wichita shakespeare company
Posted on 09. Sep, 2010 by Carrie in culture
words > SARAH NIEMAN
Fall is almost upon us, and while there are many ways you could say farewell to summer, my personal favorite is to spend an evening at one of our gorgeous local parks with Shakespeare. Here in Wichita, we are lucky enough to have a group of hardworking, immensely talented people who are committed to performing Shakespeare’s plays for the public, free of charge.
Something wicked is coming to Wichita, and if you aren’t there, I guarantee that you’ll regret it.
Mark Schuster, persuaded by his brother, joined the Wichita Shakespeare Company in 2004. His first part was rather small, as most first-timers’ usually are, but for Mark it was love at first performance. Having participated in drama at Derby High School, Cymbeline—one of Shakespeare’s more obscure comedies—marked his first return to the stage in 10 years. He’s been in six shows since 2004, and is a Mary Jane Teall Awards nominee for his performance of Doctor Caius in The Merry Wives of Windsor, which he describes as an “absolute honor.” After years of supporting roles in the spring comedies and a sincere dedication to juggling his love for Shakespeare with a full time engineering job at Cessna, Mark was chosen to direct Macbeth for this year’s fall performance.
Twice a year the WSC matches a director with a play, holds auditions, and brings together a group of about 20 people to put in a grueling five weeks of labor—without pay—all for the love of Wichita and Shakespeare. On top of only having the actors, stage managers, and costume designers working together for a month, Mark has to help everyone become adjusted to performing outside. According to Mark, there’s no comparison to acting indoors versus acting outside: “On a stage you can do a lot more subtle acting; In the park sometimes you feel like you’re absolutely yelling, and it can make it hard to act. Your body expressions, facial expressions, gestures, voice… you have to be grand. You might have someone fifty yards away!” Shakespeare combined with local color is really something not to miss; every performance is unique. I attended last year’s fall performance of Coriolanus, and didn’t know whether to laugh or cry when some local teenagers pelted the actors and actresses with eggs during a pivotal angry-crowd scene; the irony is that their childish pranks actually added to the intensity of the scene. Mark knew exactly what I was talking about: “During a Merry Wives performance, the “F-America Guy,” as he’s affectionately called, started yelling really loudly. It’s one of the things that makes it truly entertaining: anything and everything can happen.”
So come out, Wichita, and spend one of the last evenings of summer in a beautiful park, maybe sharing a picnic with friends and family, and enjoying one of Shakespeare’s plays as you’ve never seen it performed before. And while the shows are free, if you enjoy yourself—as I know you will—then don’t forget to put a little something in the donation jar. After all, it’s only through our donations that these gifted people are able to keep bringing Shakespeare’s ageless truths to Wichita.
For information about locations and times for Macbeth (and future performances), go to www.wichitashakespearecompany.org.
