Hey, do you have any advice for directing Shakespeare?
Oh man. Do you have six hours to talk about it?
(Sidenote: I love your URL, well done.)
So, here are the basic things I’ve learned directing/teaching/learning Shakespeare.
First: The text should always be the final authority. Resist the urge to try interesting ideas if they go against the text, because ultimately it will impede the audience’s understanding of the story. I recently saw a production of The Tempest where Prospero was played by a woman–not convincingly–and there was no explanation or thematic justification for it, so the whole time the audience was sitting there going, “Why the fuck does Miranda keep saying she’s never seen another woman if her dad literally IS A WOMAN?” I’m not saying don’t get creative–I’m saying make sure your work supports the text and enhances the audience’s understanding of it. If it doesn’t support the text, it’s just a gimmick. (The good news is you can find justification in Shakespeare’s text for just about anything. It’s a devil-can-quote-scripture-for-his-purpose kind of situation.)
Second: It does not matter how well actors know their lines if they don’t understand what they’re saying. Learning how to read, speak, and scan Shakespeare is important. The text is full of clues for how speeches should be felt and said and understood. Ignore them at your peril. If an actor doesn’t understand what they’re saying, the audience won’t understand it either. Spend time on this. You should do weeks of table work before you even think about getting up on your feet.
Third: Do your research. You should know your play almost by heart. You can’t help your actors understand the text if you don’t understand it yourself. There is nothing worse than Shakespeare directed by someone who isn’t qualified to be doing it. And be honest with yourself if that’s the case–because it will save you a lot of time, frustration, and embarrassment. You don’t want to take on Shakespeare until you’re really ready. It has centuries or tradition behind it and it’s a lot of pressure.
Fourth: It’s all about the feeling. Apathy is never an option in Shakespeare. I was once in the world’s worst production of Julius Caesar, and part of the reason it failed so hard was that our Brutus just didn’t seem to care about anything that was happening. If the characters don’t care, the play doesn’t make sense, and words that should be incredibly powerful will just sound ludicrous. More on this here.
Fifth: Shakespeare should be fun. People so often underestimate how important this is. It’s called a play for a reason. It’s hard fucking work, don’t get me wrong, but it should also be exhilarating and inspiring and delightful. If the actors aren’t having fun, the audience won’t either (and yes, you can have a lot of fun with a tragedy–just because the story is sad doesn’t mean you can’t have a blast telling it).
Anyway, that’s what I’d start with. Good luck!
