Friday, July 17, 2020

Julius Caesar

Director: Jack Read

Assistant Director: Amy Ippolito

Dramaturg: Savannah Nine

Stage Manager: Shaggy Bryant

Production Manager: Mary Rose Valentine

What We Did Today

Well, we finished reading the play, and if you know anything about the plot of Julius Caesar, you know that there is quite a bit of death. The campers got all the closure they needed in all the WRONG ways. In the words of Alex, playing Caesar, “I did not expect how much I would fall in love with this play.” The relationship between Cassius and Brutus came up again, because at the beginning of the act they have an amazing moment where they say goodbye, knowing full well it could be the last time. More on that in a bit. The best part of rehearsal, in my opinion, was Esme’s beautiful piece on each senator’s Starbucks order.

Quick and Quotable

• From the Play: “Forever and forever farewell, Cassius. / If we do meet again, why we shall smile; / If not, why then this parting was well made.”
• From the Director: “Cussing incredible.”
• From the Cast: “I’m really excited to die today. I’ve never gotten to die before, but I have killed a lot of people.” -Veronica

Production Insights

Though there are a great many tragic deaths in Julius Caesar, our whole team agreed that the saddest part of the play is when Brutus and Cassius say goodbye. They try to be optimistic, but they acknowledge bluntly that this is likely the last time they will see each other. Especially as the cast has been discussing how their relationship pushes the boundaries of being platonic, this is a really hard goodbye to watch, and (I’m assuming) even harder to act. It prepares the audience for what is about to happen, and in my opinion it’s one of the most important scenes in the entire play. I’m incredibly excited to work on it next week!

Thank you for reading along with me through week 1 of #SHXCamp! Hope to see you next week!