Review- Sorry, Shakespeare!- Shakespeare in the Port
24-4-15
By: Rachel Barton
Laugh out loud. Fast Paced. Incredibly polished.
These are the words that come to mind when I think about the show I saw last night at Cyberport. Sorry, Shakespeare! is Shakespeare in the Port's touring production. They created it to go see local students at schools and brought it to the festival for a small number of performances. I'm so glad I was the person who got to see and review it. Besides a few mic issues, the show was absolute perfection when it came to the performance and directing aspects of the show.
The blocking for the production is stellar. It's well spaced with a mixture of prat comedy and tiny stage business; the acting team of Boaz Lo, Joseph Fiorello, Emma O'Rourke and Minna Cheung take on the massive stage at Cyberport and make it seem like an intimate environment, which is a challenge. Directed by the Artistic Director of the festival, Meaghan McGurgan, the show is about actors who know nothing about Shakespeare and try to perform it. Filled with theatre "inside jokes" and poorly performed Shakespeare on purpose, this is a show that is easy to love. The cast and creative team are not afraid to poke fun at their art or each other. I think the real Shakespeare would have loved this production. It was parody at its finest; it's an incredibly smooth production from a team of professionals.
Some moments to highlight were the opening scene with Miley Cyrus. When I heard the description of the play, I thought... "How are they going to mix up 3 scripts and not know which is which?" I should have known it was a booty shake gone awry... I adored their version of Pyramus and Thisbee, performed by Lo and Cheung and thought The Taming of the Shrew scene by O'Rourke and Fiorello was hysterical. But the ending with Macbeth and the "Usurper's Head" is perfection. A well choreographed and executed fight by the performers; it reminded me of all the times we would play make believe as children and things would fall apart because one of your friends would get mad about the plot twist.
My one complaint about the production was the mics. One of them kept cutting out during the show, which was unfortunate because the actors were very good at projection. My suggestion? Dump the mics. You don't need them. I'd rather hear them with their natural voices. Sorry, Shakespeare! is a short 40 minute production; they coupled it with screenings of several silent films of Shakespeare that were sent to Hong Kong from the Hollywood Silent Film Archive. A great evening out, well worth the 150HKD, grab a picnic and hit the grass at Cyberport for their last performance this Sunday. You will not regret it. The show is absolutely hysterical for kids, adults, those who love Shakespeare and those hate him.
Shakespeare in the Port is playing through May 3rd. For more information, click here.
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