Year 1, Month 1, Day 5: Shakespeare Institute

Textual Studies, Day 1
So, in my class yesterday I was introduced to the Textual Study of Shakespeare, and how much we really know about what he wrote.  Not surprisingly, the question of authorship did NOT come up.  However, I learned a great deal about the plays that he wrote, when and how they were produced either on stage or through a printed text, and how authoritative any given text of his plays really are, as there are several very different texts out there of many of his plays.

In class there were many topics discussed, but as is my habit when taking notes in class, I only really ever ask myself lots of questions on paper or I write down interesting facts I didn't know before.  The decidedly much-younger lady sitting next to me, when I asked what she'd be writing down, had written whole sentences down and could probably recite back everything that had been said inside the classroom.

"You could write a dissertation from that."
"Yeah.  What did you write down?"
"Lots of questions."
"Why write down questions, when you can write down the answers?"
"Are we in the business of answering? Or can we only ask the right questions?"
She shrugged.

So, that's how that went down.

One of the main points of yesterday's lecture was in discussion about how accurate most of the texts we have on Shakespeare are to what he actually wrote down.  With only three pages of Sir Thomas More known to exist in Shakespeare's own hand, and nothing else besides a few collector's items with his signature or a few words written down, we have very, very little.  Or at least, that is what I heard in class yesterday... I am certainly no authority yet on Shakespeare's known pieces of handwriting.

The reason there is very little in his own writing stems from the discrepancy of time between an actual performance of Shakespeare's plays, that being the time in which he would be most involved, and the actual publication of his scripts for the general public to read at their leisure, a time in which he would be least involved. (A book by Lukas Erne called Shakespeare as Literary Dramatist was recommended on this topic, where Shakespeare's involvement with the printer and publisher of his works is speculated on. Book Link)

A few of the facts I picked up in class were based around why we call them Folios, Quartos and Octavos, and it has nothing to do with the quality of the work.  A Folio is a piece of work where the printed page is only folded once, a Quarto is folded twice, and an Octavo folded thrice (c'mon, you knew I was gonna say "thrice" instead of "three times", I'm a Shakespeare geek now.)  There are very few Shakespeare Octavos in existence, but a surprising number of Quartos still around, and of course, a number of copies of the First Folio of his Complete Works.  The Quartos, in fact, are the reason that so many different texts to his plays exist, and the sheer number of Quartos in existence for each piece of writing gives us some idea of what his most popular works in writing were.  While his early plays, like Richard II and III, and Henry IV had several different Quartos released (six for Richard III, five for Richard II, and seven for Henry IV) that we know of, most of Shakespeare's plays only rated one, two, or three versions of the Quartos released, and a full third of his plays we do not have any Quarto copies of.  The most popular piece of writing Shakespeare had in Quarto form was his poem, Venus and Adonis, which had a surprising twelve Quartos released, and maybe more but these are the only ones we have knowledge of.

A Quarto was a much more popular, and a much more accessible piece of writing than a Folio, as it was produced for much cheaper and made much quicker than a Folio would have been.  While a First Folio might be found in the library of royalty or rich aristocracy, the Quarto of a play could be owned by a shopkeeper or less-rich member of the gentry and thus a much more widely distributed piece of writing.  Something else I was told about, that is free and available to everyone... a website that has all of Shakespeare's Quartos scanned and ready for perusing, that also allows you to compare the texts side-by-side. (The British Library: Shakespeare in Quarto Collection)  I mean, how cool is that?

If you take a look at the versions of Hamlet and Romeo & Juliet, you will notice a difference in texts between Q1 and Q2 for both of them, and then again finding difference in text from the actual Folio version of each.  The First Folio actually being an amalgamation of Quartos, manuscripts, and edits of Shakespeare's work, and not necessarily the *authority* on what each play was, and is, today.

Here are a few of the questions I wrote down in class, based upon the discussion:

• What did Shakespeare actually write, and what didn't he write?: It has been a growing belief that Shakespeare was a collaborator on "Arden of Faversham" by Anonymous.  This is also an obvious question for anyone studying the text of William Shakespeare, and probably the first one that everyone asks.
• Sometimes texts differ greatly. What are the validity of each of his texts?: Again, an obvious and unanswerable question.
• Is any of the stage direction given in any of his early publications actually a part of Shakespeare's original manuscript or was it a part of his productions?: No way to know the answer to this question, but one I am keen to take a crack at.
• Was Shakespeare interested in seeing his plays in print?: An interesting question as it stems from the desire to know what was inside the man's head, and a good follow-up might be, "If he was, when did that begin and when did it end?"
• How did the performance of a play reshape the ownership of it in Elizabethan times?:  the copies of Shakespeare's early work in Quarto (e.g. Titus Andronicus) did not even feature the author's name on the front cover, and just listed the names of the "honourable men" who performed it and the publisher.
• Why would a theatre company want a play they have performed put into print?: A follow-up to the last question, in which it was posited that maybe they wanted to respark interest in a play that had gone out of style, or wanted to make an additional profit off of the sale.
• Why does Shakespeare's name only appear in reprints of his early work?: Another question about the printing, the answer to which was posited as maybe his gain in celebrity around London as a premier playwright, and maybe his name had become a selling point.
• Did Shakespeare himself want to hold back on the printing in lieu of performances that had yet to, or were still taking place?
• Did the publishing of Ben Jonson's plays influence how Shakespeare went about publishing?: Ben Jonson was an integral part of the publishing of his plays, being very particular in how they were put into the written word, being fussy about punctuation and word order.

The question here that I am most interested in involves the stage directions that have been put into the Quartos, the First Folio, and the modern editions of Shakespeare's work and not only when and how they appear first, but also what the principal differences are between them and why they appear at all.  The exact phrasing of the question still eludes me, but the fascination is there and if I know my own mind, I won't stop thinking about it until a better question or topic comes along... or I write 80,000 words on the subject.

Shakespeare Seminar, Part the First. -- Dr. Michael Dobson, A Boy from Stratford.
After attending Textual Studies yesterday, I had a two hour break wherein I posted my review of Twelfth Night and attended to some important online research (read: Facebook Stalking).  At 2 pm, I attended a seminar/ lecture/ presentation of paper on Shakespeare as a boy, entitled A Boy from Stratford presented by its author, Dr. Michael Dobson, the head of the Shakespeare Institute.

This presentation focused mostly on the images of Shakespeare that appeared in art after the author himself was many years in the grave.  Though Professor Dobson is much more educated in this topic, and spoke with a candor and humor as befitting his status of a Shakespearean scholar, he also made this lecture fun.  His commentary on the subject wasn't necessarily contained in the words that he spoke, but really in the manner that he spoke them.  With a certain emphasis on his light praise of a piece of artwork, he could turn that praise into a sarcastic bite that made the audience laugh in recognition of the artistic liberty that each painter, storybook author, or photographer has taken in the presentation of his or her work to the general populous, and how ridiculous some of those artistic liberties actually were.  For example, in the discussion of a children's book with William Shakespeare as the title character, the book had suggested that all of Mr. Shakespeare's plays and bits of famous dialogue were in fact inspired by his encounters with the townspeople of Stratford-upon-Avon, and his brother... all while he was a teenage boy.  Though the book was, of course, not intended to be taken seriously, Professor Dobson's light ribbing of the book was not to be taken too seriously either as his intonation during the exposition of the discussion suggested.

Though it was only my very first lecture/ paper presentation at the Shakespeare Institute, I came away with a good idea of what a great presentation sounds and looks and feels like (as I will be making two of them in my tenure here at the Institute), gotten a little insight as to the posthumous effect of Mr. Shakespeare's fame on British society and world art, and have come away with a quote of Dr. Dobson's in his evaluation of art and artwork...

"It's always easier if someone in the picture is wearing a halo." -- Dr. Michael Dobson, 27/09/12.

I have to admit, I laughed pretty hard at that last one... but then again, I love a dry and witty commentary on art and art critiques (critics?).

True, I talk of dreams,
Which are the children of an idle brain,
Begot of nothing but vain fantasy. -- Romeo & Juliet, Act I, Sc. IV.

Year One, Day 5 -- Words Written: 0

REVIEW: Twelfth Night @ The Royal Shakespeare Company

Emily Taaffe as Viola in Twelfth Night. Photograph by Keith Pattison

I saw Twelfth Night last at the RSC.  It was the one time since being here that I REALLY missed not having a camera.  If you've never been to the Royal Shakespeare Company Main Stage in Stratford-upon-Avon, it is a grand theater made mostly of industrial brick, which is to say that while it is very sturdy looking, it has spot inside that the theater makes no effort to hide of a very rough nature.  With broken bricks and discoloration, you get the feeling that you are in an old brick warehouse or airplane hangar, when in fact the building is relatively new compared to some of the buildings you'll find everywhere around here.

The seating for Twelfth Night was a thrust stage, wherein the thrust part of the stage was obviously something built for the express purposes of their Shipwreck Series of shows ("The Tempest", "The Comedy of Errors", and "Twelfth Night") with a pool of water making up the downstage right portion of the stage, wood-planked floor reminiscent of the decking to an boat wreckage that is made into a progressive on the stage from completely flat on the downstage end to almost vertical all the way upstage, and scattered pieces of furniture most likely found in an old hotel in the French Quarter of New Orleans.  The costumes of the characters ranging from 1930's New York to 1990's London to the 2012 Hipster with a touch of "Steampunk" in there.

Emily Taaffe, Ankur Bahl, and Jonathan McGuinness. Photograph by Keith Pattison.

In the upstage center of the stage stands a skeletal pillar, that ended up being one of the most versatile pieces of set design I have ever seen... or at least versatile in my most recent memory.  The skeletal nature of the pillar, when a part of a scene that was taking place indoors seemed as if the pillar was merely hollowed out as a significant portrayal of the age of the foyer that the scene was taking place.  When the scene shifted to one that was supposed to be played on the docks, a blinking red light that was situated inside the pillar three-quarters of the way up, made the pillar appear as if it were a part of a crane or buoy that you would find on the shores of just about any fishing village in the world.  In front of this pillar hung a chandelier wrapped in black scrim, so when the scene took place indoors the chandelier simply lit up from inside making the scrim disappear, and when it took place out of doors the chandelier went dark, making it seem as if the chandelier were actually a bag of fish hanging off the crane directly behind it.  The impressive nature of this design, and its versatility, stem from the fact that all of the images created by the design were very specific as to their locale (fishing village docks, ramshackle hotel and old boat wreckage) without changing a thing beyond a few lighting perspectives.  In the picture to the left and below you can see the pillar standing as a part of a lounge seat reminiscent of the old weathered leather couches you'd find in prewar hotels, and the plank flooring as it slopes up toward the ceiling further upstage.

There were many more elements to the setting that created wonderful eye-catching spectacle, such as a working industrial elevator upstage right, and the upstage left exit being a fully-functional turn-of-the-century rotating door set on a raked stage that produced a feeling of the actors either falling off the stage through one side of the rotation and then climbing back out of the door as they reentered.  Nothing about this stage seemed in line with itself, almost as if the hotel itself had crashed upon the rocks of the stage at the RSC and we were witnessing the characters as if they'd all crashed there at one point or another throughout history.

Jonathan Slinger as Malvolio in Twelfth Night. Photograph by Keith Pattison.

The content of the show, besides the setting was not an afterthought by any measure, but it was not something I focused a great deal upon.  As I have seen Twelfth Night done before (The Globe in London, and the Chicago Shakespeare Theater), and read it off the page, I was familiar with the story and only paid attention at the particular talent and portrayal of the characters as it differed from what I'd seen previously.  Jonathan Slinger as Malvolio, pictured left, was a delight to watch and extremely funny in his portrayal, giving his character an almost mealy, and extremely British aristocratic air to his speech and physicality.  With the portrayal ending in a way I'd not seen prior to this, with Malvolio ending up center stage, pathetic and stripped of all but his pants with stirrups attached, malevolently pronouncing, "I will be revenged."  Malvolio becomes the victim of all on stage and all the audience.  It was here I realized the cultural topic of bullying being so clearly brought to the forefront, and I felt almost guilty for having laughed at his obvious preening and prancing across the stage during the entire play prior to that moment.  As a victim of bullying in my younger years, I saw just exactly what I believe the director, the actor, and the playwright intended me to see, that I had not realized prior to seeing this performance.  In fact, I was almost upset that I hadn't seen the obvious thematic element of bullying in the previous productions I had seen.

The visuals of this play were exceptional, the characters and portrayals of each were entertaining, and the show entirely worth seeing.  Well done Royal Shakespeare Company!

If you'd like to see more information about the Royal Shakespeare Company, or would like to read a real review and not one by some random blogger, go to http://www.rsc.org.uk/.  If you'd like to see where I got the pictures, go to http://www.rsc.org.uk/whats-on/twelfth-night/.

This fellow is wise enough to play the fool
And to do that well craves a kind of wit. -- Twelfth Night, Act III, Sc. I
Year One, Day Four -- Words Written: 0

Year 1, Month 1, Day 2: Shakespeare Institute.

Today was the first day of classes for me.  I begin my studies here with a class called Research Skills taught by my Academic Advisor, Professor John Jowett.  A class very reminiscent of my very first research class at New York University, Methods and Materials of Research, wherein we were expected to develop our very own research project, complete with interviews and artistic-based conclusions.  Along those lines, the very first class of this module was spent in discussing what we will be covering during the fall term, such as the use of different sources and materials for research.

A question that was brought up in class today by Prof. Jowett, that was then discussed by the students in groups, was "What is the nature of postgraduate work, and how does it differ from what you have experienced up until this point?"  While the groups spent ten or so minutes discussing, there were many different answers to the question posed as there were all kinds of different life experiences and wisdom in the room.  A few of those differences are listed below, or at least the ones that I could ascertain from the conversation that followed.

1. Academic vs. Practical Theatre Experience: Specifically the differences in ways of thinking as an academic as opposed to being a theatre professional.  This seems to have been a very common sentiment around the room today.
2. Focus of Academic Study vs. Broad Umbrella of Study: Loosely translated as being able to study the minutiae of Shakespeare and his body of work versus the broad general study of theatre or literature.
3. The Study of Original Material vs. Criticism: I'd agree that the opportunity to sit down in front of a First Folio and flip the page might be a vast improvement over the mere description of the event itself by someone who has also done so.  Kind of like the difference between seeing the Grand Canyon, and hearing someone's description of the Grand Canyon.
4. Being Careful About Digression of Topic vs. The Reformulation of the Entire Idea: Digression in paper writing is bound to happen as research becomes more and more available and readily accessible.  The difference here lies in whether or not the research is truly part of the question you are trying to answer, or will you actually change the question to fit the answer you have just found.
5. Taking Meticulous Notes: Not just in class, but while you are reading any pertinent material.  The mere fact that every researcher has that moment where they are trying to recall a bit of information, and not knowing where or when you heard it first.  It's like trying to quote a movie you saw only a week ago, but having seen twenty movies since then you can't quite remember where you heard it first.
6. How to Refine Internet Searches without Losing Valuable Resources while Still Finding Pertinent Information:  Welcome to Google... and Google Scholar... and Bing... and DEEP (The Database for Early English Productions)... and well, the library.  Practice makes perfect.  You will only ever know if you've found it all be either reading it all, or asking someone who has read different resources.  What I got from this is that if you don't use your fellow students as resources, you're a schmuck.  And... you will NEVER find it ALL.

 The next topic of discussion involved class assessment in Britain at the MA level.  As it was explained to me, there is a PASS grade, a MERIT grade, and a DISTINCTION grade.  Each of these, however, are graded with a lower numerical value than they are in the USA.  PASS begins at a numerical value of 50.  MERIT at 60.  DISTINCTION at 70.  The grades you should strive for are in the low 70s.  An occasional 80 might be given, but very rarely.  I would think a 90 would be given if Shakespeare himself submitted an analysis of his own work... but then, given his predilection to make up words on the fly as it suited his purposes, he might receive a few critiques from the headier professionals at the institute.

At the last, I received my very first assignment.  Critique a published work as if it were a paper to be submitted for a class.  The article in question:
   Kahn, Coppelia. "The Magic of Bounty": Timon of Athens, Jacobean Patronage and Maternal Power. Shakespearean Quarterly. Vol. 38, Issue 1. 1987. 34-57

God, I hope Dr. Amy Cordileone isn't watching.  I'm sure I'd get a critique on my citation skills today.

So, I plan on reading Timon of Athens, then reading the article, then critiquing it.  By next Tuesday.  That's easy, right?

For brave Macbeth—well he deserves that name—
Disdaining Fortune, with his brandish'd steel,
Which smoked with bloody execution,
Like valour's minion carved out his passage
Till he faced the slave;
Which ne'er shook hands, nor bade farewell to him,
Till he unseam'd him from the nave to the chops,
And fix'd his head upon our battlements. -- Macbeth, Act I, Sc. II.

Year One, Day 2 -- Words Written: 0

Day 14: Stratford-upon-Avon, Day 1: The Shakespeare Institute.

The Lecture Hall, Shakespeare Institute

The Conservatory, Shakespeare Institute

So it begins.  The long road to achieving a PhD. has never felt more daunting or exciting than it has today.  In the morning introduction to the program I met the professors and re-introduced myself to a few of the students I met yesterday at the "Introductory Tea" held by the older students for the first-years.  It was held in Lecture Hall with about forty new students in attendance.  My program, Shakespeare Studies, I found out in the meeting that immediately followed is made up of about a dozen full-time students seeking their MA in Shakespeare Studies, with only two PhD. (with Integrated Study) students... myself being one of them and the only American in the room.  My program is headed up by Professor John Jowett, who is incidentally also my Academic Advisor, an editor for the Oxford books Complete Works of William Shakespeare, and someone I'm sure I'll be writing about a great deal here.  Though there was a great deal of initial information that all students need to know, as any graduate school starts off with, there was also a slight feeling of anxiety on my part as I was indoctrinated to the British school systems and their way of working.

While there wasn't much "lolling about" in between the induction ceremony to the Institute itself, and my other meetings this morning, I did get the opportunity to meet a few more people that were a part of the Shakespeare Studies program (or programme, if you prefer.)  The other programs that I observed meeting today were for Shakespeare and Education, and Shakespeare and Theatre, though I am sure other students were there as well.  There were forty of us after all.

The last thing I did this morning was a tour of library.  Without overreaching, I will say that this is where I will go to pray from now on.  Along with just about every volume ever written on Shakespeare and Renaissance Theatre, they have every paper clipping dating back to 1902 that contains words or pictures or anything to do with Shakespeare and his theatre, and I believe they have video copies of just about every Shakespeare movie, or play for TV, or BBC production that has been done along with the myriad of Shakespearean videos that have been produced on how to Act Shakespeare or Read Shakespeare... there might've even been an instructional manual on how to build a Shakespeare Costume for Halloween.  So, I'm gonna be busy for the next decade or so reading, watching, and discovering this library and all of its wisdom.

Students in the foyer of the Shakespeare Institute, First day of school

This afternoon I have yet another meeting for research students, and I'm sure an introduction to the process itself.  Tomorrow I have my first proper class, and this Wednesday I am going to see Twelfth Night at the Royal Shakespeare Company's Main Stage.

Oh, and I found out that The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust Library (just up the street) has not one, but three copies of the First Folio, and that it might be possible for me to peruse these copies in my research. (Maybe, maybe not.) This is the largest collection besides the Folger Library in Washington, D.C... or at least, that is what I've been told by John Jowett.  I think I qualify as an extreme geek when I say that I am over-the-moon to have access to something like the First Folio, along with the wealth of knowledge that seems to be at everyone's fingertips here.

The Garden Out Back, Shakespeare Institute

Lastly, it is a strange place I have found myself in that the Glassy-Eye Syndrome is one that all of my fellow students have encountered at one time or another.  This very serious disease is extremely contagious in party-goers when speaking with a Shakespearean Scholar, usually accompanied by a desperate urge to use the bathroom, refill one's drink somewhere else, or suicidal tendencies.  This strange and wonderful place contains all Shakespearean Scholars which means we've all been on the receiving end of the Glassy Eye Syndrome, and are now ensconced with a veritable slew of people who not only wish to talk about Shakespeare, but it happens to be our favorite topic of conversation.

I realize that this entry has been a bit of a mish-mash of information and bad writing, but it's completely necessary for me to get all the crap out before I begin writing term papers of 4000 word lengths for each class, and my 15,000 word dissertation at the end of this year.

So, I'll be writing a terrible amount of crap here, intellectual and some not-so-intellectual, I'm afraid.

If I chance to talk a little wild, forgive me. -- Henry VIII, Act I, Sc. IV.
Day 1, Words Written: 0

Day Nine: Stratford-Upon-Avon

Days go by slowly here.  Of late, Vicky and I have taken to spending most of our day inside the Starbucks (free wi-fi and one bottomless cup of coffee), where I spend most of my time following friends on Facebook and looking up cultural literature on life in suburban England.  Which means that if you are a friend of mine on Facebook, I've stalked you, and that when I'm not stalking you, I'm trying to acquaint myself with things that British citizens take for granted.  These are things that I would take, and did take, for granted as a US citizen, like, how much does it cost to have a mobile phone?  Which company has the best broadband and cable bundle?  Is it possible to watch any American TV shows in the UK? (Though, watching Downton Abbey and Sherlock on the first night it airs on BBC One is awful nice.) Which store sells the cheapest groceries?  Is there a restaurant in town that actually has healthy food, or is it all Fish & Chips - all the time?  If I weight 90 kilos, is that good or bad?  How tall am I in meters?  Driving on the left side of the road, really?

I tell you that the language and dialect the British use takes some getting used to, though the more you hear it, the better you are at understanding it.  The Scottish dialect, same thing.  The deep Scottish dialect, you will never understand it... don't even try and hire a translator when walking the highlands.

When trying to find an apartment in the UK, bring the following to every meeting with your real estate agent/ residential letting agent: your US passport, copies of current bank statements, recommendations from past landlords, letters of employment (if you have a job in the US, you can do remotely and/or a job here in the UK, get your boss to do this for you!) and have access to cash, as waiting for your US checks to clear might remind you a little of the trials of Job (the guy from the bible.)

Did you know that the UK government actually has a department that holds on to your security deposit for the landlord?  If the landlord has a dispute, they have to file a grievance with the government and only if they win the argument, using an impartial third party as a judge, they are allowed to use your security deposit to fix up the apartment.

Did you know that the UK letting agents only take a small stipend to put an application down on an apartment, and that is all they receive from you, and from then on the apartment cannot be shown to any other prospective tenants?

Did you know that the UK has "socialized" medicine?

Ever been inside a UK taxi?  Now, compare that with the size of the average New York City taxicab.

These things that UK residents may take for granted, I do not.  It may be one hell of an adjustment for a simple academic from New York City, but I'll tell you, in no uncertain terms, that the UK life has got some great perks... a mobile phone costs about $50US/ month with unlimited everything...  I think I may be on cultural overload right now, but I think it best that I am thinking about all of this now instead of when I am dead-center of a PhD. program that promises to be intellectually harrowing and almost exclusively British in its origins, by which I mean that all the professors will have extreme British accents complete with British slang...  Maybe I'm over thinking this.

Confusion now hath made me his masterpiece! -- Macbeth, Act II, Sc. III
Year One, Day -5 -- Words written: 0

Day Seven: Stratford-upon-Avon

Waiting.  Patiently waiting.
 This is how I spend the early days of my adventures into Stratford-upon-Avon, and the world of William Shakespeare.  I wait for approval from a UK landlord, and a UK credit check.  I wait to move in to my new apartment.  I wait for my program to start at University, and I wait to meet my new professors and peers at the Shakespeare Institute here in town.  I wait to get a mobile phone as they need proof of residency in order to acquire a month-to-month contract.  I wait to get a new UK bank account because they also need proof of residency.  I wait in line at Starbucks, so that I might get a tall coffee for here, so that I might enjoy their free internet.  I wait to have access to my own internet service, so that I won't have to keep waiting in line at Starbucks.  I wait.  I wait patiently.

So, school stuff.  Yeah.  I'm going to Birmingham this week sometime to pick up my ID card, and to see the University a bit.  Though I am not spending any time there at all (really), I'd like to at least see the campus of the University I'm going to receive my degree from.  I'm sure I'll end up using the University library quite a bit, as the degree I'm getting is most definitely a research one... however, I don't relish the idea of traveling a long ways to sit in a library all day, I suppose I'll have to get used to it.  Side note: Purchase train tickets online, always.  At the window they are not even trying to hide the extra expense (almost double.)

Last little stress point... my dissertation is supposed to be 80,000 words.  At 300 words per page, that works out to 266 pages, double-spaced.  It'll be the longest thing I have ever written, and according to every PhD. I have ever spoken to, it will be the hardest thing I have ever done.  On top of that, I am taking six classes in my first year that expect a 4,000 word essay for assessment at the end of each semester, and a pilot assignment to determine my eligibility for the actual PhD. that comes in at 10,000 words.  My first year here, I will be writing 36,000 words and I will not have even started my actual dissertation.

Polonius:
My liege, and madam, to expostulate
What majesty should be, what duty is,
What day is day, night night, and time is time,
Were nothing but to waste night, day, and time;
Therefore, since brevity is the soul of wit,
And tediousness the limbs and outward flourishes,
I will be brief. Your noble son is mad. . . .
Hamlet, Act II, Sc. II, 86-92

He's talking about me, isn't he?

Year 1, Day -7 -- Words written: 0

More pictures...

Holy Trinity Church and Shakespeare's Grave.

Boat Quay next to the RSC, with the Holy Trinity Church in the distance.

These were the view for our dinner spot last night.  It was incredibly peaceful, despite the thousands of tourists that were traipsing around waiting for the shows at the RSC theatres to start.

There are three Royal Shakespeare Company theatres in town: the mainstage, the Swan, and the Courtyard.  It appears that I will have my pick of awesome Shakespeare this season.

One of the many foot bridges in Stratford-upon-Avon.

They are everywhere.

I bear a charmed life. -- Macbeth - Act V, Sc. VIII

Day Five: Stratford-upon-Avon

William Shakespeare, or at least his statue.

Of course there are pictures.  You cannot be in a place as beautiful as Stratford-upon-Avon and not fill your digital camera with as many pictures as possible.  Especially on a day like this... a lovely, temperate Saturday afternoon, buzzing with end-of-summer tourists who are all here to see a show, or visit one of the many Shakespearean sites that pepper the entire town.

Flowers in full bloom, RSC in the background.

An entire crowd of people sit on the lawn in front of the Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC), waiting until 8 pm when a performance of Twelfth Night will begin.  A part of their Shipwreck Series, the stage has been separated from the audience by an honest-to-god moat.  The first image the audience is greeted with in the show is watching Viola climb out of the water onto stage, which is set as a beautiful shipwreck in all its frenetic glory.

The Fool - A statue in Stratford-Upon-Avon, UK.

There are statues all over town featuring some of Shakeapeare's best known characters, and some of his most beloved caricatures.  The quote on the bottom of the statue at left goes as follows: "The fool doth think he is wise.  But the wise man knows himself to be a fool. (As You Like It)"

River boat on the Avon.

The river Avon is stocked, fit to bust, with touring boats that go up and down the river all day.  With plenty of tourists in attendance today, I have counted over twenty boats at the pier.

Ice Cream Boat on the Avon River, in front of the RSC.

Not all of the boats are there to ferry and carry tourists however.  Some of them, are there to fill a much baser instinct.







<----

Tourists, and the Royal Shakespeare Company.

The Royal Shakespeare Company is the most popular tourist attraction in town, when it is in season.  The RSC clock tower is one of the highest points in town.  A few hundred yards behind the theater however, is one of my favorite places to visit.  Shakespeare's grave inside the Holy Trinity Church.  Not sure if a picture of that would be appropriate, but we will see.

No comment.

I had to post this.  I just... had. to.

William Shakespeare, and Prince Hal.

I hope you've enjoyed my picture blog this time around.  These are only pictures I have taken in my first week here.  We will see how many more I can take before winter arrives!

I am not only witty in myself, but the cause that wit is in other men. -- Henry IV, p.2 - Act I, Sc. 2

Day Four: Stratford-upon-Avon

So, after having transported two hundred pounds of luggage from London to Stratford-upon-Avon, we are here in the local Holiday Inn, watching The Shawshank Redemption on British TV.  No editing, all the foul language, and every bit of nudity that movies and real life have to offer.  All the things that the United States feel necessary to edit out of our media.  It's around this time that I begin to think of all the cultural differences between me and my chosen destination for my continued education.


I mean, what the hell is a "rocket" and how is it possible to eat it?  Cos' in every restaurant we've been to a "rocket" has been on the menu, I just haven't had the courage to try one.  Rockets and Jacket Potatoes.


On the television, it's bad lighting, horrible set dressing, costumes straight out of an INXS music video, and no make-up.  As an American, I prefer my celebrities well-lit, well-costumed, well-covered, living either on a mythical set crafted by Hollywood's finest set designers or one of those lavish accommodations that no real person actually lives in, and I'll take them bat-shit crazy with a touch of talent, if you please.  I'll take the newscasters who are sensationalist freaks, rather than the practical, well-informed, worldly, unfortunately monotone, unattractive and tragically dressed intellectuals that are all over the BBC and British TV.


We are staying in a Holiday Inn, the cheapest hotel in town.  In a town and country where health food consists of at least ten proteins.  After every meal we need at least a three hour nap.

A soda that costs 1 pound, 50 pence actually costs $2.43 US.  All that for a 500mL bottle of Coca-Cola.  Which is only a 17.5 oz. bottle compared to our 20 oz. bottles or even 2 liter bottles, which in Connecticut sometimes cost under a dollar.


I haven't yet begun to study Shakespeare.  I'm am resigned to studying the people and culture of the place I have chosen as my home.  For now.



There is not much else to comment on except this... These people are friendly.  They're not assholes.  A fellow in a bar a couple nights ago said that he had gotten into an accident and broken his collarbone.  His wife, an American friend of mine, asked him if he had gotten the other driver's information (his name, his insurance, etc.) and he had replied, "No."  Which of course, made his wife freak out immediately... something about a lawsuit and the cost of health insurance.  To which he replied that there would be no hospital bills, and that a lawsuit would end up costing more than it was worth for both parties involved.



It was at this point that his wife clammed up.  Paying for health care had become so ingrained, and lawsuits so common that this answer took her completely by surprise.  Then the husband said to his wife, "Why would I want to sue him anyway?  It was an accident.  He's probably just like me, a working bloke who just happened to open the door to his car as my bike passed.  He wasn't trying to hurt me."


This thought hit me hard.  The man sitting right in front of me wasn't bragging.  He wasn't trying to provide an example of how good-hearted he could be.  He wasn't being the sanctimonious preacher showing me examples of truly generous people.  He was being himself, and just contributing to the conversation regarding how Obama has changed the American healthcare system.


These people aren't assholes.  Well, maybe the soccer hooligans are and maybe I found the one and only Brit who isn't.  I don't know yet.  I do know, however, that the majority of Americans would've freaked out, reported the guy to the police, sued him for everything he was worth, and felt like a victim all the way to the bank.


Welcome to England.



"Our doubts are traitors, and make us lose the good we oft might win, by fearing to attempt" -- Measure for Measure, Act I, Sc. IV

Day Two: London, England

Day 2 has dawned, and I thought that I would start a blog to chronicle my days in the United Kingdom.  For now, here is a little about myself.  I am an American student about to begin a PhD. with Integrated Study in Shakespeare Studies at the Shakespeare Institute in Stratford-Upon-Avon, through The University of Birmingham.  I have received both of my prior degrees, one a B.F.A. in Acting and the other an M.A. in Educational Theatre, from New York University.

I am 37 years old, and have been called the King of Random Jobs.  I have been the Manager and Lighting/ Sound Technician of the NYU Night Club, an Assistant Tour Manager/ Assistant Sound Engineer for Peter, Paul and Mary, a Professional Swing Dance Instructor and Performer who has been employed all over the world, a Lighting and Pyrotechnician for Ringling Brothers Circus, a Theatre Teacher at the Oakland School for the Arts, a Production Manager for the Oakland Ballet, a personal assistant to a Hollywood director (who shall remain nameless, lest I incriminate him), and a lowly A/V technician, Technical Director, and Artistic Director to several high schools across Southern Connecticut.

All that is a mouthful.  That being said however, I still feel like a kid starting his first new adventure away from home as I sit here in London, patiently waiting for school to start.  It's not that I haven't had adventures before... I've even written them down in dramatic long hand for those of you who would care to sponsor a reading of a play based on my adventures in the circus many years ago.  I just haven't a clue as to what to expect from the UK education system, or even why they've accepted me into their folds as a prospective PhD. student... you see, I was never interviewed by anyone for the school before they sent me an email saying that I was to be one of their many candidates in the Fall of 2012.

I will write more later, but at the moment my laptop has told me I am running on reserve power.

Oh, and it was 70 degrees in Connecticut when we left, that is to say when my girlfriend Vicky, and I left, and now it is in the low 60s here in London.  I am such a pussy when it comes to cold weather.

"An honest tale speeds best, being plainly told." -- Richard III, Act IV, Sc. IV