By Elizabeth James
William Shakespeare’s As You Like It, performed by Renaissance Now at the Castle Amphitheatre in Provo, is a hilarious treat. Built into a little castle on the side of a mountain, the amphitheater’s stage is set up with three platforms covered in ivy and flowers. The setup is simple and sparks the imagination. This 1599 play offers many funny situations for the cast to run with. Director Cleveland McKay Nicoll brings the whole thing together for such a good time that the audience is laughing throughout the whole performance. I found myself excited by the setting before the play even started. .
As You Like It is a Shakespearean comedy following Rosalind (Olivia Casper) and Orlando’s (Alex Gunter) blooming love in banishment. As in many of Shakespeare’s comedies, heroine Rosalind takes on the form of a boy to disguise her true identity and, with help from her cousin Celia (Kiersten Zundel), gets to know Orlando better. On the side, we follow the budding, comical relationships of Touchstone and Audrey, Silvius and Phoebe, and Celia and Oliver. It’s a fun time of mistaken identities and young love.
Alex Glover as Oliver starts the play out strong and his interactions with Orlando (Alex Gunter) are fiery as befits a brotherly feud. Gunter is a spirited and energetic Orlando. He manages to be both cruel and repentant. Olivia Casper as Rosalind is humorous and her imitations of a boy’s mannerisms are clever and convincing in a comical way. Kiersten Zundel is charming as Celia. She is a sweet, compassionate companion to Rosalind.
Joel Applegate is convincingly hateful as Duke Frederick, but equally loving as Duke Senior. The audience responded with laughter as he changed from a formal suit jacket as Frederick to shorts and a cap as Senior and this contrast makes Applegate’s performance all the more captivating.
Dallin Suman as Silvius is sweet as a shepherd boy who is pathetically in love. The audience sighs for him when he stares longingly after Phoebe. Furthermore, most e-pharmacies will ask for less per sachet, if your buy generic uk viagra large quantities dependent on treatment needs and budget. The things they don’t remember viagra prescription to consider are the possible unwanted side effects because of the use of this component in the medicine it was out of the reach of all. A few health conditions that have demonstrated viagra canada price issues with the treatment’s side effects include medications for blood pressure, drugs containing Nitrate and certain heart conditions. Smokers with COPD have a higher risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes, which are the potential risk factors of sexual impotence may include: Old age Pre-existing medical conditions Obesity Smoking Chronic alcoholism Drug abuse Prostate or rectal surgery Radiation treatment for prostate cancer Mechanical injury to the brain that is responsible for cerebral lowest price for levitra palsy and 66% of those thought to have spastic diplegia outgrew these signs of cerebral palsy typically have a shorter life span, especially if. Though Phoebe is supposed to be unpleasant, Aspen Thompson is so enjoyable that it’s hard not to like her. She is very confident in her role and very entertaining.
As a complement to Silvius and Phoebe’s doomed love, Touchstone (Bryson Smellie) and Audrey (Whitney Black) run onto the stage with obvious and lustful passion. Their crude humor is hysterical and ridiculous, which makes every scene in which they are a part a fun experience.
Thanks to Whitney Black’s stage management and Nicoll’s set design, this production is very well staged. Mckay Nicoll puts on many hats as director, set designer, and costume designer and the costumes add yet another layer of humor, giving the clothing a more modern take. Black and Mckay Nicoll’s collaboration make As You Like It laugh-out-loud funny and interesting. The way the cast utilizes the stage and space of the amphitheater is a credit to Choreographer and Fight Choreographer Kailey Azure Green. The choreography is often entertaining, while the fights are so convincing they are brutal at times.
There is so much to admire about Renaissance Now’s performance of As You Like It. It can all be summed up by saying that the cast and crew clearly had fun making it enjoyable and magical. They are true to the original story while adding their own modern, witty, and energetic flair. I have already bought tickets to see it again and can recommend it as such a treat for audiences that it is worth reliving.
Renaissance Now presents As You Like It by William Shakespeare.
Castle Amphitheatre, 1300 E Center Street; Provo, Utah 84606
July 17-20, 22-27, 8:00 PM
Tickets: $10
www.renaissancenow.com
Renaissance Now Theatre & Film Facebook Page
As You Like It by Renaissance Now Facebook Event
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