------ Forwarded Message
From: Donna Marie Nudd <dmnudd(a)gmail.com>
Just got back from dinner. Terry was completely fascinated by the
high pitch noises emanating when we /she kept hitting our wine glasses
with our utensils. The table of dozen bureaucrats to the side of us
were thrown as throughout the evening they kept anticipating a
speech. We were forced to explain and once we did then they just
started clinking their glasses in celebration.
Donna
Sent from my iPhone
------ Forwarded Message
From: Donna Marie Nudd <dmnudd(a)gmail.com>
Date: Tue, 1 Jun 2010 18:44:26 -0400
Subject: Donna's take on a momentous day
Hey,
So all in all a great day!
For an hour they were fine tuning the cochlear via Terry listening
only to sounds on the computer. Unlike most people who get "turned
on", Terry loved (not hated) the high pitched sounds (as if she'd
never heard them before, or hadn't heard them for 40 or more years,
she was quite excited.)
Then they turned the cochlear on in the room itself, and Terry freaked
out at the sound of the computer next to her, her own voice and the
sounds of other voices. Audiologist said "speech is complicated and
takes time." Audiologist then took out kid's musical instruments,
and Terry was particularly thrilled at the sound of the xylophone and
adored the bell.
In the parking lot, she was sitting there at the van crying/sniffling
while we waited for our friend Diane to retrieve her camera bag.
Terry started laughing when she realized she could hear her own
sniffles.
This is a month long process. We go to Shands tomorrow and they turn
it up a little. And then we're back here every Tuesday this month.
We're at the hotel now (which is situated on a lake.) Terry heard
her first bird. And a moment ago she marveled at the sound of my
typing at the computer. And seconds ago, was thrown by the sound of
Diane turning on the faucet in the bathroom and the sound of the blow
dryer.
Sure looks like it's going to be a fun month. Off to dinner soon.
Love,
Donna
------ End of Forwarded Message
Hello Everyone,
There are so many of you I donot know but now that I finally have had the chance to read the many emails of the past few weeks, I feel I do know many of you.
I deeply appreciate and identify with Susan's testimonial of what Winedale has meant to her. When I was 19 and a lost soul in 1973, Doc introduced me to Winedale, a book called The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life and lots of characters, whose impact I feel to this day. From 1973 to 1975, I watched Robert Jackson and Terry Galloway embody comic anarchy in Taming of the Shrew, fell in love with Alice Gordon as Beatrice (it's ok, my wife knows all about it), and learned to play Falstaff by falling off the roof of the theater barn during a raging rainstorm. It's great to know others have had similar experiences over the years (although not the broken leg, I hope) and to know that blessing we call Winedale is alive and well. It's also gratifying to know 37 years later Robert Jackson still worries about learning his lines and is obsessed with scenes about pitching woo and Alice and Mary still have the ability to organise our lives.
Your recommendations of scenes greatly influenced my suggestions, especially Clayton's eloquence about the power of the space there, Jayne and Kathy's "La Ronde" idea, and Gail's thoughts on the nature of the Winedale "family."
Of course, I'm cool with whatever everyone decides.
The scenes that I'm recommending are not only influenced by your thoughts, but, selfishly are scenes I would enjoy and would want to see as an audience member.
Notes on a few of my selects:
Like others, I feel Bottom's dream
Is a perfect beginning. I also feel the very end of MND is a perfect, magical ending.
The Richard II speech is something that has resonated with me politically as strongly today as it was when I first heard it during the reign of Richard Nixon. It has immense dramatic power.
And I am convinced that the last scene of Winter's Tale out of context of the complete play is a satisfying, complete play in itself.
The * are full scenes, the other
speeches are very brief and in many cases would serve as transitions between the fuller scenes.
First half - Conflict/Indecision
Bottom's Dream 4.1 lines 200-219
*Merchant of Venice 1.2 lines 1-133 Portia's suitors can be done very creatively with lots of actors acting out the stories told.
Romeo and Juliet 1.4 lines 53-95
Queen Mab speech
*King Lear 2.4 lines 1-309 Lear
confronts Regan and Goneril (intense-lots of characters)
Cymbeline 4.2 lines 291-332
Imogen (Fidele) awakens with a dead body next to her
*Taming of the Shrew 4.2 lines 1-211 Petruchio returns home with Kate (lots of characters-comic anarchy)
Tempest 4.1 lines 148-163
"Our revels now are ended............
A turn or two I'll walk
To still my beating mind."
Second half- Reconciliation/Resolution
*Brush Up Your Shakespeare
(Everybody involved should be
part of an extended rendition)
*2Henry IV 3.2 lines 1-219
Shallow/Silence/Falstaff/others
Reminiscences about the past with their pals and then conscription of a few reprobate soldiers
(Lots of characters)
*King Lear 4.6 lines 1-80 Edgar/Gloucester father/son reconcile
*Much Ado 4.1 lines 255-336
Beatrice and Benedick reconcile
(the real wedding) following the aborted wedding
Richard II 3.2 lines 144-177
"Let's talk of graves, of worms, of epitaphs...............subjected thus,
How can you say to me I am a king?"
*Winter's Tale 5.3 lines 1-155
(Entire scene is a play in itself--
Lots of characters, magical and
surprising)
*Midsummer Night's Dream 5.1
Lines 371-438 Oberon/Titania/Puck
(As many ethereal fairies as possible should take part)
All the best,
mb
________________________________
From: weeklong-l-bounces(a)lists.wikimedia.org
To: weeklong-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
Sent: Sat May 29 13:56:08 2010
Subject: [Weeklong-l] **IMPORTANT: Call to Reunion Action!**
Dear Fellow Winedale Weeklongians,
On behalf of Doc and the Committee of Cheerleaders, I hereby emit a big Go, Team, Go!
We would like to get the whole scenes-choosing and role-casting process done and roles disseminated by June 6, when the first session of Camp Shakespeare begins and Doc will be all-consumed by it. To meet that deadline, we must strictly adhere to the ones leading up to it.
Attached is the revised master list of scenes I sent you a few days ago. A a few people weighed in with a more ideas. Also, Robert Jackson, please forgive me for not including your list of scenes the first time around. It and newer material is now included and marked in bold-face type.
Here is the process just ahead:
By Midnight, MAY 31: Send your top ten scenes to alicegordon(a)earthlink.net. (I will immediately forward all lists to Doc and the Committee. Just trying to give everyone only one email address to type in.) Considering the themes we’ve all been talking about, please send us your top ten scenes from the complete list. Feel free either to cherry-pick from the list; to vote for one of the concepts sketched out or fully fledged by Gail, Robert P, Robert J, or Matt; or to choose both concept and scenes to make your own list. (If I have overlooked other concepts since the whole group has been talking, please remind us all as soon as you can). Kathy and Jayne’s and Clayton’s proposals seem ways and examples of how to approach any group of scenes once we’re at Winedale, and feel free to state your support or comments about such approaches as well. Our sense is that a lot of us are excited about what they are suggesting.
Please keep in mind the time limit we’ve set forth and the number of participants in each scene. Doc urges us to favor ensemble scenes (six or more characters) in the balance, and also to balance longer and shorter scenes. Remember there will be weekenders and audience pop-ups with whom we will share the matinee.
By June 2: Doc and Committee come up with final list of scenes. The committee and Doc will look at the preferences mathematically, see what rises to the top, and then work out the final choices by considering ensemble or what works better or what’s more appropriate for the context. Once we have the final list, it will be sent out to everybody. Please keep an eye on your email inbox that day.
By June 3: Your requests or preferences, if any. When you get that list, please let us know if you have very special preferences for roles you would like to play or scenes you would like to take part in. Once we get that information, we’ll have at the casting.
June 5: Deadline for roles to be cast.
June 6: List of roles sent to whole group.
Courage! This will mean a fast week-plus coming up.
Make your best haste,
All best wishes,
Alice
... I might select 11 different scenes. (This could count as ten or 12
scenes, depending on how you parse it. Forgive me.)
Here they are, not in any particular order:
Lear 1.1, 4.7 (cordelia banished, reconciled)
WT 3.1, 5.3 (Hermione sentenced, statue scene)
AYL 1.3, 5.3 (Orlando, Rosalind, Charles, mirth in heaven)
Tempest, 5.1, Epilog (really one scene -- final Tempest scene)
MND 3.1, 3.2 (bottom caught by Titania, lovers craziness)
Hamlet 3.2 (advice to players), Elizabeth's speech at Tilbury, Richard II's
soliloquy in 5.5.
Emphasis here on magic and reconciliation. Sometimes the reconciliation is
internal, sometimes reconciliation is yearned for and missed.
--Mike
Alice,
Alas! Never was one so slow of study, I trow..... this a.m. I was going to get up and finish this and to my everlasting shame, I could even find it....
All day long I kept thinking....thinking....I do not have a blueberry (thank God) and finally it dawned on me to look in this spot and of course, the damned thing was here all the time....
So, for what it's worth and hopefully there will be something that strikes a spark somewhere, I submit what I have and will go to bed at noon.......
Anon...
5/31/2010 - 11:30 p.m.
Okay, first I'll be as silent as possible per Clayton and I agree with the use of silence.
I still think the Bottom opening onto whatever scene would be a smash.... and I think ending as well. In my mind, our experiences at Shakespeare at Winedale have always been Bottom's Dream and the words match the action.
I love Hamlet's advice to the players 2.2 ... and that too could be a great segue into another scene....as someone suggested.
I also, of course, love Hamlet's 3.2 ...you would play upon me... you would sound me from my lowest note to the top of my compass .... again, I feel this has been my experience as a student..... being sounded from my lowest note to my highest..... (this could also perhaps segue)
The Players Speech 2.2 Hamlet.
There is also the grave diggers scene that is so funny,.... perhaps we could segue from the Weird Sisters to the grave diggers?
I love the Weird Sisters (where did they go?). I too have a broomstick - I had wings but hit a tree and broke them off and now I am forced to fly with just the stick.
I think the Comedy of Errors gate scene is about the funniest most audience-involved total mayhem we have ever done and I don't think anyone ever tires of it.... and it should make Terry very happy.
And Richard II's ....let us sit upon the ground and tell sad stories of the deaths of kings...... (I well remember the nights at Winedale when we did sit upon the ground, our dirt stage, and Terry would read RII to us.
And what happened to the Nurse's scene? I thought Jayne, Kathy and that bottle of great wine they were drinking came up with some super ideas....
The As You Like It wrestling scene 1.2 in honor of so many valiant warriors who have played that part.....as well as 2.5 Ducdame because it is so indigenous to us.
And of course, Much Ado with Dogberry's scene?
Yikes! 1:11 and still the only tragedy being my lack of inspirational thinking....
Thine By Yea or Nay!
Joy
Greetings, All!
Thanks for all the ideas that poured out in the
last couple of weeks. They were a wellspring of inspiration. Now, we are asking that you focus
your scene suggestions on ideas related to the themes "Mystery/Magic/Reunion/Reconciliation". (Past reunions have been built around "Fools and Madmen/Masking,"
"Deception," and "Dream
and Play.") In order to help us with the monumental culling process ahead, please resubmit any scenes you have already submitted if you
feel they fit the themes.
We are thinking about a structure for
the performance that would include transitions between scenes, so as to accommodate all the weekenders who might want to perform. It
would look something like:
PART I
(Intro/Prologue)
Scene 1
Transition 1
Scene 2
Transition 2
Scene 3
Transition 3
ETC.
Intermission
PART II
(Prologue?)
More
scenes/transitions
Finale
For
transitions, there could be anything from poetry to song to dance to monologues .... whatever weekend people would like to contribute; weeklongers could sign up, too.
In '05, the performance went on for
close to 4 hrs., which was too long. We think we should aim at 1.5, followed by 20 minute intermission and come back with a 1 hr
closing. Figuring now: If we limited the scenes to 10 minutes and the
interludes to 3 minutes, we could do 11 scenes and 10 interludes within
the 150 minute period comfortably. The number of scenes will
depend upon what scenes are selected, of course - many scenes seem to
run 10-12 minutes.
The day of the reunion is meant to be a day
full of performances. There will be opportunities available to do
something at the brunch, at a pre-performance moment,
and later, at
the banquet. (During these times, we won't necessarily be concerned
about theme). We "week-longers" should remember that those
opportunities exist for us (if we have time!), as well as for the
week-enders (anyone want to name these two groups, please??) and we hope to capture three or four Camp Shakespeare kids for some
things.
We are setting a deadline for contributing
ideas/brainstorming of Sunday, May 23, which gives all of us ten days to read, think,
dream, put it out there.
Thanks, and more thanks.
Cheers,
Doc and the Gals.
That's fantastic hope all goes well.
________________________________
From: weeklong-l-bounces(a)lists.wikimedia.org
To: weeklong-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
Sent: Mon May 31 23:15:50 2010
Subject: Re: [Weeklong-l] **IMPORTANT: Call to Reunion Action!**
Hey Guys!
Just sent Al my top picks. But wanted to let you guys know that I'm off to Shands tomorrow to have my implant turned on. I will be there the next two days as they begin to train me to hear.
Wish me success!
love,
Terry
-----Original Message-----
From: Maggie Megaw <maggie(a)bizaffairs.com>
To: weeklong-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org
Sent: Mon, May 31, 2010 8:53 pm
Subject: Re: [Weeklong-l] **IMPORTANT: Call to Reunion Action!**
Dear FWW’s,
Here are my 12 picks (sorry Alice!) (My excuse: “O for a Muse of Fire” and Bottom’s Dream are short and would make a great frame…):
· Taming Induction
· Henry V, Prologue -- “O for a Muse of Fire”
· 1 Henry IV (V, iv) -- Falstaff resurrected
· Henry V (V, ii) -- Henry courts Katherine
· Taming (II, i) -- Petruchio “courts” Katherine
· Comedy (III,I) -- “But soft my door is lock’d; go bid them let us in”
· Lear (II, iv) -- “Shut up your doors”
· Lear (IV, vii) -- Lear/Cordelia Reconciliation
· Winter’s Tale (III, ii)
· Winter’s Tale (V, iii)
· 2 Henry IV, (III, ii) -- Shallow/Silence
· MND (V, i) --Bottom’s Dream
At the risk of repeating myself, I love the tavern idea…
--Maggie
From: weeklong-l-bounces(a)lists.wikimedia.org<mailto:weeklong-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org> [mailto:weeklong-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org<mailto:weeklong-l-bounces@lists.wikimedia.org?>] On Behalf Of Alice Gordon
Sent: Saturday, May 29, 2010 1:56 PM
To: weeklong-l(a)lists.wikimedia.org<mailto:weeklong-l@lists.wikimedia.org>
Subject: [Weeklong-l] **IMPORTANT: Call to Reunion Action!**
Dear Fellow Winedale Weeklongians,
On behalf of Doc and the Committee of Cheerleaders, I hereby emit a big Go, Team, Go!
We would like to get the whole scenes-choosing and role-casting process done and roles disseminated by June 6, when the first session of Camp Shakespeare begins and Doc will be all-consumed by it. To meet that deadline, we must strictly adhere to the ones leading up to it.
Attached is the revised master list of scenes I sent you a few days ago. A a few people weighed in with a more ideas. Also, Robert Jackson, please forgive me for not including your list of scenes the first time around. It and newer material is now included and marked in bold-face type.
Here is the process just ahead:
By Midnight, MAY 31: Send your top ten scenes to alicegordon(a)earthlink.net<mailto:alicegordon@earthlink.net>. (I will immediately forward all lists to Doc and the Committee. Just trying to give everyone only one email address to type in.) Considering the themes we’ve all been talking about, please send us your top ten scenes from the complete list. Feel free either to cherry-pick from the list; to vote for one of the concepts sketched out or fully fledged by Gail, Robert P, Robert J, or Matt; or to choose both concept and scenes to make your own list. (If I have overlooked other concepts since the whole group has been talking, please remind us all as soon as you can). Kathy and Jayne’s and Clayton’s proposals seem ways and examples of how to approach any group of scenes once we’re at Winedale, and feel free to state your support or comments about such approaches as well. Our sense is that a lot of us are excited about what they are suggesting.
Please keep in mind the time limit we’ve set forth and the number of participants in each scene. Doc urges us to favor ensemble scenes (six or more characters) in the balance, and also to balance longer and shorter scenes. Remember there will be weekenders and audience pop-ups with whom we will share the matinee.
By June 2: Doc and Committee come up with final list of scenes. The committee and Doc will look at the preferences mathematically, see what rises to the top, and then work out the final choices by considering ensemble or what works better or what’s more appropriate for the context. Once we have the final list, it will be sent out to everybody. Please keep an eye on your email inbox that day.
By June 3: Your requests or preferences, if any. When you get that list, please let us know if you have very special preferences for roles you would like to play or scenes you would like to take part in. Once we get that information, we’ll have at the casting.
June 5: Deadline for roles to be cast.
June 6: List of roles sent to whole group.
Courage! This will mean a fast week-plus coming up.
Make your best haste,
All best wishes,
Alice
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I can see that the process of selecting scenes will not be an easy
one, since all or most of you have different beginning points
(concepts, approaches) for recommending them. I've read a couple of
very interesting conceptual approaches which even offer a structure.
I would be tempted to adopt one of those, with minor adjustment, and
go with it. On the other hand, I am tempted to consider scenes you
have suggested independent of concept or your approach to
orchestrating the performance, not really worried about how things fit
together. And I do think that getting everyone fully involved in the
procession is important and as well the time element. Some of the
scenes suggested are in the 250-400 line category. Some, perhaps too
many, involve two-four principals.
At this late date, I think it is too late to be offering another
approach, scene, concept. You have much to work with and to share and
I hope your discussions are alive with sharing and with the prospect
of playing everything out as one.
Doc