a reader in search of entertainment. One can break down
the tragic character development of King Lear and his
daughters’ dissent, or ponder over the choices that Jack
Worthing makes regarding his friend Algernon Moncrieff in The
Importance of Being Earnest, but ask any one member of the audience
after a performance what their favorite part was, and it probably
will not be intellectual stimuli. Chances are, they will comment on
a certain actor or actresses role, how the woman who played Lady
Bracknell was so composed in posture that she intimidated even the
patrons. How the simple statement, “Good heavens,
Gwendolen,” was enough to send them home with a side-ache
from laughter. Without a performer’s voice or choreographed
food exchange, sword fight, or dance, the humor would be a bit less
engaging, not as thick.
Though the works in written form are definitely worth their
weight in gold and cannot be undermined, at least so far as what
they have represented in the critical literary world, live
performance takes different things into account. Months of
preparation are only a part of the process; over 100 different
types of specialists are summoned into the theatre for things such
as lighting, audio, costume design and production management, not
to mention volunteers who escort patrons to their seats (and act as
walking trash receptacles during intermission). Furthermore,
theatrical presentation is someone’s interpretation of a
familiar work, so each play will vary depending upon the director,
but each time a hardback copy of the play is opened, the same words
exist unchanging.
Or the theatre could simply be a great way to escape daily
toils. For the student, it could be a break from a cluttered
apartment, summer school and studies, or other typical forms of
entertainment that have become exhausted, such as Edwards. At least
the Idaho Shakespeare Festival has ample parking, and basic human
odor is not trapped indoors to manifest within your nostrils.
The Shakespearean event, though beautiful and well suited to its
purpose, does have its errs. The thespians make slight mistakes,
most are not distracting, and some even add to the flavor of the
experience. This of course is to be expected during any live
performance and the thespians typically roll with the impromptu
problems. This was only one of many more minor problems though.
Take 700 people, add alcohol that only seems to get cheaper with
each passing act, a five-minute intermission, and only four
bathrooms. The answer to our equation? An insurmountable line of
people all holding their crotches and nearing point break by the
second.
Furthermore, take a friend, as the audience is not terribly
warm, and do not show up at the event underdressed unless you do
not mind being openly glared at (the author would recommend
neckerchiefs and sweaters, pink or cream, to be tied about the
throat and tucked like a tie into the front of a suit-coat).
The Idaho Shakespeare Festival is currently putting on A
Midsummer Night’s Dream, The Comedy of Errors, Henry V, all
by William Shakespeare, as well as The Fantasticks by Tom Jones and
Oscar Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest. Ticket prices
and schedules can be viewed online at www.idahoshakespeare.org
Jason Bright