January 29, 2008
A tale of romance, comedy and much confusion was put on by the Buckingham sixth-grade Pen Players.
Buckingham Elementary students recently performed William Shakespeare’s "Twelfth Night."
When the curtain opened, the audience was taken to the setting of Illyria. A range of cast members with distinctive personalities helped make the play memorable.
"Twelfth Night" begins with a shipwreck off the coast of Illyria, where twins Viola and Sebastian are separated. Viola is saved by the ship’s captain, but fears her brother has drowned. Afraid it would be dangerous to be a female in a foreign land, Viola has the captain help disguise her as a young man by the name of Cesario. Cesario becomes employed as a page for Duke Orsino.
The duke is in love with Lady Olivia, but Olivia will have nothing to do with the duke or any other man because she is in mourning of her recently deceased brother. In the meantime, Viola, pretending to be Cesario, has fallen in love with the duke, a situation that presents her with problems throughout the play.
Confusion and twisted love triangles ensue.
When the play ended, the jester led a song, and the whole cast joined. The students then performed a last dance to the song "How Sweet It Is." It was a way to say thanks to the parents for all of their hard work on building the set, sewing costumes and helping students memorize lines.
Judging by the reaction of the audience, everyone was pleased.
