Shakespeare’s: Twelfth NightAspect of Production: Performer’s Relationship to the Audience
...emanded that we never forget it. I know that very image will become apparently vivid whenever I have memory of Twelfth Night. The witty and feisty character of Maria was performed by actress Rachel Garitano. She displayed a cunningness that is usually attributed to male characters. Although her character is notably the accomplice in the playwright, her performance contradicted that aspect and rightfully so. She introduced an independent, feminist quality to the character, and created a new aspect to Maria. I believe even her wardrobe expressed that factor as well. While her Lady and Ladies-in-waiting dress were very suggestive to the role of their characters, Maria’s gray suit with the midriff shirt created a visual for the character, which the actress coordinated perfectly with her performance. Karla Meyer’s character was Lady Olivia, the object of the majority of the character’s affection. Her performance remained traditional, which was needed for the plot to unravel as it did. Meyer’s performance of royalty, brought the classiness of the playwright to the forefront of the production. The quality of grace she portrayed throughout the production was definitely evident to the audience. Lastly, Sir Andrew Aguecheek was performed by actor Marco Tazioli. Although not able to upstage the yellow socks of Malvolio, Tazioli performance was key to the balance of the production. His character was different in personality, yet he was as easily duped as Molvolio. This caused him to provide comic relief for the production when the character ,Molvolio, was not physically present. He created an equilibrium that enabled the production to be consistent, and not desperate for comedic value. 3 Jessica Rose These performers portrayed their characters well, and created a great visual that I believe gave the production its consistency. One character that had a great performer, but didn’t provide any consistency until the end was Viola/Cesario. The performer, Jennifer Megan Wills, had a very distinctive role to play, but the audience was unable to realize how creative her performance was until the end. I believe the production would’ve induced clarity to the audience in the beginning, if her character was distinctly apparent to them. I did not understand that plot until the very end, when her double character was manifested. Once known, I felt Wills did an exceptional performance for the character she was given. The character, Festes, performed by actresses Melissa Mok and Michelle Ho added to the confusion. I wondered what their character’s contribution to the production were, until it was explained to me that they were jesters. To my knowledge, a jester was similar to a clown and usually employed by royalty to provide humor. The performer’s possessed no humor in the least bit, which created a disadvantage to the production. Despite their mediocre performances, they did however relay relevant aspects of gossip which prepared the audience for what was to come. Overall the performers cleverly incorporated the audience into the production. Their voice trajectory was excellent and very authoritative, which was the most important aspect of their performances. They demanded the attention of the audience with their ...