preview for “Othello”

I was escorted by a Virgo in a red vehicle with to see the preview for “Othello” put on by the Austin Shakespeare Festival. “Preview, what’s that?” It’s like, well, it’s like the first run through. Sort of a dress rehearsal for the real thing, only it is the real thing, and…. “It’s like a dress rehearsal with an audience?” Right. We’ve been enjoying some unseasonably cool and decent weather, days that are near perfect lately. About half way through the second act, I had a Virgo snuggled up really close. The play? Oh yes, I liked it very much. Outdoors, with a Sagittarius Quarter Moon hanging in the sky, Mars floating nearby, it was a quite a sight. Othello himself was very well played. The rest of it? Let’s be nice, it was an energetic performance. Sure, the theatre in a more traditional setting might be a bit better, but there was an energy that infused the cast. I think I counted only about ten or eleven players for the whole show, and yet they did fill the audience. I look forward to going back watching the cast come together. Sitting on the hillside, late in the Fourth Act, there was a disturbance when one audience member rudely suggested that the party sitting (sprawled might be a better choice of words) in front of us shut up or leave. In a historical context, and one of things about seeing Shakespeare like this, is that there was always audience participation — shoot, that’s what made it fun. I found the interruption of the complainant rather upsetting. Hope she’s not there the next time I see one of the plays. “Next time, I’d like to see less stabbing and more comedy — it looked like the evening news.” Free Shakespeare in the park put on by a certainly energetic band of characters — Bubba says, “check it out,” but take two blankets, one to sit on and one to cover up with — as long as this cool weather prevails.