This August, five groups of Teen Reviewers and Critics (TRaC) ventured out into New York City to take in some culture. After attending a Thursday performance, everyone wrote reviews, then reconvened the following Tuesday for a discussion and workshop. Our work is published here in the second of a five part series featuring writing from the Summer TRaC!
Summer TRaC Session 2 attended Judith Shakespeare Company’s reverse-gender production of The Two Gentlemen of Verona. Check out the excerpts and full reviews below….
“One could be happy to say that the comfortable and exaggerated acting enabled those who quiver at the name of Shakespeare, to still understand what was going on.” – Nylejah Lawson
“In [the] black box theater, […] a woman comes out to put her costume skirt on, but then decides to put on pants and a tie. Little by little the whole cast comes on stage, and the men put on skirts and corsets, and the women dress in male attire.” – Katherine Brannan-Williams
“Adding to the satire is the cast’s dramatic, intense line delivery and comedic use of pop culture allusions (most notably, the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air handshake). The unique versatility of the performance is both its merit and its downfall.” – Sharon Mizrahi
“What I inexplicably enjoyed most was the men’s interpretation of women, in love. Alvin Chan’s portrayal of a lovelorn Julia inspired some of the most memorable performances in the show. Equally as comical a performance was that of Hunter Gilmore as a gentle and seemingly fragile Sylvia.” – Carol Szwei
“Though Shakespeare’s jokes may now be archaic, when a man wearing a corset delivers them, it’s hard not to laugh. But the actors don’t need their outlandish costumes to be entertaining […] Yet, at times, these attempts to honor the themes of the play are undermined when routine comedic outbursts overshadow graver events such as rape and betrayal.” – Kirsten Rischert
“Overall this play was a good play. I would definitely recommend seeing this play.” – Eddie Lawson
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