Twelfth Night
by
William Shakespeare
Theatre Pro Rata
June 2014
Twelfth Night, Or What You Will
“Shakespeare as a writer is the embodiment of human freedom. He seems to have
been able to fashion language to say anything he imagined, to conjure up any
character, to express any emotion, to explore any idea.”
Stephen Greenblatt, Shakespeare’s Freedom
The story
Identical twins Viola and Sebastian are shipwrecked on the coast of Illyria: Viola is
saved by the captain of the ship, Sebastian is rescued by another sea captain,
Antonio. Neither knows that the other has survived. Viola disguises herself as a young
man and serves in the household of Duke Orsino. Orsino is pining for the lovely
Countess Olivia, who has vowed to mourn the death of her brother for seven years.
When Orsino sends Viola (in her guise as young Cesario) to woo on his behalf, Olivia
find herself attracted to this charming young man. Viola, however, is more interested
in Orsino. Much merriment ensues, including the internal chaos in Olivia’s household
where her Uncle Toby, his friend Andrew, and her gentlewoman Maria decide to pop
the pompous attitude of Olivia’s steward, Malvolio.
Our production
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Set in a fanciful version of the 1950s: think Roman Holiday (above)
The big war is over, things are looking up, everyone wants to have some fun
And the music is wild! http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1950s_in_music
The play
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Probably written in 1600-1601, his final “festive comedy” (Hamlet was
probably written about the same time)
First recorded performance: February 2, 1602, in the Middle Temple, one of
the Inns of Court. Lawyer John Manningham, who attended, recorded the event
in his diary: “At our feast we had a play called "Twelve Night, or What You
Will", much like The Comedy of Errors or Menaechmi in Plautus, but most like
and near to that in Italian called Inganni. A good practice in it to make the
steward believe his lady-widow was in love with him, by counterfeiting a letter
as from his lady, in general term telling him what she liked best in him and
prescribing his gesture in smiling, his apparel, etc. and then, when he came to
practice, making him believe they took him for mad.”
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First published in the 1623 First Folio
From the Restoration in 1661 until 1741, the play was staged only in
adaptations; the original text was revived in 1741.
In 1820, an operatic version by Frederic Reynolds was staged, with music by
Henry Bishop.
The play has been regularly staged in the 20th and 21st centuries, including an
all-male “original practices” production at Shakespeare’s Globe, which has
toured in the U.S., including at the Guthrie Theater.
Musical theater adaptations include: Your Own Thing (1968), Music Is (1976),
All Shook Up (2005), and Play On (1997).
Films: Twelfth Night (1996) directed by Trevor Nunn; She’s the Man (2006), an
adaptation in a contemporary setting in which Viola disguises herself as her
brother Sebastian in order to play on an all-male soccer team.
Learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_night
The playwright
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Born in 1564 (traditional date: April 23) in Stratford upon Avon: happy 450th
Will!
Educated in the local grammar school, where his studies included Latin and
Greek
Married Anne Hathaway; three children: Susanna and twins Hamnet and Judith
Late 1580s: arrives in London and begins to make his mark as an actor and
playwright; many of his plays are published in quarto editions, the paperbacks
of their day
C. 1613: retires to Stratford
Dies April 23, 1616
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First Folio published by his colleagues from the King’s Men, Henry Condell and
John Heminges
Learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Shakespeare
The Twelfth Night holiday
Illustration: “Twelfth Night Merry-Making in Farmer Shakeshaft's Barn,” from Ainsworth's Mervyn
Clitheroe, by Phiz
Twelfth Night is the final celebration of the Christmas season. It takes place the night
of January 5, the eve of the feast of the Epiphany on January 6, the traditional date
on which the three Wise Men arrived in Bethlehem and presented their gifts to the
Christ child. Rather than a solemn event, however, Twelfth Night is an occasion for
light-hearted fun, rowdy games, and outrageous costumes. Elements of the holiday
have survived from the Saturnalia celebrations of ancient Rome.
From Shakespeare After All by Marjorie Garber
Shakespeare’s play Twelfth Night, or What You Will takes the first half of its title
from the English holiday celebrated on the evening before January 6—the Twelfth Day
of Christmas, otherwise knows as the Feast of the Epiphany. According to Christian
tradition, this was the time when the Magi, the three wise men, journeyed from the
East to Bethlehem, bearing offerings for the infant Christ (Matthew 2:1-11). The word
“epiphany” has a more general modern meaning, denoting a revealing manifestation,
a sudden flash of insight, or a sudden recognition of identity. On the biblical Feast of
the Epiphany it means the showing of Christ to the Magi a manifestation of godhead.
In England, Twelfth Night was a feast of misrule a festival or eating and drinking,
during which masques and revels were presented. A large cake with a bean or a coin
baked into it was served to the assembled company, and the person whose slice of
cake contained the coin became the Christmas King, the Lord of Misrule. What You
Will, the second half of the play’s title, speaks both to this customary season of
topsy-turvy revelry and to the space of fantasy and wish fulfillment that was the early
modern playhouse. Like Much Ado About Nothing and As You Like It—and many
similarly dismissive titles of plays by Shakespeare’s contemporaries—this apparently
deprecating phrase can come back to bite. If some of the play’s characters do find
that their fantasies come true, others are punished for daring to have fantasies at all.
Learn more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_Night_(holiday)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturnalia
http://www.ehow.com/how_8246_celebrate-twelfth-night.html
Traditional Twelfth Night games
http://celebratingtwelfthnight.blogspot.com/2011/01/traditional-games.html
Some Shakespearean fun and games!
A Twelfth Night word search
http://www.wordsearchfun.com/54527_Twelfth_Night_wordsearch.html
A Twelfth Night crossword puzzle
http://www.funtrivia.com/crossword/play.cfm?gid=681
A Twelfth Night trivia quiz
http://www.funtrivia.com/playquiz/quiz228346330.html