Danish Girl Student

• If you were commissioned to design and direct a production of Twelfth Night, where would you set it? What would your Illyria look like? What would be your take on each character? What costumes, music, and special effects would you want?

I think the production would be sitting on the fence between completely real, and completely imaginary. I think that Ilyria would be gorgeous with white sanded beaches bordering a mountainous island, that both Orsinos and Olivias castles would be on the top of, and below them on the grassy, steep mountain is the rest of the village/town. So it kind of shows a heirarchy, by which can be rated depending on where you live.

Each character would have something odd, or special about him, even if it isn’t some as major as a healdess person it would be something can suits the character but also makes you say, remember them by that trait. So for instance feste might have extrememly large feet like a clown, so when he jumps around in his playful character it really brings it out, while someone like Orsino will have a very large head, because he thinks so much of himself, and Sir Toby’s tummy would be beyond a beer belly, and Malvolio would be really tall with a massive nose in which he can look down on everyone, with and sort of snooty approach because he thinks he is above people like Mand Sir Andrew.

Their costumes wouldn’t all be colourful, but for someone like Feste,it would be so like red,yellow,orange,green,white all sorts of random colours whereas Orisno would like to keep his self respect would wear a rich,navy blue to sort of match his personality in which says “I am handsomer and richer than you all.” Maria would wear a very light shade of red because she is kind of a mellow character but she still has some things up her sleeve, and then Viola and Sebastien would both wear the same colours (though with different outfits so you can tell them appart.) and would be yellow because it is a neutral colour, and then Olivia would wear gold because of her social and economic status.

I would have music according to what is happening in the scene,  like the funny sword fight scene would have a small tune playing in the background that makes the sword fight funnier, and when maria is explaining of her plan about Malvolio it will be dark,conspicous music, which will suddenly change when mavolio comes out, to a romantic and somehow funny tune.

• How would you get each character off the stage in 5.1? Think about where they are going and how they feel. Do they stop and shake hands with other characters? Do they slink off or run off? This will be the last time the audience sees them. What impressions do you want to leave?

I think that the snooty uptight person Malvolio is he will rush off in the huff, and the rest of the cast will still be on stage, then Sir Toby claps Orsinos shoulder in a friendly way, and they are all all laughing and in the back there will be the house where you can see into the windows, and so they will all walk back all reunited and as friends into the house and will be visible through the windows, and feste will be talking to the audience as all the other characters drink and talk inside, and as he reaches his last line, they will all push open their windows and lean out as a big group, laughing and smiling, with their glasses held high, and after Feste finishes his speech he will raise his glass to the audience, and then the curtain will drop.

1. Look carefully at Antonio’s speech in 3.4.316-321.
2. Paraphrase it (put into your own words).
3. Comment on it.
4. Give some of your own examples of what he is talking about. Use experiences you’ve had, seen, or heard about.

2.  What a deceiver you turned out to be! You personality does not live up to your beauty. You may look good, but really, you’re bad on the inside, which is where all natures real flaws are. Only really mean people can be called deformed. Virtue is beauty, but some one cruel and beautiful is like an empty trunk decorated by the devil himself.

3. I think in this speech, obviously, Antonio is extremely angry with ‘Sebastian’ for not giving him the promised amount of money. And he’s saying that good looks aren’t everything when you have a bad personality, but can be hidden for the most part.

4. Not only in lots of movies, but for instance when I was younger and we used to go to christmas parties my dad would be dressed up like santa and I thought it was the real santa, but now when I think back I realise how wrong I had been.

When I was in zimbabwe and I was starting in the fourth grade and there was a new teacher this year. The first day of school we was really nice and was trying to get to know us all, but by the second day of school she was alot harsher and didn’t seem to care about yelling at us even after only knowing us for only one day.

I don’t really think that there is a MAJOR difference, but I think that when a woman loves somebody she is more discrete about it, and likes to keep it in, and not make too much of a fuss, especially if the person they love is not mutual with the feeling. But for men, they seem to be really out there and very up front about it, and not really to fussed on whether anyone hears, and I think they feel like they need to prove it and show it to a large extent. But maybe this just depends on the person, but generally i think it is equal, apart from the relationship girls have with their friends. With girls they are quite emotional and have lots of feelings and so girls connect better in that sense because they have that in common, but guys tend to stay away from hugging and getting to emotional with their ‘buddies’ because they want to stick to having a manly and tough reputation.

I think Orsino expresses himself similar to what I said about guys being very upfront about it and needing to prove their feelings. Orsino is constantly talking about how much he loves Olivia and sending people over to her house to explain this, whilst Viola is very secretive about it. Maybe that’s because she wants to keep her identity hidden because if she doesn’t and reveals herself and her feelings, he might reject her and so she will be risking to much, which is another thing different about men and woman loving. Woman tend to be very careful when they love someone, always thinking about what the consequences might be and so on and so forth.

“Say that some lady as perhaps there is,

Hath for your love a great a pang of heart

As you hath for Olivia. ” (2.4.85-87)

I liked these lines alot, because like I said before woman are alot more careful when it comes to love, they like to maybe dip their toe into the waters before they dive in, and that is sort of what she is doing here. She says she’s talking about any woman but really she is talking about herself but in quite a conspicuous way without him realising, and is aswell finding out the answer to her question.

This is a relationship between the characters of Twelfth Night.

Sebastian is the twin borther of Viola.

Antonio is Sebastians friend

Orsin is madly in love with Olivia, but the feeling is not mutual.

Viola is madly in love with Orsino.

Cesario is the messenger for Orsion.

Orsino thinks that  Viola is a man (Cesario.)

Maria is the gentlewoman of Olivia.

Sir Toby and Sir Andrew are best friends

Fabian is Olivias servant

Maria likes Sir Toby as a friend

Feste is Olivias fool

Maria hates Malvolio

Malvolio is the steward of Olivia

Olivia is Sir Toby’s niece

Sir Andrew is the suitor countess to Olivia

Valentine is the courtier of Orsino

Re-read 1.5, and when you re-read focus on the character of Feste.  Answer these questions in your next blog post:  (Don’t forget to link back to this blog!)

1. How long do you think he has been in Olivia’s household?
2. Is Feste a carefree fool with no troubles?
3. Does he have a brain?
4. If you were a director of this play either on stage or in film, who would you cast for Feste?  (Someone you know? A Hollywood actor? Your brother?)  How would you costume him/ her?
5. Find some clues in the script that suggest action for Feste — particularly action that brings out the sillyness and merry-making in Feste’s nature.  If you were a director, what would you want the Fool to be doing physically in this scene?

Answers:

1.  I think feste has been in Olivias household for quite a while because from the way they talk to eachother is quite familiar as opposed to more formally, which implies he has known her for quite a while. And also maria says at one point “My lady will hang thee for thy absence” (1.5.2-3) which sort of means that Festes absence is not usual and Olivia prefers when he is in the house which may imply he doesn’t leave often. However, at one point maria tells him

2.  He seems to be a bit of carefree fool, who may have troubles but dismisses them quite passively and often turns them into a joke or doesn’t make a big deal out of them instead of facing them straightforwardly.

3. Yes, literally he ofcourse has a brain but in this context it is implied that his brain it resembles that of stone; small and useless. I think he has a brain, he just doesn’t use it the way he should.

4.  If I were the director I would probably cast Ian as Feste because they are both very lively funny people and Ian has a good sense of humour and would be able to express the character of Feste. When I imagine feste, he is in bright colours like red,yellow,orange, and he has a very odd looking hat on that almost resembles that of a joker.

5.  In 1.5 will be in a very joyful,playful and carefree mood, therefore I picture his movements to be obvious and big. At one point Feste makes up a philosopher, “For what says Quinapalus?” (1.5.29) in this sentence I imagine Feste staring into space admiringly as he says the name Quinapalus to sort of show that Quinapalus is a great (not to mention fake) philosopher. Also for this speech, “Like a drowned man,a fool, and a madman; one draught above heat makes him a fool, the second mads him and a third drowns him.”(1.5.8-9) I see him prancing around Olivia acting out a madman, a fool and  a drowned man quite comically.