What would our world look like without William Shakespeare?
Granted, there’s the relief of thousands of students in a pickle over their homework assignments, but, realistically, our world would be very different without the Bard. In addition to the scores of well-known stories based on his plays – among them “West Side Story” (“Romeo & Juliet”), “The Lion King” (“Hamlet”) and “Succession” (“King Lear”), Shakespeare is prevalent everywhere in modern life. We commonly drop phrases like “the world is my oyster,” “wear your heart on your sleeve,” “love is blind” and … OK. Point made. Brevity is the soul of wit. Shakespeare’s influence is epic.
If you go
WHAT: Merely Players presents “The Book of Will.”
WHEN: Sept. 27-Oct. 6.
WHERE: Merely Underground, 789 Tech Center Drive.
TICKETS: $32-$36, available online at merelyplayers.org.
MORE INFORMATION: Visit merelyplayers.org.
What is not common knowledge, however, is that Shakespeare’s plays were almost lost. Three years after his death in 1616, his original scripts were scattered, and his plays were being pirated and bastardized all over London. All is lost. That is until the last remaining King’s Men, the actors for whom Will originally penned his plays, undertook the herculean feat of collecting all 36 of his plays and publishing them in “The First Folio.” (Well, all of them except “Pericles.”)
Merely Players breaks the ice with our season opener, Lauren Gunderson’s “The Book of Will.” It is the inspired story of how Shakespeare’s plays were rescued from oblivion; and, although the ending is already known, the journey that these historic characters take is not a foregone conclusion, is a wild-goose chase and finds us waiting with bated breath to watch them succeed.
The play finds Shakespeare’s colleagues scouring the city and overcoming monumental obstacles to collect and publish their dearly departed best friend Will’s complete works as they were originally written and performed. Assisted by wives, daughters, sons, mistresses and more than a handful of fellow theatricians, whether friend or foe, the cast of characters unite to ensure that his genius is saved for future generations. To tell the story, Merely Players brings together some of Durango’s finest to portray these historical personages and surround them with superb scenery, costumes and other elements of tech wizardry.
“The Book of Will” is more than just a historical recounting. It’s a tribute to those upon whom Shakespeare had a profound effect, both directly and indirectly, for centuries to come. It explores themes of love, loss, life, death, trouble and joy that are universal. The play, like Shakespeare’s plays themselves, is told with a blend of comedy and tragedy. It’s a love letter to the theater, where the magic of a once-in-a- lifetime, never-to-be-repeated experience, lives on long after the actors bow and the curtain drops. We hope that you will join Merely Players at a performance of this stunning play as we continue our tradition of bringing exciting scripts to our community and suit the action to the word.
Matt Bodo is a local writer and actor and appears as Henry Condell in Merely Players' production of “The Book of Will.”
