My oh my! Make sure you wear your cozy clothing the night you watch the City College of New York’s production of Richard III because you’re going to want to get comfortable through the three-hour long performance!
Richard, Duke of Gloucester, is determined to gain the crown of England from his brother, King Edward IV. He woos the widow, Lady Anne Neville at the funeral of her father-in-law, King Henry VI and marries him. In the meantime, Richard organizes the murder of his brother George, Duke of Clarence, whom he has had imprisoned in the Tower in London.
The king, Edward IV is sick and Richard and Lord Hastings, is appointed as regent. He places the young sons of Edward in the Tower and consolidates his power with the help of the Duke of …show more content…
Right from the beginning of the performance, you could tell the actors and actresses had worked hard. The play started with a huge fight scene which seemed like it included fifteen people throwing dramatized punches at others eventually leaving many lying deceased on the stage floor. The use of the thrust stage really allowed the audience to view the emotion of the actors. Where I sat in the front row of the stage right risers, I personally felt like I was sitting in the middle of the stage, which I loved! Many of the scenes happened right in front of my face and some of the actors even interacted with some of us sitting in the front row. It even made it slightly easier to sit threw the three-hour performance by keeping me thoroughly interested throughout the loud, dramatic scenes. One scene that the acting of the students really stood out to me was the nightmare scene of Richard nearly at the end of the play. During this scene, Richmond (Henry VII) and Richard III fall asleep and the ghosts of all those who were arrested and killed under Richard’s request haunt Richard in his sleep. I loved how the ghosts spoke their lines in hatred toward Richard as they drifted around the dimly lit stage. Soon after this scene, Richard III was murdered by King Henry (and then eaten by others, I suppose? I didn’t quite know what …show more content…
It’s use unintentionally included the audience in the excitement of the play. It also gave the audience the option to watch the play in a unique and scarcely used way. I personally liked that I had the option to watch the performance from a side profile rather than straight-on as a proscenium stage would offer. I loved the acting and directing styles used in Richard III, but honestly, the play the way too long to hold my interest and by the time the intermission came around I was ready to leave to go right to sleep. If you are a patient, action packed, theater seeker who can sit through a three-hour production then I say go ahead and attend the show! But honestly, if you get uncomfortable quickly and can rarely sit still then I’d say you should read the play by Shakespeare instead (if you can even sit through
Richard, Duke of Gloucester, is determined to gain the crown of England from his brother, King Edward IV. He woos the widow, Lady Anne Neville at the funeral of her father-in-law, King Henry VI and marries him. In the meantime, Richard organizes the murder of his brother George, Duke of Clarence, whom he has had imprisoned in the Tower in London.
The king, Edward IV is sick and Richard and Lord Hastings, is appointed as regent. He places the young sons of Edward in the Tower and consolidates his power with the help of the Duke of …show more content…
Right from the beginning of the performance, you could tell the actors and actresses had worked hard. The play started with a huge fight scene which seemed like it included fifteen people throwing dramatized punches at others eventually leaving many lying deceased on the stage floor. The use of the thrust stage really allowed the audience to view the emotion of the actors. Where I sat in the front row of the stage right risers, I personally felt like I was sitting in the middle of the stage, which I loved! Many of the scenes happened right in front of my face and some of the actors even interacted with some of us sitting in the front row. It even made it slightly easier to sit threw the three-hour performance by keeping me thoroughly interested throughout the loud, dramatic scenes. One scene that the acting of the students really stood out to me was the nightmare scene of Richard nearly at the end of the play. During this scene, Richmond (Henry VII) and Richard III fall asleep and the ghosts of all those who were arrested and killed under Richard’s request haunt Richard in his sleep. I loved how the ghosts spoke their lines in hatred toward Richard as they drifted around the dimly lit stage. Soon after this scene, Richard III was murdered by King Henry (and then eaten by others, I suppose? I didn’t quite know what …show more content…
It’s use unintentionally included the audience in the excitement of the play. It also gave the audience the option to watch the play in a unique and scarcely used way. I personally liked that I had the option to watch the performance from a side profile rather than straight-on as a proscenium stage would offer. I loved the acting and directing styles used in Richard III, but honestly, the play the way too long to hold my interest and by the time the intermission came around I was ready to leave to go right to sleep. If you are a patient, action packed, theater seeker who can sit through a three-hour production then I say go ahead and attend the show! But honestly, if you get uncomfortable quickly and can rarely sit still then I’d say you should read the play by Shakespeare instead (if you can even sit through