Top: In the opening scene, hunky male lead Orlando (played by Sebastian Muller) and his brother Oliver (played by Adam Muller, also brothers in real life) fight over family issues as the shocked children of the Arden Forest look on. Bottom: Beautiful Rosalind (played by Shannon Norris) reveals her femininity and affection for the smitten Orlando after pretending to be a man and counseling him in the ways to properly woo a lady.
Mischief in the Forest:
Mountain Shakespeare Festival Performances Saturday and Sunday At Lampkin Park in Pine Mountain
By Holly Van Houton
Of all Shakespeare’s plays, As You Like It is ideally suited to our Mountain Communities surrounded by the Los Padres National Forest.
In the Mountain Shakespeare Festival’s upcoming production, the Duchess finds "tongues in trees, books in the running brooks/ Sermons in stones and good in every thing."
We who live here are likely to agree with the characters in the play who prefer natural beauty and the freedoms they find in the Forest of Arden.
We can share the sentiments of the characters who highlight distinctions between city (or courtly) living and life in the country. Surely, many of us wish to preserve these mountain surroundings over the fast-paced and crowded city.
But Shakespeare—being Shakespeare—shows us that nature and the Forest of Arden in As You Like It are not completely pure and court life is not entirely evil. He adds complications in the form of characters, like Jaques, who points out how easily the golden world of the forest can become as corrupt, heartless and ruthless as city life.
Nothing is simple in Shakespeare. That’s why—400 years later—we still love him. His plays provoke thought while giving us dozens of hearty belly laughs. Shakespeare is popular today among people of all walks of life because he asks us to consider issues still very relevant to our lives.
As You Like It will leave you pondering issues of family loyalty, greed, gender, love at first sight, philosophy, courage and bravery in the face of betrayal, as well as questions about the environment.
Come early and bring the kids to enjoy the Bard’s Faire: Fancies, Toyes, and Dreams.
The Faire will begin in Lampkin Park on July 14 and 15, starting at 4:00 p.m., leading into the play’s performance, which begins at 5:00 p.m.
If there’s one thing every parent wants their children to learn, it is to regard thinking as fun, and there’s nobody better to teach that lesson than Shakespeare. A story time will explain the play for the kids (and any adults who care to listen in for a little extra help…).
There will be booths with fun crafts and wandering musicians. We hope to see everybody for lots of Elizabethan-era games and fun!
If you’d like to see the Bard performed in a dinner theater environment, there will be three additional performances at the Dream Castle Café and Bakery in Frazier Park on July 19, 20 and 21.
The Thursday, July 19 performance will offer dessert before the show. Tickets are $10 and dessert will be served at 7:00 p.m. for the 8:00 p.m. show.
The Friday and Saturday (July 20, 21) performances include a delicious full dinner of salad, English pot roast, garlic mashed potatoes, gravy, veggies and bread. A vegan stew, couscous and steamed vegetables will also be offered. For dessert, apple pie and ice cream will be served.
Tickets are $30 for the Friday and Saturday Dream Castle performances and dinner.
Seating for the dinners will begin at 6:00 p.m. Advance ticket purchases are recommended as seating is limited.
Tickets will be sold online at www. mountainshakes.org, or at Ace Hardware, Coffee Cantina or the Dream Castle.
This is part of the July 13, 2007 online edition of The Mountain Enterprise.
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