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Questions to think about for OSU's Twelfth Night performance on Nov. 27

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Questions to think about for OSU's Twelfth Night performance on Nov. 27

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-Which characters in the play role double (play more than one part)?  What costume piece is used to show when the characters shift roles?

-There are many instruments used in this play, like a slide whistle and rain stick.  How are these instruments used to add meaning to the play and what might their sounds symbolize?

-How do the characters change from the beginning of the play to the end?

-The "whirligig of time" is a major theme in this play, meaning that there is chaos, but that it eventually is restored back to balance, that over time problems are resolved. What examples can you give from the play that show balance vs. order or the "whirligig of time"?

-Power and status are major themes in this play.  What examples from the play can you give explaining characters and their power or lack of power?  Do any of the characters experience a change in their level of power or status?  Do any of the characters "social climb" or try to elevate their power and status level?

-How are Maria and Olivia different from one another? How do they relate to the male characters?  How do they react when they confront problems?

-Is the story Twelfth Night more a comedy or a tragedy?  Why?  What makes it comic and what makes it tragic?

-Do you think that what occurs with Malvolio is a practical joke or does it cross the line to be considered bullying?  What is your evidence from the play?

-Why is theatre important and what can it do?  When you see a play performed by live actors, how do you understand a story differently than when you read it in a book?

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The plot | Twelfth Night | Royal Shakespeare Company

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Read the story of Twelfth Night, also known as What You Will - a comedy which centres on mistaken identity.

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Course Hero, "Twelfth Night Study Guide," September 1, 2017, accessed November 14, 2018, https://www.coursehero.com/lit/Twelfth-Night/.

Orsino Duke of Illyria; elegant and powerful nobleman Viola Young aristocratic woman; disguised as a boy called Cesario Olivia Wealthy and noble young woman Sebastian Often mistaken for Cesario, the male character played by Viola Unrequited loves Unrequited loves Unrequited loves Steward Maid Friends Uncle Twin siblings Spouses Suitor Sir Andrew Easily manipulated and foolish man Sir Toby Drunk, greedy, and coarse man Maria Loyal, kind-hearted woman; helps to trick Malvolio Malvolio Grumpy, arrogant, and rude servant; victim of a trick

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Twelfth Night Character Map - Course Hero

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Cite This Study Guide MLA Bibliography Course Hero. "Twelfth Night Study Guide." Course Hero. 1 Sep. 2017. Web. 14 Nov. 2018. . In text (Course Hero) APA Bibliography Course Hero. (2017, September 1). Twelfth Night Study Guide. In Course Hero. Retrieved November 14, 2018, from https://www.coursehero.com/lit/Twelfth-Night/ In text (Course Hero, 2017) Chicago Bibliography Course Hero.

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Role Doubling and Gender Swapping in OSU's production of Twelfth Night

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Role Doubling and Gender Swapping in OSU's production of Twelfth Night

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A Note on Staging Techniques:

Role Doubling:
Doubling occurs when two characters (or more) are played by the same actor. This is a theater specific mode of utilizing the performers, one that can create confusion. In Twelfth Night, we have specific markers that are going to indicate the double roles. For example, the Duke and Officer two are played by the same actor, but there will be a costume change indicating his change. This allows for multiple possibilities on stage. With actors doubling up on who they are playing, it allows them to stretch their abilities and to learn more about the ways in which the plays were originally performed. Many productions in the Early Modern era used doubling in casting.

Gender Swapping:
Gender swapping is a case where a character of one gender is played by an actor of different gender. During Shakespeare’s life all of his plays and the plays by others were performed by men and boys. Boys played the female roles and as they got older they began to perform male roles if they decided to remain with the theatre company. This is utilized, but reversed, in Twelfth Night with Sebastian, a male role performed by a woman who is playing a man. Unlike the actress playing Viola, who also plays as Cesario, this male disguise that is part of the plot. This can create confusion as the genders are already being played with on stage by Viola’s disguise. Imagine how it used to be in Shakespeare’s day! What makes gender swapping possible in a production is the utilization of the willing suspension of disbelief. By using this concept, the audience puts aside their knowledge that everything on the stage not real. Instead they believe the story, what they are seeing and the reliability of what is happening on stage as ‘real’. This means that during the performance, Sebastian is believed to be male. The ‘willing suspension of disbelief’ is an important and defining component of theatre making and practice.

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18th Century print of Olivia meeting Cesario (Viola disguised as a boy) for the first time

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18th Century print of Olivia meeting Cesario (Viola disguised as a boy) for the first time

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Twelfth Night Characters and Plot Summary

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What's in a name? Learn the meanings of the character names in Twelfth Night

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What's in a name? Learn the meanings of the character names in Twelfth Night

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As we begin our second read-through and deeper dive into Twelfth Night, let's take a moment and take a look at the names. Some are fitting, some not, some seemingly unrelated at all.

Olivia
the Latin "olive"
according to some reports,Twelfth Night is the first appearance of the name

Viola
variant of Violet, the flower
Note: Viola's name under disguise,Cesario, is derived both from Caesar, and Latin for "head of hair; hairy"

Maria
from the Latin, possibly from "sea," "male," or Mars
or from the Semitic "beloved" or "beloved lady"
Despite Viola disguising herself as a male, Maria is the most aggressively "male" females in the play, pushing forward the ridiculing of Malvolio; and she is, of course, beloved of Sir Toby.

Orsino
from the Latin "bear"
Ironic use of name? Or perhaps this is a reference to a Florentine count, Don Virginio Orsino, who visited Elizabeth's court in January of 1601, which some critics have used as a rationale behind the title of the play (Twelfth Night being the Epiphany, or January 5/6th).

Malvolio
from the Italian "ill will"
Pretty much sums up the character, just as the name ofRomeo and Juliet's Benvolio's ("good will") summed up his.

Sebastian
from the Greek meaning "venerable" and also "awe, reverence, dread"
variant of the Greek translation of the title Augustus
Saint Sebastian, a third-century Christian martyr
Note: Sebastian makes reference to another name,Roderigo, which is derived both from the Germanic for "noted" and the Spanish for "notable leader"
Did Sebastian call himself Roderigo before the shipwreck, and only after the supposed death of his twin (re)take on the given name of his father?

Antonio
from the Latin family name Antonius
though there is no true definition, "priceless" and "of inestimable worth" are popular definitions
Ironic as the character treats Sebastian as if he were priceless, but that care and love are unrequited.

Feste
no clear name derivation, but for the clown/fool, obviously a link to "festive" or "festivity"

Toby
the Middle English variant of Tobias, the Greek version of the HebrewToviah, "Good is Yahweh"
also Scottish GaelicTobar Mhoire meaning "Mary's well"

Andrew
from the Greek "man" meaning "manly"
Ironic, needless to say.

Of course, these last two are more important for their comic surnames, Belch and Aguecheek (the man has the jaundiced look of a man with malaria),

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Twelfth Night: Names - The Bill / Shakespeare Project

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As we begin our second read-through and deeper dive into Twelfth Night , let's take a moment and take a look at the names. Some are fitting, some not, some seemingly unrelated at all.

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Famous quotes | Twelfth Night | Royal Shakespeare Company

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Well known quotations from Shakespeare's comedy play, Twelfth Night.

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IN CINEMASTwelfth Night will be broadcast live to cinemas on 14 February 2018

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IN CINEMASTwelfth Night will be broadcast live to cinemas on 14 February 2018

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Twelfth Night | Cinema Trailer | Royal Shakespeare Company

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William Hamilton painting of Twelfth Night Act V, Scene 1

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William Hamilton painting of Twelfth Night Act V, Scene 1

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The final scene of Twelfth Night is a crazy one with identify confusion and great comedy!

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Iambic Pentameter

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Why Shakespeare loved iambic pentameter - David T. Freeman and Gregory Taylor

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Animated video summarizing Twelfth Night

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Animated video summarizing Twelfth Night

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Will Viola take off her disguise and tell the truth? Watch this story, one of our 'Shakespeare Lives' videos, and find out!