As You Like It
2019
by Paulette Reynolds
April 3, 2019
Director: Carlyle Stewart
Screenplay: Carlyle Stewart / Adapted from Shakespeare
Starring Grant Jordan/ Rosalind & Ganymede, Tom Emmott/Frederick Duke, Graham Greene/Corin, Aaron L. Sedeen & Matt Sedeen/ The LeBeau Brothers, Zach Villa/Orlando, Eloy Casados/Adam, Tui Asau/Oliver, Eduardo Rioseco/Phoebe
Costume design by April Estep
2019
by Paulette Reynolds
April 3, 2019
Director: Carlyle Stewart
Screenplay: Carlyle Stewart / Adapted from Shakespeare
Starring Grant Jordan/ Rosalind & Ganymede, Tom Emmott/Frederick Duke, Graham Greene/Corin, Aaron L. Sedeen & Matt Sedeen/ The LeBeau Brothers, Zach Villa/Orlando, Eloy Casados/Adam, Tui Asau/Oliver, Eduardo Rioseco/Phoebe
Costume design by April Estep
One of Shakespeare's most popular pastoral romantic plays gets the western treatment in this off-beat indie tale, directed by Carlyle Stewart. Staying true to the Renaissance theater era, all female parts are played by males, and this sparks a question - does it matter?
And if that wasn't enough, the setting is a western style hotel, the Duke's Court Rodeo Hotel, where everyone is dressed like it's prom night at the Grand Ole Opry.
So, how do the changes in setting, gender and costume impact As You Like It 2019?
So, how do the changes in setting, gender and costume impact As You Like It 2019?
The sagebrush and sand hills underscores this broad comedic farce, even though the characters are speaking lines of straight Elizabethan English prose and blank verse. Shakespeare's language soars above this classic tale of perplexed lovers, cross-dressing and stale quarrels, with only an occasional fart or pratfall to embellish the Bard's skillful tongue.
April Estep’s costumes provide a surreal commentary on the odd nature of Shakespeare’s story, reminding us not to take As You Like It - or Life - too seriously.
From well-muscled hunks to giddy sissies, the energetic cast plays it straight, in what can only be described as the most gayest subtext ever. But as the Bard himself mused:
All the world's a stage
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts
All the world's a stage
And all the men and women merely players;
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts
Which obliquely refers to Rosalind - played to perfection by Grant Jordan - as a boy playing a girl who dresses as a boy to play a girl. You got that, right?
As You Like It is an inspired version that should be enjoyed at house parties, where the audience can dress up, giggle over popcorn and have a mighty fine time.
As You Like It is an inspired version that should be enjoyed at house parties, where the audience can dress up, giggle over popcorn and have a mighty fine time.
COPYRIGHT 2012/2019. Paulette Reynolds. All CineMata Movie Madness blog articles, reviews, faux interviews, commentary, and the Cine Mata character are under the sole ownership of Paulette Reynolds. All intellectual and creative rights reserved.
