Day 55 - "His Shakespeare, Your Shakespeare, Everyman's Shakespeare"

Nothing could have prepared me for the incredible amount of joy I would experience when I went to watch "Much Ado About Nothing" in The Globe.

I KNEW THOSE YEARS OF READING SHAKESPEARE PLAYS WOULD PAY OFF.

Can you remember how many plays by William Shakespeare you had to read in school? Have you seen any of them performed in an actual production on stage?

I have the privilege of saying yes to both. But now I have to add the fact that I've seen TWO Shakespeare plays performed in Shakespeare's hometown and the original site of the Globe Theatre.

Can you think of how many times you've had to learn about the spotty life of Shakespeare in order to delve into the plays and sonnets he worked on?

Can you think of how those plays were performed in the olden days?

Can you imagine THIS:

THE STAGE

THE DEEP THRUST DESIGN

WE STRAIGHT UP DID GROUNDLINGS-STYLE VIEWING

This is big. Like, REALLY BIG. I'm talking years of learning that Shakespeare took the English language and turned it on its head and became a legend because he was writing the modern English that brought us here to the Globe.

Now, we all have our say on Shakespeare, as a mystery, as a literary figure, as a historical figure, and everything in between. Heck, some may even say they don't like his work at all. But I forgot all of it when I saw "Much Ado About Nothing".

This touring group was phenomenal! This production will probably be among the best memory of theatre experiences I've had yet. I'll never forget it.