Shakespeare...

[JaneNickerson]

The local theater is putting on Twelfth Night (What You Will).
I am not familiar with the play (plot, etc)
Would it be appropriate for family viewing?

[Laura Corin]

I can't think of anything that would be a problem off hand. I saw the video of it recently. Of course, you never know how a particular production is going to portray it.

As for family viewing: I'd personally take a 12 and 10yo to Shakespeare, probably an 8yo but the 6yo may well get antsy, unless he is unusually attentive.

Best wishes

Laura

[Jenny in Florida]

I can't off the top of my head think of anything outrageously problematic in this play. In fact, it's very funny, but most Shakespearean comedies include a certain amount of bawdy humor, and productions vary widely in how a particular director or company interprets the text.

I would suggest you do any or all of these things:

1. Read the play, or at least a good synopsis of the plot. There's one at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_Night,_or_What_You_Will

2. Rent a filmed version. I'm partial to the one from 1996, directed by Trevor Nunn and starring Helena Bonham Carter.

3. Call the theatre company and ask about the show's suitability for your family/your children.

Actually, I'd recommend you do #3 even if you do either of the other two, because you just never know where a specific production is going to go. I've seen multiple productions of some of Shakespeare's plays, and there are almost never two alike.

Good luck!

[girligirlmom]

I believe it was last June when a local homeschool Shakespeare group put on an adaptation of Twelfth Night. I took all my dc, then ds8, dd5.5 and ds3.5. Prior to the play we read several versions of Twelfth Night from the library since I felt that if they understood the plot they would better get the jokes. Ds8 even read a version himself that was in a comic strip format and another that was a picture book. Dd5 also read both. I read a third version to them and I think we looked at a fourth.

Ds3 was attentive through Act I but we lost him after the intermission. Ds5 made it through, enjoyed it but had to ask who was who a few times. Ds 8 enjoyed it a lot.

I just asked ds(now 9) what he remembers about it and he said he really enjoyed it. It was funny. He said, "I liked it much better since we 'researched it'. I didn't understand the one the year before since we didn't 'research it' and I didn't get the jokes."

So my humble opinion is to familiarize your dc with the plot and the character's names so it makes sense to them. It's enough to try understand the language, but in this comedy there is cross dressing and mistaken identity so it was nice (for us) to know who should be who so we could keep up with it.

Here is Wiki entry just about the basic plot:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twelfth_Night

One other idea is to get this
Twelfth Night (Shakespeare Made Easy) (http://www.amazon.com/Twelfth-Night-Shakespeare-Made-Easy/dp/0812036042/ref=pd_bbs_4?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211765473&sr=8-4thought)

[JaneNickerson]

Thank you. This site is always so helpful.:)