The Canterbury Tales at the Shakespeare Tavern was entertaining, but I got caught up in the length. After a while the show started to drag on. I felt that the beginning, in which everyone was singing on the bus, was indulgent and unnecessary, and the fact that the play did not end this way (with the bus) created confusion. Most of the pieces were enjoyable, but the best should have been chosen, cutting perhaps two out. I would suggest keeping the rooster, my favorite.
I was disappointed in the lighting as there were several instances in which the actors were in the dark next to their lights. I'm not sure if this was due to people missing their marks, but it happened so often that I am assuming that the lights needed to be adjusted.
The set and costume changes were well planned and creative, something I enjoy at The Tavern. The fact that the actors address the audience always makes for good fun. All in all, I felt like a good time was had by all (but please excuse me for spilling my water on the table!).
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
You're right; it was a little long and some of the choices were confusing. I think this was a problem of editing and cutting out the parts that didn't work, and maybe the director didn't think critically enough about how the audience would perceive the show. I think this is a common problem for anyone producing something for an audience, whether is a director making critical decisions about a play or our students writing a research paper. Too many people forget to consider their audience.
ReplyDelete