Comedy of errors > Shakespeare at Curium ancient theatre June 19, 2007
Posted by grhomeboy in Arts EventsCyprus, Stage & Theater.trackback
It’s face paced wise cracks and misunderstandings as what is perhaps Shakespeare’s wittiest play takes to the stage at Curium
There’s a tale that has lasted throughout the ages that never fails to make audiences break out into fits of laughter. The story is one of identical twins, mistaken identities and the domino-like effect of confusing encounters. In this particular instance, it is essential that the identical twins have been separated almost at birth. It can really be none other Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors.
If all this talk of action gets you ticking, then you’ll be glad to know that the much-anticipated ‘Shakespeare at Curium’ will come to life this coming weekend. Staged by The Committee of the Performing Arts for Cyprus Charities, the proceeds from this year’s performance will be given to the Margarita Liasidou Foundation in Paphos, which provides a comprehensive service for the rehabilitation of children with special needs.
A Shakespeare play has in fact been performed at Curium in June every year since 1962, and this time round you can prepare for echoes of laughter around the ancient site as the farcical play comes to life. Characterised by slapstick humour, it is also Shakespeare’s shortest play with a wide appeal to all ages.
To make the best of the natural backdrop, stage design this year will be minimal, taking advantage of the theatre’s own grandeur. The costumes, designed by Francesca Pinoni, are inspired by Byzantine art, combining clarity and simplicity with deep, vibrant colours. It is directed by Colin Garland, who confesses an ongoing love affair with Curium, which he refers to as “one of the world’s most enchanting theatrical venues.”
As the play begins we are introduced to a merchant named Egeon who is away on business. Joined by his wife, it is on this trip that she gives birth to twin sons. Not satisfied with one set of twins however, Shakespeare adds another. In the same inn, at the same hour, another woman is also giving birth to identical male twins. Egeon decides to buy the twins from their poverty stricken parents with the intention of raising them to be servants to his own boys.
Travelling back home on ship, disaster strikes and they run into a ferocious storm. As fortune would have it, the ship is cut in half, with the father and one son and servant twin on one side, and the mother on the other side with the other two boys.
This is when all the drama truly begins. After the separation, it just so happens that both parents give the boys the same names, the sons are called Antipholus and the servant twins Dromio. The seeds of mayhem and chaos are now well and truly sown!
All this confusion could well be over the top but the light touch of the Bard just keeps the audience waiting for the next disaster.
Many years later, we see Egeon desperately searching for his son as Antipholus and his son’s slave both leave home in search of their two lost brothers. When the son and slave arrive in Ephesus, the home of their twin brothers, entanglements of people and incidents unfold at high speed, with equally rapid disentanglements. Surprise quickly follows surprise, so the audience can sit back, laugh and enjoy the jest. “It’s an absolutely classsic tale of mistaken identity with all it’s complications and confusions,” says Garland. “This is probably Shakespeare’s wittiest play and the course humour will amuse the audience no end.”
When the two men encounter the friends, spouses and families of their twins, a series of wild mishaps ensue from wrongful slave beatings and near incestuous seduction and various accusations of infidelity, thievery and madness. Will the twin brothers ever be reunited? Will Egeon find his long lost wife? Sit back and let the drama unfold in an al fresco performance within the breathtaking cliff-top amphitheatre.
Shakespeare at Curium > A performance of William Shakespeare’s The Comedy of Errors. June 22, 23 and 24. Kourion Amphitheatre, Limassol. 8pm. £8 adults/£4 students. Tel: box office: 99-990535, information: 99-427572.
grhomeboy
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