Author Topic: Shakespeare and Kali  (Read 5671 times)

Danny Boy

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Shakespeare and Kali
« on: January 26, 2004, 01:18:13 PM »
This may seem funny but I wanted to run it by you guy's to see what you think.  I will be playing Brutus in Shakespeares "Julius Caesar" this semester.  Durring one of my monologues I plan on concealing two blades in my sleeve and drawing them while I perform my monologe.  My idea was to incorporate some kind of movement to go with text, I think it would look kind of cool.  I was thinking about critisim from people saying there wouldn't be that kind of combative influence on these particular characters, but I think it would be neat none the less.  I will leave my monologue here for you guy's to check out.  What do you all think?

  Our course will seem to bloody, caius Cassius,
To cut the head off and then hack the limbs,
Like wrath in death and envy afterwards;
For Antony is but a limb of Caesar:
Let us be sacraficers, but not butchers, caius.
We all stand up against the spirit of Caesar;
and in the spirit of men there is no blood:
O, that we then could come by Caesars spirit,
and not dismember Caesar! But alas,
Caesar must bleed for it! and, gentle, friends,
Let's kill him boldly, but not wrathfully;
Let's carve him a dish fit for the god's,
Not hew him as a carcass fit for hounds:
And let our hearts, as settle masters do,
stir up there servants to an act of rage,
and after seem to chide em.  This shall make
Our purpose necessary and not envious:
Which so appearing to the common eyes,
We shall be called purgers, not murderers.
And for Mark Antony, think not of him;
For he can do no more than Caesars arm
when Caesars head is cut off.

(William Shakespeare), "Julius Caesar" 1601

LG Russ

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Shakespeare and Kali
« Reply #1 on: January 26, 2004, 03:47:14 PM »
Go for it Danny Boy!

Make them nice and shiney....

Chicks did Shakespeare.... and knives.

Woof,
Russ

LG Russ

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Shakespeare and Kali
« Reply #2 on: January 26, 2004, 03:49:42 PM »
I'm no Shakespeare!

Quote from: LG Russ
Go for it Danny Boy!

Make them nice and shiny....

Chicks dig Shakespeare.... and knives.

Woof,
Russ

Anonymous

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Shakespeare and Kali
« Reply #3 on: January 27, 2004, 10:19:55 AM »
Just make sure that your movements don't upstage your text.

Shakespeare is a very precise playwright, requiring very little of the actor other than clarity of thought, and vocal expressiveness (both physical and emotional).  Your movements must AUGMENT Brutus' speech, not the other way around.

Spadaccino

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Re: Shakespeare and Kali
« Reply #4 on: January 28, 2004, 04:56:47 AM »
Quote from: Danny Boy
This may seem funny but I wanted to run it by you guy's to see what you think.  I will be playing Brutus in Shakespeares "Julius Caesar" this semester.  Durring one of my monologues I plan on concealing two blades in my sleeve and drawing them while I perform my monologe.  My idea was to incorporate some kind of movement to go with text, I think it would look kind of cool.  I was thinking about critisim from people saying there wouldn't be that kind of combative influence on these particular characters, but I think it would be neat none the less.  I will leave my monologue here for you guy's to check out.  What do you all think?


I say go for it.

To those that would criticize by claiming that "there wouldn't be that kind of combative influence" on Brutus, I would remind them that Shakespeare himself was absolutely fascinated with martial arts--there are plenty of references to fencing in his work (Romeo & Juliet immediately comes to mind).  He touched upon such topics as the debate over the rapier that was going on in his day (G. Silver vs. the London Italian Masters), the fencing move known as the passata soto (corrupted to "passado" by the English), and even the famous London Italian Master, Vincentio Saviolo (I forget the precise Saviolo reference, but I'm pretty sure it was made by Shakespeare).

So, to include a little FMA to accentuate Brutus' knife-wielding seems entirely fine to me, personally.

Peace,

Dave/TFS/Spad
"And the rapier blades, being so narrow and of so small substance, and made of a very hard temper to fight in private frays... do presently break and so become unprofitable." --Sir John Smythe, 1590