THE PROMPTER GETTYSBURG COLLEGE
VOLUME 10 OcrOBER 28, 29, 30 AND NOVEMBER 6, 1971 NUMBER 1
Then Westward Ho!
Olivia: There lies your way, due west. lover, albeit a Spaniard rather than an Italian. Olivia Viola: Then westward hoI is now the daughter of a governor rather than a count, but yet remains "the marble-breasted tyrant" Any explanation that attempts to base our interpre to Orsino. Toby Belch and his friend Andrew Ague tation of Twelfth Night on this pair of lines drawn cheek are now bereft of their knighthoods, though from Act III must be specious. Indeed, the relevance. the former continues in his happy alcoholic state of the lines was not discovered until we were well while the latter is sillier than ever. Malvolio has into rehearsal. The true reason we moved Shakes hardly changed at all, though he's now incarcerated peare's Illyria from his Elizabethan in a Western jail rather than a dark England to our Old West was be hole. Viola and Sebastian have now cause we thought it would be fun. been separated in a desert fight with We had become weary with pro savages (Indians?) rather than in a ductions of the Bard done in what shipwreck in a raging sea, thus caus Margaret Webster once referred to as ing some lines to be adjusted, but "the Early Bathrobe Period." Oh, the for all of that they are the same colors and fabrics had been so lovely, figures Shakespeare drew. Indeed, and the piping of the recorders so the same is true for all of the play's sweet, and the voices mellifluous characters-all, that is, save one. (perhaps because of the newly-ac Fabian, that tiresome old pedant quired British accents). We would sit who was wont to puff his way back and let it all wash over us. But through scenes wheezing apogems it just wasn't funny. And it should be and old saws has undergone a meta funny. Shakespeare's audiences must morphosis and has emerged as have laughed; why should our audi Madam Fabian, the voluptuous pro ences be denied that privilege? And prietress of Illyria's dancehall, a so we decided to shift the scene and combination Kitty of Gunsmoke and make some tidy alterations. Dolly Levi of Hello, Dolly. With We chose the Old West for our Madam Fabian comes the saloon, a Illyria because we felt it holds the radical change in the play. Or is it? same romantic, far away, long ago Shakespeare makes much of Toby's charm for us that the Dalmatian imbibing, as well as frequent men coast on the Adriatic may have held for Englishmen tion of the local tavern called The Elephant. Also, in 1601. (Incidentally, the real 17th Century Illyria to Elizabethans Twelfth Night was by custom a night was known for its rioting and its wild drunkenness. to carouse. Then, too, remember the original Illyria's Score one for our saloon scene!) Then, too, our coun reputation. Besides, what's a Western without a try's 'iVestern legend is so pronounced that we scarce saloon? ly concern ourselves with reality, and in Twelfth And what's a saloon without a gunfight? The Night that is probably just as well. (For example, combatants (Le., the original combatants) are that can anyone explain how Viola, in a strange town, unlikely pair Viola and Andrew. That's Shakespeare's finds, and subsequently wears a suit of clothes which doing. We've added a few cowboys who, in the finest is the exact duplicate of that worn by her brother Western tradition, join vigorously in the ensuing Sebastian when they finally meet-three months fray. And the dancing girls would have won appro later?) But for all of this the Old West is part of our bation from the Globe's groundlings as well as its culture, and when Shakespeare's figures people it they gentlemen. As to the weapons, Toby does admonish become recognizable to us. Viola to meddle or "foreswear to wear iron about In addition to the locale, actually what have we you." Could he have meant "shooting irons"? changed? Some scenes, some lines (gaspl) and some As for the actual changes in the text, they are characters. The characters first. Feste is no longer several and varied, though probably far fewer than a misshapen dwarf dressed in cap and bells. He's one would imagine by listening to the dialogue. The now a cowpoke, a loner who knows everybody's busi archaic "thou" has generally been replaced by the ness, who enjoins his friends to enjoy themselves, more common "you." The shift from sea to desert in who deBates pomposity with wit. He plays the guitar the near calamitous parting of Viola and Sebastian and sings; the instrument is ours, the songs are has warranted a shift in terms. The meaning of some Shakespeare's. He's still called "fool," but that's an words have changed over the centuries, and we have American custom, too. Orsino remains the sighing (Continued on Back Page) THE OWL AND NIGHTINGALE PLAYERS
Present
OCTOBER 28, 29, 30, DIRECTED BY EMILE O. SCHMIDT NOVEMBER 6, 1971
Cast ORSINO - -.:. BRAD DICKLER FESTE .. .. . ROBERT LOHRMANN VALENTINE _...... ______NAJA ZAZOUR VIOLA ._... ._...... _._. .. _. ._.__ ...... _ BARBARA EVANS COWBOY .__._.. ._. .. . ._. .. .______MICHAEL CHRISTENSEN TOBY BELCH ...... _. ... MARK OLDENBURG ANDREW AGUECHEEK ...... _. .__ ROBERT WQLFROM OLIVIA ...... BARBARA SMALL
MALVOLIO ------.------..------..------:~5lt~HER COOKE ANTONIO . ~~.::::---'".-~------?2~~~~-~JAMES STARNER SEBASTIAN ...... ~~ ,~Y FILIACI
MADAM FABIAN ---.------.-.------.. --·------!j)}.jr~- -V\JAN LOUDEN ~:~:;=~:=:::=:::~:~:::::::=~~~=:~:~==::::~==~==~==5~- =: ~:: BARTENDER .. ; )___.. ._. . .._. ..__.__.. . .___ RICHARD LEARY
- fJ \\t 1jP) t:.../ ROBERT BAKER t I Y ""'-J DONALD BOlIN
SCENE: Illyria, a town in the Old West 1if TIME: The 1860's
The play is divided into three acts: there will be two intermissions. PRODUCTION STAFF
Stage Managers Gretchen Ci-anz Choreography Yolanda Berg Sara Sue Shields Makeup Steve Hebden Settings Nancy Knisely Gretchen Crantz Lighting Designer Brian Schimpf House Manager Mamie Jones Lighting Director Mark Dalton Stage Carpenter Douglas Gordon Proiection Dean Grandin Properties Marjorie Gottschalk Aided by __ Donald Bohn, Phil Hopkins, Dellawanna Merkel, Costumes Kristin Schricker Dave Schiller, Joe Biernat, Richard Wentworth, Fred Cohen, Beverly Blood, Robin Ross, Dana Publicity ~______Barbara Poole Grimble, Richard Schindler
Music by Tim Barndt of Pendulum
OWL AND NIGHTINGALE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE: Sara Sue Shields (President), Barbara Evans, Nancy Knisely, Brian Schimpf, Robert Wolfrom
WHO'S WHO IN THE CAST
VIOLA FESTE Barbara Evans began her campus career with a walk-on Robert Lohrmann first saw the lights of stage in the one in Fashion, after which she performed in the Strindberg act play Mask of Angels. A stint as Adam, half of the pair one-act Motherlove. The January '70 Repertory Theatre of silk-suited athletes in The DeVils, followed as did his per followed next and with it a number of roles, climaxing with formance of the mustachioed, pop-eyed Sergeant in G. B. that of Marigold Sobbing, the bride who descended from Shaw's The Devil's Disciple. Momentarily changing pace, he the sky in Times Square. Mter that followed performances, joined the chorus of How to Succeed . .. , only to return as both on and backstage, in such diverse offerings as Once the pinch-faced and wily Mr. Mulleady of The Hostage. Upon A Mattress, The Devil's Disciple, The Bald Soprano, and How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying. Last spring she shepherded the actors as Stage Manager for The Hostage. TOBY BELCH Mark Oldenburg began his first year (which was last MALVOLIO year) in a series of Studio scenes. His first principal role was that of Frump in How to Succeed. ... He rounded Christopher Cooke's first season included such a diverse out the year with two other musicals, The Lady or the trio of roles as the police captain, Tiger Brown, in The Tiger, in which he was a singing Narrator, and Passionella, Threepenny Opera, one of the clown-singers in Marat/Sade which he stage managed. and the sentimental Gaev in The Cherry Orchard. The next fall brought him back to our stage as that true blue figure of nineteenth century America, Adam Trueman in Fashion. January 1970 found him in Theatre Rep in assorted guises: ANDREW AGUECHEEK a soldier in Viet Rock, the Middle-sized Man in Out at Sea and Stephen Beams in Times Square; and May saw him as Robert Wolfrom made his debut as the forthright Col. the Sewerman in The Devils. Mter a half-year hiatus in Aus Howard in Fashion, and followed that with the befuddled tria he returned to campus to create the role of Will in The Prisykin in the Laboratory production of The Bedbug. Rockpickers. His most recent appearance was as Monsewer Theatre Rep brought a variety of roles, and that first year in The Hostage. concluded as Mannoury, the other half of that athletic duo in The Devils. Year Two brought him stage center as Rev. Anderson in The Devil's Disciple. Mter that came a pair of OLIVIA one-act plays, Ferryboat by Leonard Melfi and The Diners by E. O. Schmidt, and, to climax the year, the title role of Barbara Small confined herself to backstage activities dur Leslie, the young British soldier of The Hostage. ing her first three semesters with 0 & N, with the exception of playing a Nun in Marat/Sade. January Rep saw her in a variety of roles, including Bobo Society in Times Square. That spring she appeared in the principal role of Phillipe in The Devils, and the following fall she stage managed The MADAM FABIAN Devil's Disciple and directed The Deluge. Her most recent Jan Louden's first steps onto our stage were as that grand set of roles include the snail-eating Southern belle in The society matron Mrs. Tiffany in Fashion. Roles in Motherlove Diners and the soul-saving Miss Gilchrist in The Hostage. and January Rep followed, as did a series of backstage Miss Small is director of the local chapter of Alpha Psi chores~ Last season she performed in The Devil's Disciple Omega, dramatic honorary. and created the role of the dynamic Old Lady in The Diners. SEBASTIAN STAGE MANAGERS Larry Filiaci first served as a leading figure in the chorus Gretchen Cranz has performed a delightful variety of roles of Once Upon A Mattress; the next year he stepped into during her 0 & N career: they range from her initial Molly, the leading role of Finch, the young man who does indeed "one of the girls" in The Threepenny Opera, to the crotchety succeed in How to Succeed. That in tum was fOllOW~bY Mrs. Dudgeon in last season's The Devil's Disciple, to the another musical, the one-act Passionella. sedate Nun in Marat/Sade and the wild one in The Devils. However, her acting highlight was certainly her performance ANTONIO . as the near-sighted Prudence in Fashion. Other capacities have included those of Stage Manager (three times) and James Stamer has, with the excepti Costumier (twice) as well as Props and House Management. acters and a "dance-on" in The er Sara Sue Shields has also divided her time onstage and himself to backstage activi ies. ghth _v.A.-l1~ backstage. Audiences will recall her performances of Anya indeed associated with I ht' in The Cherry Orchard, the Southern Laura Jean Lincoln in other instances he serve a Times Square, Essie, the waif in The DevU's Disciple, and Orchard) and Costum a e Devil's Disciple). Teresa, the girl who loves the soldier in The Hostage. Sue Marti e li (Mar ) w s one of the secretarial delights Having stage managed The Devils, she has directed a pair in How to S a a performed the title role in Passion- of scenes and served as Assistant Director for last season's ella. Michael . ensen (First Cowboy) has been busy How to Succeed. A cluster of other activities complete a backstage, es cially at the lighting board. Brad Dickler most active theatre tenure which climaxes now with her (Orsino), N zour (Valentine) and Keith Hardy (Priest) busiest role of all-(\n:f the Presidency of Owl and are all fres en and herewith make their Gettysburg debut. N~tin~ •• }l (j~~F c!}Vote \ '0 Jr' In the hope ~f introducing Adams County high school students to Shakespeare, the Owl and Nightingale Players will offer a series of matinee performances of Twelfth Night. The schedule follows: Nov. 2 (Tues.) Biglerville High School Nov. 3 (Wed. ) _~------~------______Gettysburg High School Nov. 4 (Thurs.) ~ Littlestown High School
Coming •.. on November 20, 21, 22, and December 1, 2, 3 EIGHT NEW ONE-ACT PLAYS DIRECfED BY STUDENTS IN THEATRE ARTS 310 (DIRECTING) to include ADAPTATION NEXT (by Elaine May) (by Terrence McNally) A BAD PLAY FOR AN OLD LADY (by Elizabeth Johnson) THE NEW RASPUTIN HOME FREE MUZEEKA (by Robert Hogan) (by Lanford Wilson) (by John Guare) TREVOR BRINGING IT ALL BACK HOME (by John Bowen) (by Terrence McNally) .
(Continued from Front Page) changed the words accordingly. (For example, in playwright, who put pen to paper with his audience. their first meeting, Olivia asks Viola if she is a in mind. He tells us this in the very last lines when comedian: now she asks if she's an actor.) The alter- he says: ation in order of scenes has caused the elimination of some repetitive speeches. And other speeches But that's all one, our play is done, have been dropped simply because their sense is And we'll strive to please you every day. obtuse to a modem audience. But the greatest part of the dialogue is still pure Shakespeare, and how We think "Wild Bill" would like what we have done delicious it is. with his play. After all, he did sub-title it What This, then, is our' version of Twelfth Night by You Will. William Shakespeare, a man who was a practising EMILE O. SCHMIDT