Live in Action

All my life, I always looked at reading as a connection between us and others in a different time and place, and Shakespeare is no different. Through all books, we learn about other times and cultures, while also discovering universal human truths that are seen in the text. In all of Shakespeare's works, especially the ones we read, we got a good look at old England, while also finding out a lot about human nature, whether it be love, revenge, or death. However, to find most of this one has to look hard because it is hard to find it in text. Most of human communication is done through body language, therefore a lack of makes seeing what the author wants to get across very hard, particularly in Shakespeare's works where the work was designed to be performed not read. That's why the performances we saw grabbed my attention so much.

As I read Shakespeare in the past, the plots of each play was good, but I never experienced the sight of a Shakespeare play live. That all changed this year, seeing the plays we read acted out the plays both in and out of school. Every time we did so, I always thought, "Shakespeare was meant to be performed for an audience", as drilled into us by Mr. Kiczek. When we did a couple scenes in class, I began to see that even just a little emotion began to change the meaning of a scene, with some thanks to Mr. Mileo. I had somewhat low expectations going into the Pearl Theater showing of A Midsummer Night's Dream being that some of the performances I had seen at the College of Staten Island where underwhelming. I was blown back by the performance, as it surpassed all my expectations. Seeing the play live, not only did I have a great time, but I understand the play better, including the human emotions that both the characters and the audience felt. Finally, when I performed myself, I really saw how big of difference acting the play out makes. Both during my soliloquy and in the graveyard, I was really able to get into what I was saying, and it almost felt natural, as if I was having original thoughts and feelings, rather than acting out other characters. That was truly when I felt the power and emotion of Shakespeare's works the most.