Today we challenged the students even further. We walked up to a local outdoor museum, “Cobblestones Early Settler Museum” and challenged them to be inspired by something, and create a work within 2 hours. The point of this was 2 fold. Firstly we want to dig further beneath the surface of what it means to be a New Zealander. We have already investigated Te Papa, … Continue reading The Arts Project: Day 5
Hello! After compiling 12 plays from William Shakespeare and presenting them to you here, I hope you have enjoyed the reading over the last 12 days. As you may be aware, I am traveling to London in July to perform at the Globe Theatre, so every play on the list this year is one from Shakespeare. I am very excited about this. (Though I still … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Directory
And thus we reach the last play in our list of the 12 Plays of Christmas. Today is Twelfth Night, signaling the last day of winter, and Epiphany Eve, and work beginning again in the fields… so Twelfth Night is all about fun, and removing Christmas decorations. The play “Twelfth Night” by William Shakespeare is all about fun. “Twelfth Night” is my favourite comedy. It … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 12 – Twelfth Night
Welcome to the 11th Play of Christmas. Today we shall look at Shakespeare’s “Henry VIII”. Unusually, “Henry VIII” isn’t performed that often, which is a sad thing because it is a great play. Following the story of Henry VIII through the end of his first marriage to Catherine of Aragon and his second marriage to Ann Boleyn. The actual story is gripping, and adding the … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 11 – Henry VIII
Welcome to Day 10! Traditionally January 3 is the Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus. This remembers when Jesus was officially ‘named’ in the Jewish Temple. So what better choice of play than “The Merchant of Venice”. “The Merchant of Venice” centers around a few key players. Portia, who needs to marry, is keen on Bassanio. He however lacks money, so works on a … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 10 – The Merchant of Venice
Welcome to Day 9. Traditionally the 9th day of Christmas is for the well-traveled saints… and who do we know who is well-traveled? The Moor of Venice. Othello is a well crafted tragedy setting up the relationship between the Moor Othello, a general, and his fair wife, Desdemona. It doesn’t help that they initially ran off in secret to get married, or that Othello overlooked … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 9 – Othello
Welcome to Day 8 and 2018! Yay! Today brings us to one of my favourite Shakespearean plays – “Pericles; The Prince of Tyre”. Over the last few years I have become obsessed with trying to win this award for the most unusual choice of play, which has led to me reading a number of unusual Shakespearean texts. “Pericles; The Prince of Tyre” has it all, … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 8 – Pericles, the Prince of Tyre
As New Years Eve is known as Hogmany in Scotland, what better choice for the 12 Plays of Christmas for Day 7 than ‘the Scottish Play’ itself, “MacBeth”. “MacBeth” is a tragedy centred around the character MacBeth, as he plots and takes over the role as King of Scotland. MacBeth, a soldier, bumps into witches who predict he will become Thane of Cawdor and well … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 7 – MacBeth
Today we shall dive headfirst into the “Merry Wives of Windsor” for the 12 Plays of Christmas…. why? Well, long story short, there are many places called Windsor, and many plays with Falstaff in them. There are 2 plots within the play. The first involves Falstaff attempting to trick married women, saying that he loves them (in identical letters). The women are smart and compare … Continue reading 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 6 – The Merry Wives of Windsor
Welcome to Day 5 of the 12 Plays of Christmas. The 5th day of Christmas celebrates St Thomas Beckett, the Archbishop of Canterbury at one point. So today’s play is “Henry V”, as well, the Archbishop of Canterbury is a character in the play. That’s enough of a reason for me. “Henry V” is a play that hardly needs introduction, as well, Henry goes to … Continue reading The 12 Plays of Christmas – Day 5 – Henry V
Beyond Theatre 