Is William Shakespeare the most extraordinary playwright the world has ever known? I’m tempted to say “yes”. And he has been one of my heroes for a long time.
Unfortunately, I’m not able to recount the exact details of my relationship with Shakespeare. What follows is my best guess.
In grade school, my class went on a field trip to see a “professional” play by William Shakespeare. I’m embarrassed to say that I don’t remember exactly which play we saw. I think that it was Pericles, Prince of Tyre. Although the details are hazy, I walked away knowing that this was something special.
During Junior High and High School, I read and watched productions of Romeo and Juliet, Othello, Macbeth, Hamlet, Henry IV (Parts I and II), Henry V, Two Gentlemen of Verona, Twelfth Night, The Tempest, Taming of the Shrew, Much Ado about Nothing, Midsummer Night’s Dream, Merchant of Venice, Love’s Labour’s Lost, and more.
And yes, I’ve seen all of these movie versions.
In a high school English class, I attempted to portray a scene from The Merchant of Venice for a class project. When it came time for me to kiss the actress playing the role of Portia, I went up on my lines and had to exit the stage.
I watched several amazing productions performed by the Colorado Shakespeare Festival.
After graduate school, I had a job at the Mayan movie theater in Denver. During this time, I got to see a special screening of Richard III, featuring Ian McKellan. I am thrilled to say that I had the opportunity to meet Ian McKellan after the show!
Ever since then, Ian McKellan has been one of my favorite actors, especially given that he did such an outstanding job playing the role of Gandalf in The Lord of the Rings.
Of course, I watched Kenneth Branagh’s version of Hamlet. And I watched 10 Things I Hate About You. And I watched Ethan Hawke’s version of Hamlet.
We even produced our own movie version of Macbeth featuring Clyde Sacks and Karilyn Thompson Starks!
Later, I watched Scotland, PA and The Tragedy of Macbeth. I also came up with two ideas for how to create a modern adaptation of Romeo and Juliet.
It turns out that Shakespeare is timeless. That may be the most significant compliment I can dole out.
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