Summers are a busy time at DreamWrights. The theatre is always bustling, with camps and shows nearly every daylight hour and many of the evening ones. Theatre Under the Trees is my contribution to that activity and I’m very excited about this year’s show: Twelfth Night. Twelfth Night tells the story of shipwrecked twins, focusing on Viola as she searches for a safe haven and falls in love with the Duke Orsino, who she has come to work for. Viola finds herself disguised as a boy, running errands for Orsino, trying to convince the Lady Olivia that Olivia should listen to Orsino’s pleas of love, when Orsino’s love is what Viola wants to reserve for herself. Once you mix in the other members of Olivia’s household: her cousin, his gullible friend, the steward, servants and Feste, the fool, who sings both merry and melancholy tunes for both Lord and Lady, you get a play that catapults you from one silliness to the next.
Twelfth Night may well be my favorite of Shakespeare’s plays to direct. The story is straightforward, there aren’t a lot of extraneous characters and the mischief and misunderstandings have so much comic potential.
If you aren’t familiar with Theatre Under The Trees, we are a touring show, taking our performances to local parks. It’s really a wonderful way to spend a summer evening.
Auditions will be held Tuesday, May 26 and Wednesday, May 27 at 6:00 p.m. Ages 7-Adult may audition, and there is no advance preparation required. We need actors, singers, musicians and crew. Performances will be held July 24th through August 2nd. Check the DreamWrights website for locations.
Michelle Denise Norton
Founder and Director, Theatre Under The Trees
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